Observations: Texas A&M 31, Auburn 20

The 2020 Tigers lost another game to a ranked team. But *how* it happened was different — which only increases the frustrations in Auburn.

HC Gus Malzahn (Shanna Lockwood/Auburn Athletics)

The stage was set for Auburn to get the win that Auburn often gets.

The Tigers were at home, needing a victory to calm down some of the noise surrounding the program. They overcame some mistakes and poor execution on their own part to get a lead heading into the fourth quarter.

Auburn had taken advantage of some patented Home Field Goal Magic, a truly wild touchdown and a resurgent running game. All the Tigers needed to do was finish out the 60 minutes like they had all season, and a top-5 upset was theirs.

Instead, Auburn fell absolutely flat in the fourth quarter Saturday and took a 31-20 loss to Texas A&M.

Gus Malzahn’s team is now staring down the barrel of a disappointing 2020 season that could still get worse from here. Here are five Observations from what went down in a rough home finale for the 2020 Tigers and their senior class.

The run defense hasn’t been that bad in a long time

While Kellen Mond was quite efficient — 18-for-23 f…