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AUBURN, Ala. – The Samford football team dropped a 31-7 decision at 14
th-ranked Auburn in the Bulldogs' 2014 season finale Saturday night at Jordan-Hare Stadium.
"I couldn't be more proud of the effort the players put into this game," Samford head coach
Pat Sullivan said. "That was a good football team that we played. Our guys never quit, and I couldn't be more proud of them."
In the loss for Samford offensively, quarterback
Michael Eubank completed 15-of-29 passes for 125 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions.
Karel Hamilton caught five passes for 67 yards.
Tony Philpot caught one pass for a seven-yard touchdown from Eubank.
Denzel Williams rushed 15 times for 41 yards.
Defensively for Samford,
Jamerson Blount and
Trey Wesley had nine tackles each. Wesley also had a forced fumble.
James Bradberry had an interception to go along with his five tackles. On special teams,
Greg Peranich averaged 41.2 yards on six punts.
"I'm really proud of our kids for the way they came in here and fought and the way they played the game," Samford assistant head coach and defensive coordinator
Bill D'Ottavio said. "They had a lot of energy and intensity."
For Auburn, Cameron Artis-Payne rushed 24 times for 129 yards and a touchdown. Nick Marshall completed 11-of-18 passes for 171 yards, one touchdown and one interception. Quan Bray caught four passes for 56 yards.
The Auburn defense was led by Kris Frost with 13 tackles and an interception. Jonathan Mincy also had an interception, to go along with his six tackles.
The teams fought through a scoreless first quarter. In the first period, the defenses dominated as the two teams combined for just 85 yards (52 for Samford and 33 for Auburn).
Samford put the first points on the scoreboard midway through the second quarter. Eubank hit Philpot for a seven-yard touchdown to give the Bulldogs a 7-0 advantage with 7:49 to go in the second quarter.
Auburn answered on its next possession. Bray scored on a 23-yard run with 6:50 remaining in the quarter to knot the score at 7-7. The Tigers took the lead for good when Daniel Carlson kicked a 29-yard field goal to make the score 10-7 with 2:24 left before halftime.
The Tigers added one final score before halftime. Artis-Payne scored on a seven-yard run to push Auburn's lead to 17-7 with 39 seconds left in the second quarter.
In the third quarter, Auburn's Corey Grant scored on a 13-yard run with 8:36 left in the quarter to make the score 24-7. In the fourth quarter, Roc Thomas scored on a one-yard run with 8:44 to go in the game to make the final score 31-7.
As a team, Samford finished with 238 yards of total offense, compared to 386 total yards for Auburn. Samford had the ball for 30:03, with Auburn holding the ball for 29:57.
With the loss, Samford ends its season with a record of 7-4. Auburn improves to 8-3 with the win.
