Jackson Rushes for 290 Yards in Auburn Win

Auburn Coach Pat Dye wanted to get a long look at Bo Jackson, but Jackson kept cutting things short with touchdowns runs.

Jackson, a senior All-American, rushed for three touchdowns in the first quarter and finished with 290 yards on 23 carries and four scores Saturday as No. 2 Auburn beat Southwestern Louisiana, 49-7, before more than 60,000 fans Jordan-Hare Stadium.

“I had a feeling we would be pretty good offensively,” Dye said. “One thing we did differently today is that we played the front line a little longer to see how long Bo could run.

“If we get mistake-free, we can move the ball on any team we play.”

Dye scrapped the wishbone for the I-formation this season to take advantage of Jackson’s talents, although the Tigers probably could have used the single wing against the Ragin’ Cajuns (0-2).

Auburn had 695 yards in total offense as Brent Fullwood, Jackson’s backup, rushed for 173 yards, including a 70-yard touchdown to close out the scoring in the fourth quarter.

The Ragin’ Cajuns had 187 yards in total offense.

Auburn built a 35-0 halftime lead as Jackson rushed for 206 yards in 10 carries.

Jackson, who missed half of last season with a shoulder injury, ran for touchdowns of 7, 47 and 76 yards in the opening quarter, piling up 181 yards in six carries as Auburn took a 21-0 lead.

Dye, still not settled on a No. 1 quarterback, then brought in his third signal-caller, 1984 starter Pat Washington. Washington completed a five-yard scoring pass to Kyle Collins to put Auburn ahead, 28-0, with 10 minutes left in the half.

The Tigers made it 35-0 five minutes later when starting quarterback Bobby Walden completed a 15-yard touchdown pass to Lee Mark Sellers on a broken play.

Jackson scored his fourth touchdown on a 12-yard run. He left the game early in the fourth quarter.

“It’s hard to compare Bo to anybody we’ve played against,” Southwestern Louisiana Coach Sam Robertson said.

The Ragin’ Cajuns, who lost, 37-6, to Memphis State in their opener last Saturday, scored after Clarence Glenn intercepted his second pass of the day and ran it to the Auburn 15.

Running back Dwayne Williams took a pitchout from quarterback Thomas King and passed back to King for a 15-yard touchdown.