Auburn quarterback Robby Ashford bounced back from an inauspicious first quarter that saw him get temporarily benched to nearly helping his team overcome a 21-0 deficit in Saturday’s 48-34 loss against Ole Miss at Vaught-Hemmingway Stadium.

Ashford, in his fourth college start and second on the road, threw an interception to Rebels’ free safety A.J Finley on 1st and ten from the Auburn 46 with the score tied 0-0 at the 6:46 mark in the first quarter. Ashford intended the pass for running back Tank Bigsby, and Finley made a diving catch.

Ole Miss took the lead two plays later on Jaxon Dart 35 yard touchdown pass to Dayton Wade. Ashford lost nine yards recovering a fumbled snap on 1st and 10 during the ensuing drive. He got seven yards back scrambling on the next play, but an errant pass sailed away on third down. Ole Miss took advantage of good field position, scored on the drive after the setbacks, and had a 14-0 lead against Auburn.

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Auburn head coach Bryan Harsin benched Ashford for the following series. T.J. Finley saw his first action since exiting the Penn State 29-point loss with a shoulder injury on Auburn’s next series. Finley fumbled on a third-down sack, and Ole Miss converted the turnover into another touchdown and had a 21-0 lead.

Harsin went back to Ashford, who at that point was 1-6 passing for five yards with the Tigers down 21-0 against a hot Ole Miss team. Ashford rewarded Harsin’s faith with a 46-yard pass to Koy Moore on 3rd and 15 from the Tigers’ 32-yard line. The Oregon transfer capped a nine-play 75-yard drive with a two-yard touchdown run with 10:46 left in the half.

“To me, as a quarterback, that’s how you should handle it,” Harsin said about Ashford’s response. “You should get in there, and you have a responsibility to go out there and lead the team and execute your assignment. You have a responsibility to go out there and do that. He’s going to touch the ball every single play.”

Ashford’s second rushing touchdown pulled the Tigers to a 38-31 deficit with 2:30 left in the third quarter. Despite being down by three touchdowns, there was an opportunity for Auburn to escape with its seventh consecutive win against the Rebels’.

“I know he had put a ball on the ground and thrown a pick,” Auburn linebacker Owen Pappoe said. “But he didn’t quit. He kept playing hard. He kept walking up to us every time we got off the field, saying, ‘I got y’all. Y’all just go out there and get the stop.’ I love the energy that he brought to us, especially when we came into the locker room at the half.”

Ashford threw an interception on Auburn’s final offensive play. The Tigers were trailing by two touchdowns with less than three minutes in the game, but Ashford went down fighting until the end.

“He did a good job extending some plays, too. He scrambled; we had some big throws down the field and also taking off and running,” Harsin said. “He had that one at the end there where had the first down — that was a big play on fourth down. We’re in a position where we have to go — we have to put two touchdowns on the board there — and he got the first down for us. He utilized his legs well; he competed; made some good decisions down the field; found some open guys.”

Nubyjas Wilborn covers Auburn for Alabama Media Group.