ULM went into Jordan-Hare Stadium with an upset on their mind, but the Tigers closed that dream quickly in the second half. Auburn handled the Warhawks with some defensive stops on its way to a 42-14 thumping. Senior safety Roland Jenkins shined for the Warhawks with six tackles and one interception.

“We came out and got after them and competed really, really hard,” ULM head coach Matt Viator said. We were right there in it for a good while.

ULM put a scare in the fans of Auburn as they scored on its opening possession of the first quarter. The Warhawks offensive coordinator called a crafty play on fourth down to cap off a 75-yard drive. On a reverse play on fourth down, senior wide receiver Brian Williams r

eceived the end around from junior wide receiver Marcus Green and walked in for the score tying the game at seven. The defense played some inspired football as senior safety Roland Jenkins picked off Auburn quarterback Jarett Stidham.

“We came in with it on our mind to be prepared for anything and give it all you’ve got,” ULM free safety Roland Jenkins said. “We all feel as if we can compete with anybody in this country.”

This turnover set the tone for ULM in their efforts to shock the college football world.  ULM forced its first three and out of the game in the first quarter. Auburn moved the ball will ease up and down the field, but their drives would stall, and ULM would take over deep in their own territory.

The fast-paced offense for the Tigers was slowing down as the Warhawks confused the offense with different defensive looks. On offense ULM had some success in the first quarter and looked to build on some much-needed momentum heading into the second quarter.

At the start of the second quarter ULM held their own on defense. Auburns offense couldn’t find their groove as Jordan-Hare Stadium suddenly got quiet and fans wondered what was going on with their football team. Auburn would eventually wake up from the early kick-off as Stidham threw a 50-yard bomb to his receiver to take the lead 14-7 with about two minutes to play in the first half.

The Warhawks would run the clock out and go into halftime only down by seven, making a statement that they weren’t going to be pushed around.

“We had on our mind, it doesn’t matter who is in front of us,” ULM receiver Brian Williams added. “We’re going to come out and compete,

ULM received the ball in the second half and couldn’t move the ball down the field. The Tigers were fired up coming into the second half as they were trying to break  the game open. Auburn showed their dominance by disrupting some passing lanes for sophomore quarterback Caleb Evans who had a tough outing during the game. He was later pulled by the coaching staff as Junior quarterback Garrett Smith filled in to run the offense.

Smith came in and threw 2 costly interceptions and one that was returned for a touchdown by the Tigers to make the score 35-7. On the ensuing possession the Warhawks finally put some points on the board. Brian Williams caught a slant rout and took it 70-yards for a touchdown as he broke away from the secondary. On the day Williams had 3 catches for 85 yards with 2 touchdowns, (one on the ground).

The Warhawks will welcome conference foe Arkansas State to Malone stadium on Saturday, Nov. 25. Kick-off is scheduled for 2p.m.