The story was so similar to previous nights this season for Auburn. The losing streak extended to four games as Auburn fell 28-21 to No. 13 Ole Miss. Auburn is now 3-4 this season.

This night was full of lows for head coach Hugh Freeze’s team in a game where it was somehow in it, at least on the scoreboard. The stat sheet would say otherwise. But the takeaways from tonight are more about the mood of the stadium than anything. This was a moment to look at the big picture.

Let’s get into takeaways.

The fans booed Auburn off the field multiple times

This was the moment the Hugh Freeze honeymoon fully wore off. For so long, this team had been bound by this giant optimism surrounding a new a coach and a new hope for a down-trodden Auburn

For weeks, fans have expressed patience in the moments of struggle for this offense. There were recruiting wins to think about coming down the road. This is a long-term building process.

And while the process is still long-term, recruiting wins still there, that honeymoon where Freeze could do no wrong is gone.

Late in the third quarter and early in the fourth quarter, the boos came. It was the first time any boos had been directed toward this Auburn team under the new coaching administration.

The boos were warranted.

Auburn’s offense was horrible once again, more on that below. But this was a moment this frustrated fanbase has been trending toward, and finally arrived.

The failed Holden Geriner double-pass and the boos that followed, the very first boos of a night of hope that turned ugly.

This was the rock bottom of this season so far.

This loss was not on Auburn’s talent gap that Freeze talks so often about. This loss was on coaching. It’s the second straight week coaching has been the root issue.

Your scheduled update on Auburn’s bad offense

Ole Miss’ aggressiveness and Auburn’s defense stepping up after a slow start gave this offense a chance to win this game.

And it absolutely could not take advantage of it.

Ole Miss allowed Auburn to hang in this game more than Auburn kept itself in it. The offense had to help the defense. It just had to. It hasn’t been able to help or pull its weight all year and that continued Saturday night.

During a crucial stretch where Auburn’s defense forced seven straight empty Ole Miss possessions, Auburn only had a possession that lasted more than two minutes once and went three-and-out four times. The chance was there, and the offense didn’t take a hold of it.

Auburn gained 53 total yards over the eight drives after its five play, 75 yard touchdown drive in the first quarter.

Nor did it matter which quarterback played, the passing offense was totally ineffective and neither seemed to provide a spark. Freeze tried something new, starting Robby Ashford in place of Payton Thorne. It didn’t matter.

Truly, the low came in the third quarter when Auburn tried a double-pass to Holden Geriner and he was sacked because of a missed block, followed by the offense being booed off the field.

Auburn’s offense continuing to be this bad seems indicative of fundamental flaws. They aren’t getting fixed this season.

Auburn’s defense steps up, mostly

There’s only so much they can do.

Auburn’s defense did not allow Ole Miss to score at all in the second and until the very last second of the third quarter. It got turnovers and key stops throughout the middle stretch of the game.

But just as it did against Texas A&M, the damn broke.

After Ole Miss scored on each of its first two possessions, the defense stepped up and forced the following stretch for Ole Miss’ offense: INT, punt, turnover on downs, punt, end of first half, turnover on downs, punt, punt.

That’s exactly what Auburn’s defense had to do to give its bad offense a chance. But in a game where it was on the field for about 10 minutes more than the offense, that was never going to hold up all day.

Auburn forced turnovers. It was an extended heroic effort for the defense. Getting cornerback Keionte Scott back from an ankle injury made a huge difference.

And it was all washed away by an incompetent offense and the moment where exhaustion against a superior side won out.

Ole Miss had an eight-play, 90-yard touchdown drive followed by a nine-play, 68-yard drive.

Those are backbreakers.

Matt Cohen covers Auburn sports for AL.com. You can follow him on Twitter at @Matt_Cohen_ or email him at [email protected]