Auburn escaped a historic upset Saturday in beating Jacksonville State 27-20 in overtime, requiring a shanked punt late in regulation time to recover from a 20-13 deficit in the final minutes of regulation.
In the biggest FCS-FBS upset bid since Appalachian State finished the task against Michigan in 2007, JSU came up just short in its bid to become the first FCS team to beat a ranked FBS team since Aug. 31, 2013, when Eastern Washington beat No. 25 Oregon State, 49-46.
Quarterback Eli Jenkins outplayed Auburn's new starter, Jeremy Johnson, with 277 yards passing, and confounded the Auburn defense with his execution of the Gamecocks' read-option offense. Johnson threw two interceptions, and a fourth-quarter fumble by Auburn's Roc Thomas gave JSU possession with a 20-13 lead in the final minutes. However, the Tigers defense forced a punt (which was shanked and went for 17 yards), and Johnson found Melvin Ray for a 10-yard touchdown pass with 0:39 remaining to force overtime.
Auburn is the No. 6-ranked team in the nation according to the latest AP Top 25 poll.
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