BATON ROUGE — Two things are certain when LSU and Auburn meet on the football field. First, it’s a competitive game where the stakes are normally high. Secondly, fans have come to expect the unexpected.
The following is look at some of the most memorable LSU-Auburn games in recent history, beginning with the “Earthquake Game” in 1988:
1988 — “The Earthquake Game”
LSU 7, Auburn 6
Oct. 8 * Tiger Stadium
LSU quarterback Tommy Hodson connected with Eddie Fuller in the back of the endzone with just over a minute left in the contest to lead the Tigers to a 7-6 win over fourth-ranked Auburn. That moment will forever be know as the night the Tigers moved the Earth as the play caused such a thunderous explosion from the 79,341 fans in the stadium that the LSU Department of Geology registered vibrations on a seismograph machine at the exact moment the touchdown was scored. That play propelled the Tigers to a share of the 1988 Southeastern Conference title as LSU went on to post an 8-4 overall mark, which included a 6-1 league mark.
1994 — “The Interception Game”
Auburn 30, LSU 26
Sept. 17 * Jordan-Hare Stadium
Auburn intercepted six passes, returning three for fourth quarter touchdowns, as the Tigers rallied for a 30-26 win over LSU in Jordan-Hare Stadium. LSU, behind outstanding defensive play and a 76-yard TD pass from Jamie Howard to Brett Bech, led 10-9 at halftime. The Tigers stretched the lead to 23-9 early in the fourth quarter when Andre Lafleur converted his third field goal of the game. However, the tide quickly turned on LSU as Auburn’s defense picked off three Howard passes over an 11-minute span, returning all three for touchdowns to give the Tigers an unlikely 30-26 victory in what has become known as the “Interception Game”.
1995 — “Bring Back the Magic”
LSU 12, Auburn 6
Sept. 16 * Tiger Stadium
LSU donned white jerseys at home for the first time since the early 1980’s and promptly went out and upset fifth-ranked Auburn, 12-6, in Tiger Stadium in what has become known as the “Bring Back the Magic Game”. Inspired by senior quarter Jamie Howard, who a year earlier had thrown six interceptions in a loss to Auburn, sparked the Tigers to 12 quick first quarter points. From there, the Tiger defense went to work, holding Auburn to only 274 yards of offense and a pair of field goals in the contest. LSU didn’t clinch the victory until the games final play as defensive back Troy Twillie intercepted a Patrick Nix pass in the back of the endzone to preserve the LSU victory.
1996 — “The Night the Barn Burned”
LSU 19, Auburn 15
Sept. 21 * Jordan-Hare Stadium
With the old Auburn Sports Arena burning to the ground a couple hundred yards away from Jordan-Hare Stadium, it was the LSU defense that caught fire in leading the Tigers to a 19-15 win over Auburn in a game dubbed, “The Night the Barn Burned”. LSU’s defense came up with big play after big play in the game as the Tigers held Auburn to only 266 yards of offense in the contest. Raion Hill returned an interception 39 yards for a fourth quarter touchdown to give LSU a 17-15 advantage. Auburn responded with a touchdown with 38 seconds left to pull the score to within 17-15. Auburn was then forced to try to tie the game with a 2-point conversion, however Hill came up with another big play, intercepting a Jon Cooley pass and returning it the length of the field for a defensive PAT securing a 19-15 win for LSU.
1997 — “The Comeback”
Auburn 31, LSU 28
Sept. 20 * Tiger Stadium
Auburn quarterback Dameyune Craig guided his team on a 10-play, 80-yard scoring drive capped with a 1-yard Rusty Williams TD run with 30 seconds left in a 31-28 win over LSU in Tiger Stadium in what has become known as “The Comeback”. Prior to the game-winning Auburn drive, LSU had just taken its first lead of the contest, 28-24, on a 42-yard run by Cecil “The Diesel” Collins. The Auburn comeback overshadowed one of the best rushing games in Tiger Stadium history as Collins ran for 232 yards and two touchdowns in the LSU defeat. Rondell Mealey added 129 yards on the ground as LSU piled up 492 yards of offense against Auburn.
2001 — “Champions At Last”
LSU 27, Auburn 14
Dec. 1 * Tiger Stadium
LSU claimed a berth in the Southeastern Conference Championship for the first time as the Tigers posted a 27-14 win over Auburn in Tiger Stadium to cap the 2001 season. The LSU-Auburn game had been postponed from earlier in the season with the 9/11 attacks on the United States forced the postponement of college football games across the country on Sept. 15. With the SEC Western Division title on the line, LSU responded in grand fashion as LaBrandon Toefield rushed for 120 yards and scored his SEC-record tying 19th rushing TD of the season and Josh Reed caught 10 passes for 186 yards in the Tiger victory. LSU jumped on Auburn early as the Tigers used some trickery, opting for an on-side kick on the game’s first play. LSU recovered and scored six plays later for a 7-0 lead. Auburn responded with a 72-yard TD pass from Jason Campbell to Tim Carter on its first possession to tie the game at 7-7. From there it was all LSU as the Tigers increased the lead to 14-7 early in the first quarter on a Rohan Davey to Reed pass. LSU stretched the margin to 21-7 just before halftime on a 7-yard run by Domanick Davis. A pair of field goals by John Corbello put the game out of reach at 27-7 early in the fourth quarter.
2004 — “The Call”
Auburn 10, LSU 9
Sept. 18 * Jordan-Hare Stadium
In the most recent of the unexpected happenings in an LSU-Auburn football game, LSU was whistled for a penalty on what was a missed Auburn extra point that would have left the game between the top 20 teams tied at 9-9 with less than two minutes left in the contest. However, Auburn didn’t miss the second attempt as the Tigers snapped LSU’s 10-game winning streak with a 10-9 victory at Jordan-Hare Stadium. The Auburn TD capped a contest that saw the LSU defense hold Auburn in check, limiting the Tigers to just 301 yards of offense, including only 131 yards on the ground. The LSU defense held Auburn’s running back tandem of Carnell Williams (75 yards) and Ronnie Brown (67 yards) to 142 combined yards, 70 yards below their season average. LSU appeared to be in good shape early in the contest, taking the opening kickoff and marching 80 yards on 14 plays for a 6-0 lead following a Marcus Randall 9-yard TD pass to Dwayne Bowe. LSU’s Ryan Gaudet pushed the PAT wide right, a point that would come back to haunt LSU. Auburn responded with a 14-play drive of its own that ended with a field goal. LSU, with JaMarcus Russell at QB, answered right back, going 55 yards on eight plays, capped with a 42-yard Chris Jackson field goal. That’s all the scoring either team would get until the final minutes of the contest. LSU did have its chances in the second half, getting inside the Auburn 35-yard line twice, but the Tigers failed to capitalize on the opportunity. Alley Broussard led all running back with 84 yards on 10 carries, while Randall and Russell combined to hit on 12 of 28 passes for 168 yards and a TD.