Ground game powers Auburn win over Kentucky

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Top 25 Overview

It was over when... Auburn scored 21 points in the second quarter en route to a commanding 28-10 lead at the half. Gameball goes to... The Tigers' running game. Kenny Irons, Tristan Davis and Tre Smith combined for 365 yards rushing and five TDs. Stat of the game... 15: Kentucky's losing streak to Auburn, which dates back to 1966. Complete Top 25 Overview

Team Stat Comparison
1st Downs	24	20
Total Yards	589	450
Passing	201	335
Rushing	388	115
Penalties	8-70	7-72
3rd Down Conversions	9-13	6-16
4th Down Conversions	1-1	2-2
Turnovers	2	1
Possession	32:53	27:07

Individual Leaders

Auburn Passing   C/ATT YDS TD INT Cox 13/21 201 1 0	Kentucky Passing   C/ATT YDS TD INT Woodson 26/43 335 1 1
Auburn Rushing   CAR YDS TD LG Davis 8 162 1 75 Irons 23 103 3 17 Smith 13 99 1 46	Kentucky Rushing   CAR YDS TD LG Little 17 124 2 30 Woodson 7 -2 0 15 Beach 3 -7 0 1
Auburn Receiving   REC YDS TD LG Rodriguez 3 79 1 41 Obomanu 3 32 0 13 Mix 2 28 0 19 Irons 1 18 0 18	Kentucky Receiving   REC YDS TD LG Burton 7 100 1 53 Little 6 122 0 65 Tamme 5 42 0 19 Holt Jr. 4 32 0 12

Scoring Summary
FIRST QUARTER				AUB	UK
	TD	12:11	RAFAEL LITTLE 25 YD RUN (TAYLOR BEGLEY KICK) Drive info: 4 plays, 36 yards.	0	7
	TD	7:08	KENNY IRONS 9 YD RUN (JOHN VAUGHN KICK) Drive info: 12 plays, 80 yards.	7	7
SECOND QUARTER				AUB	UK
	TD	13:39	KENNY IRONS 1 YD RUN (JOHN VAUGHN KICK) Drive info: 14 plays, 69 yards.	14	7
	FG	10:18	TAYLOR BEGLEY 25 YD FG Drive info: 9 plays, 73 yards.	14	10
	TD	7:54	PRECHAE RODRIGUEZ 41 YD PASS FROM BRANDON COX (JOHN VAUGHN KICK) Drive info: 5 plays, 80 yards.	21	10
	TD	0:56	KENNY IRONS 2 YD RUN (JOHN VAUGHN KICK) Drive info: 7 plays, 48 yards.	28	10
THIRD QUARTER				AUB	UK
	TD	10:04	TRISTAN DAVIS 75 YD RUN (JOHN VAUGHN KICK) Drive info: 1 plays, 75 yards.	35	10
	TD	8:33	RAFAEL LITTLE 2 YD RUN (TAYLOR BEGLEY KICK) Drive info: 5 plays, 80 yards.	35	17
FOURTH QUARTER				AUB	UK
	TD	10:14	PRECHAE RODRIGUEZ 5 YD RUN (JOHN VAUGHN KICK) Drive info: 10 plays, 81 yards.	42	17
	TD	8:03	KEENAN BURTON 11 YD PASS FROM ANDRE' WOODSON (TAYLOR BEGLEY KICK) Drive info: 7 plays, 65 yards.	42	24
	FG	4:03	TAYLOR BEGLEY 27 YD FG Drive info: 9 plays, 43 yards.	42	27
	TD	1:35	TRE SMITH 46 YD RUN (JOHN VAUGHN KICK) Drive info: 6 plays, 80 yards.	49	27

LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) -- It really didn't matter who played tailback for Auburn against Kentucky on Saturday -- they just kept piling up yards.

Kenny Irons, Tristan Davis and Tre Smith combined for 364 yards rushing and five touchdowns as No. 17 Auburn posted its best offensive output of the season in a 49-27 win over the Wildcats.

Irons carried 23 times for 103 yards and three touchdowns, all in the first half, while Davis added 162 yards and a touchdown on eight carries and the Tigers (7-2, 5-1 Southeastern Conference) prepped for a showdown next Saturday at No. 11 Georgia.

Smith had 13 carries for 99 yards, including a 46-yard fourth-quarter touchdown run. Had he gained one more yard, Auburn would have had a trio of 100-yard rushers for the first time since 1983.

"We played a lot of guys, got a lot of experience," Auburn coach Tommy Tuberville said. "It's not one of those where you jump up and down and say you played a great game. But sometimes you have to play games like that and win, especially on the road."

Kentucky (2-6, 1-4) has lost 15 straight games to Auburn, dating to 1966, but scored more points against the Tigers than any other team this season. Auburn entered the game ranked fourth in NCAA Division I-A in total defense, while Kentucky ranked 108th in total offense. The Tigers had allowed a total of 47 points in five previous SEC games.

Auburn had 589 yards of offense, wearing down the Wildcats with touchdown drives of 80, 69, 80, 75, 81 and 80 yards. Irons scored on runs of 9, 1 and 2 yards, while Davis -- a part-time defensive back who had only two previous carries this season -- took over in the second half and sprinted 75 yards for a score the first time he touched the football.

"I'd probably say my future is at running back," Davis said.

Receiver Prechae Rodriguez caught a 41-yard touchdown pass in the first half and also scored on a 5-yard reverse play in the fourth quarter.

Kentucky tailback Rafael Little, the SEC's leader in all-purpose yards, rushed 17 times for 124 yards and two touchdowns and caught six passes for 122 yards. He became the first Kentucky player to record at least 100 yards rushing and receiving in the same game since Anthony White against South Carolina on Oct. 10, 1998.

"When this thing gets done and we get the pieces in place, then he might get the recognition he deserves," Kentucky coach Rich Brooks said. "I think he's one of the best running backs in the league."

Andre Woodson completed 26-of-43 passes for a career-high 335 yards, the first time a Kentucky quarterback had passed for at least 300 yards in a game since Jared Lorenzen did so in a seven-overtime loss to Arkansas on Nov. 1, 2003.

Little's 25-yard touchdown run, after Kentucky's Arliss Beach recovered a fumbled punt, put Kentucky up 7-0 less than three minutes into the game. Auburn responded with touchdowns on four of its first five possessions to take a 28-10 halftime lead.

Irons' first touchdown tied the score. It came one play after officials ruled Auburn receiver Ben Obomanu was down and didn't fumble after catching a pass. The play was reviewed and upheld.

Irons scored on fourth-and-goal from the 1 to put Auburn up 14-7. Kentucky pulled within 14-10 on a 25-yard field goal from Taylor Begley, but then Auburn caught another break from the officials midway through the second quarter.

Rodriguez went out of bounds, then came back in before catching a 41-yard pass from Brandon Cox and stepping into the end zone.

An offensive player who goes out of bounds on a play cannot be the first player to touch the football after coming back inbounds, but officials ruled that Kentucky cornerback Antoine Huffman blocked Rodriguez out of bounds and allowed the touchdown to stand. Replays showed Rodriguez had pushed Huffman before going out of bounds, but that wasn't reviewable.

Brooks said it was "obvious (offensive) pass interference" but added that "I know we're not going to get any breaks on this stuff."

Kentucky coaches protested the call so much they drew two personal fouls, and a few fans threw items onto the Commonwealth Stadium field. When officials exited the field at halftime, a dozen uniformed officers were present on the field and in the stands for crowd-control purposes.

Kentucky athletic department spokesman Scott Stricklin said neither the officiating crew nor the replay official would comment about their calls.