Simulating Auburn's 2020 season: Texas A&M

Day 97 without Auburn sports.

I rummaged up a copy of NCAA Football 14 for the Xbox 360, downloaded 2020 rosters for every team, set up the schedule, and simulated Auburn's entire 2020 football season — because, at this point, why not?

Video-game depictions of sporting events have become common during the pandemic, and fans seem to eat it up. Look at Barstool Sports' NCAA 14 series, for example, which netted more than 125,000 viewers during a national championship earlier this month.

But our usage of the game will differ slightly. Here are the ground rules, for those who missed the first installment. In short, I don't touch the controller; I let the CPU simulate the game how it will.

Onto the games.

• Bo Nix throws an interception on the first play of the game, looking long for Seth Williams. The Aggies take over at their own 48.

• Texas A&M quarterback Kellen Mond tosses a pick to Roger McCreary two plays later, all the way down to A&M's 22-yard line.

• The Tigers manage a field goal out of it. 3-0 Auburn.

• After an Aggies three-and-out, Nix finds Williams for 56 yards and a score. Williams brushed off one defender down the sideline. 10-0 Auburn.

• Aggies are doing nothing offensively, and Williams is having his second straight monster game. He snares a pass over the middle and takes it 45 yards for another touchdown. 17-0 Auburn.

• Auburn defensive back Nehemiah Pritchett pulls down an interception of Mond over the middle, past midfield, and takes it all the way back to the Aggies' 20-yard line. Pritchett broke several tackles and weaved through traffic, nearly taking it back for a pick-six.

• A tough couple runs from D.J. Williams end in a 2-yard touchdown rush from the sophomore. It's a rout. 24-0 Auburn.

• Texas A&M puts together some good first downs and gets a field goal before the end of the quarter. K.J. Britt smashes into running back Isaiah Spiller up the middle to stop a third-down conversion just outside the red zone. 24-3 Auburn.

• Past his opening-play interception, Nix is having a great game.

• Christian Tutt intercepts Mond at A&M's 41-yard line. Mond had a few near-misses before that, throwing into coverage.

• Auburn can't muster a first down out of it. The teams trade punts for a scoreless quarter.

• Mond takes A&M straight down the field out of the break, completing a short TD pass to Jhamon Ausbon to cut the lead to two scores. 24-10 Auburn.

• Nix comes out with the same precision, leading a drive all the way inside the 10 before being stuffed on a QB keeper on third-and-goal at the 5. Field goal. 27-10 Auburn.

• Auburn's defense shakes off the previous drive and locks down again. Following the punt, Auburn's run game picks up and gets the Tigers in the red zone.

• Shaun Shivers busts through a host of tackles and scores from 18 yards out. 34-10 Auburn.

• Tutt snags his second interception and outruns Mond for a pick-six on the final play of the quarter. 41-10 Auburn.

• Mond leads the Aggies down inside the 7 before throwing on the run and hitting Demond Demas in the back of the end zone on fourth-and-goal. 41-17 Auburn.

• Anders Carlson adds a long field goal for Auburn on the following drive. 44-17 Auburn.

• Mond connects on a bomb to Jalen Wydermyer for 66 yards and a first-and-goal. Britt comes up with a pass breakup at the goal-line on fourth and goal to halt any points, and Auburn puts the backups in on both sides of the ball.

• Mond is sacked by Coynis Miller on the last play of the game, fumbling. Freshman D-lineman Jay Hardy scoops it up and goes a few yards before being tackled.

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TOTAL YARDS

Auburn: 426

Texas A&M: 444

PASSING YARDS

Auburn: 245

Texas A&M: 402

RUSHING YARDS

Auburn: 181

Texas A&M: 42

THIRD DOWNS

Auburn: 6-of-14

Texas A&M: 8-of-19

TURNOVERS

Auburn: 1

Texas A&M: 5

PASSING

B. Nix (AU): 20-for-29, 245 yards, 2 TDs, INT

K. Mond (A&M): 37-for-56, 402 yards, 2 TDs, 4 INTs

RUSHING

S. Shivers (AU): 8 carries, 74 yards, TD

D. Williams (AU): 10 carries, 50 yards, TD

T. Bigsby (AU): 6 carries, 34 yards

B. Nix (AU): 9 carries, 25 yards

A. Schwartz (AU): 2 carries, 3 yards

C. Sandberg (AU): 1 carry, -5 yards

K. Mond (A&M): 7 carries, 14 yards, lost fumble

I. Spiller (A&M): 9 carries, 13 yards

A. Smith (A&M): 3 carries, 10 yards

D. Achane (A&M): 4 carries, 7 yards

C. Baldree (A&M): 4 carries, -1 yards

A. Hansford (A&M): 1 carry, -1 yards

RECEIVING

S. Williams (AU): 5 catches, 133 yards, 2 TDs

J. Shenker (AU): 9 catches, 62 yards

A. Schwartz (AU): 1 catch, 45 yards

S. Jackson (AU): 1 catch, 5 yards

T. Bigsby (AU): 2 catches, 1 yard

E. Stove (AU): 2 catches, -1 yard

J. Wydermyer (A&M): 7 catches, 136 yards

C. Buckley (A&M): 6 catches, 781 yards

J. Ausbon (A&M): 7 catches, 75 yards, TD

D. Demas (A&M): 5 catches, 58 yards, TD

G. Beal (A&M): 3 catches, 24 yards

I. Spiller (A&M): 3 catches, 13 yards

C. Chapman (A&M): 2 catches, 13 yards

C. Baldree (A&M): 2 catches, 6 yards

D. Achane (A&M): 1 catch, -1 yards

B. Cupp (A&M): 1 catch, -3 yards

AU DEFENSIVE LEADERS

K. Britt (AU): 11 tackles, 2 TFLs, PBU

J. Sherwood (AU): 10 tackles, 2 TFLs

C. Tutt (AU): 3 tackles, 2 INTs, INT TD

R. McCreary (AU): 3 tackles, INT

N. Pritchett (AU): 4 tackles, INT, PBU

O. Pappoe (AU): 7 tackles, 2 TFLs, sack, PBU

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EAST

1. Florida (7-0, 5-0 SEC)

2. Tennessee (4-3, 2-2 SEC)

3. Georgia (5-2, 2-2 SEC)

4. Missouri (5-3, 2-2 SEC)

5. South Carolina (3-4, 1-4 SEC)

6. Kentucky (4-4, 1-4 SEC)

7. Vanderbilt (1-6, 0-4 SEC)

WEST

1. Alabama (8-0, 5-0 SEC)

2. Auburn (7-0, 4-0 SEC)

3. LSU (6-2, 3-1 SEC)

4. Mississippi State (5-2, 2-2 SEC)

5. Texas A&M (5-2, 2-2 SEC)

6. Ole Miss (3-5, 1-4 SEC)

7. Arkansas (2-5, 0-4 SEC)

PREVIOUS SIMULATIONS

Week 1 vs. Alcorn State

Week 2 vs. North Carolina

Week 3 at Ole Miss

Week 4 vs. Southern Miss

Week 5 vs. Kentucky

Week 6 at Georgia