Finley comes off bench to avoid wasting No. 23 Auburn

AUBURN, Ala. — – Shedrick Jackson caught a 10-yard landing go from T.J. Finley with 45 seconds remaining, and No. 23 Auburn rallied to beat Georgia State 34-24 on Saturday.

Auburn trailed Georgia State by 12 factors at halftime and averted shedding to a Solar Belt workforce for the primary time in program historical past.

Finley, an LSU switch who changed beginning quarterback Bo Nix late within the third quarter, led Auburn (3-1) on a 98-yard scoring drive within the last minutes. Security Smoke Monday sealed the victory, returning an interception 36 yards for a rating on the second play of the following drive.

Led by working again Tucker Gregg, Georgia State (1-3) generated 299 yards of offense and 24 factors earlier than halftime, however was unable so as to add to its lead within the last quarters.

The Tigers’ particular groups began the comeback with a landing off a blocked punt late within the third quarter, and their protection allowed solely 85 yards in a second-half shutout.

THE TAKEAWAY

Auburn: The Tigers averted a disastrous outcome, however the recreation uncovered loads of issues on each side of the ball. Georgia State had the benefit on the line of scrimmage for a lot of the recreation, which is a significant subject for a workforce heading into the beginning of a tricky SEC schedule.

Georgia State: The Panthers will probably be disenchanted to not pull off their second win over an SEC workforce in three years, however they will have plenty of positives to remove from the shut loss. Georgia State appears to have rebounded from its early season offensive struggles, because it has been keyed by a robust floor recreation over the past two weeks.

POLL IMPLICATIONS

The No. 23 Tigers dropped one spot within the ballot after a loss at Penn State final week, however their underwhelming efficiency in opposition to a big underdog may value them their place within the Prime 25.

UP NEXT

Auburn travels to face LSU in its SEC opener on Oct. 2.

Georgia State begins Solar Belt play with a house recreation in opposition to Appalachian State on Saturday.