Towns McGough's 58-yarder propels Auburn football's offense over defense at A-Day
AUBURN — It's no secret who the people came to see.
With Auburn football fans back in Jordan-Hare Stadium for the first time since the Iron Bowl, it took less than 10 plays for five-star freshman Cam Coleman to reel in a 49-yard reception over the middle of the field. Redshirt freshman Hank Brown was on the throwing end of the heave, and Coleman tracked the ball over his head with freshman cornerback Jay Crawford in coverage.
The only issue for the Tigers is there wasn't much production after that, until Coleman decided to make some noise again in the fourth quarter with a 34-yard touchdown catch with a defender draped all over him. Coleman's production helped Auburn's offense top the defense, 28-27. The result marks the end of coach Hugh Freeze's second spring practice on the Plains.
Fans will have to wait more than four months to see the Tigers play again, with the 2024 season set to open against Alabama A&M on Aug. 31.
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Payton Thorne and the QBs
The weather was much better this year — it was a gloomy and rainy day in 2023 — which allowed the Tigers to throw it more often. Coleman's couples of catches were the biggest plays of the day. But Georgia State transfer Robert Lewis also snatched a notable 40-yard reception against Keionte Scott. The throw to Lewis was from Thorne, and it was on the money.
Thorne, the starter, finished 9-for-13 for 133 yards. Backup Holden Geriner completed seven of his 10 throws for 46 yards and Brown was 5-for-12 for 103 yards. True freshman Walker White played some, too, making good on five of his 13 attempts for 83 yards.
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Former Texas safety Jerrin Thompson notched three tackles, with his most impactful being a sack that forced the offense to settle for a field goal. Had Thorne had more time, he had a receiver open over the middle of the field that could've scored a touchdown.
A sneak peak at freshman kicker Towns McGough
Third-year kicker Alex McPherson has been dealing with a minor hamstring injury, so that opened the door for true freshman Towns McGough to show what he's capable of. McGough did just that, connecting on all five of his field goals from 26, 33, 34, 36, 43, 49 and 58 yards away.
The one from 58 yards out served as the game winner.
Richard Silva is the Auburn athletics beat writer for the Montgomery Advertiser. He can be reached via email at rsilva@gannett.com or on X, formerly known as Twitter, @rich_silva18.
This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: Auburn football: A-Day ends with offense winning with Towns McGough
