Central Florida caps 13-0 season, defeats Auburn
ATLANTA — McKenzie Milton threw two touchdown passes and ran for 116 yards and another touchdown, leading No. 10 Central Florida to a 34-27 Peach Bowl win over No. 7 Auburn on Monday that capped the Knights’ perfect season.
UCF led 34-20 before having to stop a late Auburn comeback. Antwan Collier’s interception in the end zone with 24 seconds remaining clinched the win.
After Auburn took a 20-13 lead in the third quarter on a 4-yard run by Kerryon Johnson, Milton threw a 12-yard touchdown pass to Otis Anderson to tie the game. Milton, under pressure, zipped an 8-yard scoring pass to Dredrick Snelson early in the fourth to give the Knights the lead.
Chequan Burkett’s 45-yard interception return for a touchdown pushed the lead to 14 points.
UCF (13-0) won in its final game with coach Scott Frost, who stayed with the team through the bowl game after accepting an offer to become the new coach at Nebraska, his alma mater.
The Knights thought they deserved a higher ranking after winning the American Athletic Conference and leading the nation in scoring, and they made a strong statement by beating Auburn (10-4).
The Knights sacked Auburn quarterback Jarrett Stidham six times. Auburn had only one sack.
Auburn suffered its second straight loss at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, where it was beaten by Georgia in the Southeastern Conference championship game one month ago. The loss to Georgia cost the Tigers a chance to play in the College Football Playoff.
Johnson ran for 71 yards, including a 4-yard touchdown run that gave Auburn the lead in the third quarter.
UCF led 13-6 at halftime despite being held under 14 points at the break for the first time this season.
With 6:58 remaining, Auburn’s Derrick Brown blocked a 25-yard field goal by Matthew Wright that would have given UCF a 10-point lead. But Auburn couldn’t take advantage of the opportunity to tie the game.
After the interception return by Burkett gave UCF a 34-20 lead, Auburn’s Eli Stove had a 7-yard scoring run with about four minutes remaining. By that time, many Auburn fans in the sellout crowd of 71,109 already had left the stadium.
With 2:18 remaining, UCF’s Matthew Wright missed a 38-yard field goal, giving the Tigers an opening for their last-gasp drive, which ended with the interception.
UP NEXT: Central Florida begins a new era with coach Josh Heupel, the former Missouri offensive coordinator. Its opening game has not been set, but they will play at North Carolina on Sept. 15. … Auburn returns for its third straight game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Sept. 1 vs. Washington to open 2018.
UCF 34, AUBURN 27 UCF 0 13 7 14—34 Auburn 3 3 14 7—27 First Quarter AUB—FG D.Carlson 25, 7:01 Second Quarter UCF—FG Wright 33, 11:11 UCF—Milton 18 run (Wright kick), 8:51 AUB—FG D.Carlson 46, :45 UCF—FG Wright 45, :00 Third Quarter AUB—Hastings 26 pass from Stidham (D.Carlson kick), 14:05 AUB—Ker.Johnson 4 run (D.Carlson kick), 7:55 UCF—O.Anderson 12 pass from Milton (Wright kick), 1:30 Fourth
Quarter UCF—Snelson 8 pass from Milton (Wright kick), 11:36 UCF—Burkett 45 interception return (Wright kick), 5:56 AUB—Stove 7 run (D.Carlson kick), 4:12 A—71,109. UCF AUB First downs 20 28 Rushes-yards 36-169 44-90 Passing 242 331 Comp-Att-Int 16-35-0 28-43-2 Return Yards 91 164 Punts-Avg. 5-42.2 5-39.0 Fumbles-Lost 0-0 1-1 Penalties-Yards 8-74 8-61 Time of Possession 25:45 34:15 INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS RUSHING—UCF, Milton 13-116, O.Anderson 11-38, Killins 10-28, (Team) 2-(minus 13). Auburn, Ker.Johnson 22-71, Martin 6-24, Stove 3-23, Barrett 1-(minus 3), Stidham 12-(minus 25). PASSING—UCF, Milton 16-35-0-242. Auburn, Stidham 28-43-2-331. RECEIVING—UCF, T.Smith 5-89, Snelson 4-39, Akins 2-56, G.Davis 2-38, O.Anderson 2-17, Killins 1-3. Auburn, R.Davis 8-47, Hastings 6-117, Slayton 5-69, Craig-Myers 3-54, Cox 2-23, McClain 1-10, Ker.Johnson 1-6, Barrett 1-4, Stove 1-1. MISSED FIELD GOALS—UCF, Wright 35, Wright 38. Auburn, D.Carlson 53.