AUBURN’S WALT McFADDEN SELECTED IN FIFTH ROUND OF NFL DRAFT

Auburn defensive back Walt McFadden was drafted in the fifth round by the Oakland Raiders during the final day of the 2010 National Football League Draft. McFadden was the 138th overall pick and is the first AU player drafted by the Oakland since Reggie Ware in 1988.

McFadden was the second Tiger to be drafted, joining running back Ben Tate, who was taken by the Houston Texans in the second round (58th overall).

The Pompano Beach, Fla., native played in 49 career games at Auburn, starting in every game during his final two years. He finished with 87 career stops, 26 pass deflections, and nine interceptions. He is tied for the Auburn career record for interception returns for touchdown with three.

“It’s a blessing to have the opportunity to get drafted,” McFadden said. “Especially considering how many people that play college football. I’m just blessed. In a way I was kind of surprised (being drafted by Oakland), but I’m more happy about going there. It’s a dream come true.”

As a senior, McFadden was an Associated Press second-team All-SEC pick after recording 46 tackles with 14 PBUs and six interceptions. McFadden had two interceptions for touchdowns, including a 100-yard return for a score against Northwestern in the Outback Bowl. He was also an SEC Academic Honor Roll recipient during his final year.

McFadden will have the opportunity to reunite with former defensive teammate Quentin Groves, who was traded earlier in the week from Jacksonville. Former AU quarterback Jason Campbell is also one of the newest members of the Oakland franchise after being traded Saturday from the Washington Redskins.

“I feel like having Quentin there will be nice,” McFadden said. “Having someone there to help me and to just have a friendship with will help. When I came in as a freshman, Jason was just leaving and I got to know him from when he came back. I’m excited to be there with Jason, too.”

Tigers Win 13-6 Over Kentucky In SEC Series Opener

Auburn’s leadoff man reached base safely and scored in each of the first three innings as Auburn built an early four run lead en route to a 13-6 series-opening win over Kentucky on Friday night. The win was Auburn’s first SEC series-opening win since the conference opener at Georgia and moved its record to 26-13, 9-7 SEC.

Justin Fradejas (20 games), Trent Mummey (11) and Hunter Morris (14) each extended their hitting streaks with first-inning hits. Fradejas and Mummey both singled and Morris drove them both in with his fourth triple of the year to give Auburn a lead it would never relinquish.

Mummey finished the game 3-for-5 with a home run and two RBI, scoring twice. His fourth-inning home run extended his personal homer streak to three straight conference games, giving him six home runs on the season in just 11 games since returning from a severely sprained ankle.

“Trent is type of guy who just wants to put the uniform on and go out there and play,” Auburn Head Coach John Pawlowski said. “He has been a great addition to our lineup.”

“It was a real important for us (to get a lead early) as we come out trying to win a series,” Mummey said. “It’s tough to win Saturday and Sunday after coming off of a loss on Friday night, so to get off on a good note is a real positive for this team.”

With the Auburn bats jumping on Kentucky starter Logan Darnell (3-3) early and often it gave Auburn starter Cory Luckie a comfortable cushion to work with. Following his complete game win at Vanderbilt last Saturday, Luckie (5-2) went 5 2/3 innings, allowing four runs on six hits without issuing a walk while striking out five, including four from the two- and three-hole hitters in the Kentucky (22-16, 5-11 SEC)
lineup.

“It was really a Jekyll and Hyde game. I felt really well against some hitters and then some hitters I couldn’t get the ball down,” Luckie said. “It was another night where our offense did really well and that kept me really comfortable on the mound.”

“I am really proud of the job Cory Luckie did, getting us into the sixth inning. That set the tone for us. We needed someone to step up on a Friday night and he did exactly what we needed him to do, get deep in the game and give our offense a chance to get going,” Pawlowski said.

Up 3-0 after a Tony Caldwell sac fly scored Morris in the first, Kentucky responded with two runs off of Luckie on Braden Kapteyan’s two-run home run in the second. Auburn answered in the bottom half of the frame as a Justin Hargett sac fly scored Casey McElroy after he walked to lead off the inning to go up 4-2.

A Creede Simpson sac fly and a McElroy RBI groundout in the third upped Auburn’s lead to 6-2 before Mummey’s fourth-inning blast put Auburn up 7-2.

Kentucky crept to within three, 7-4, off of a fifth-inning RBI double by Marcus Nidiffer and a sixth-inning RBI double by Lance Ray, one of three doubles for Ray on the night.

Following Ray’s double, Luckie was lifted in favor of Michael Hurst, who surrendered a hit and a walk before leaving in favor of Austin Hubbard, leaving the senior closer with the bases loaded and Nidiffer at the plate. Hubbard went to a 2-2 count on Nidiffer before getting the Kentucky catcher to go down swinging, preserving the three-run cushion.

Auburn scored a pair of unearned runs in the sixth to give Hubbard a four-run cushion, 9-4, and then scored four more times in the seventh following a Kentucky run in the top of the seventh. Tony Caldwell and Kevin Patterson hit back-to-back solo home runs while Fradejas contributed a sac fly and Mummey a RBI single.

Kentucky got one final run on the board when Hubbard walked the leadoff hitter, Taylor Black, and then uncorked three wild pitches.

Hubbard earned his fourth save of the season and the 16th of his four-year career on three hits and two walks, striking out three.

Darnell was charged for nine runs (seven earned) on eight hits and two walks, striking out seven in 6 1/3 innings.

Auburn will try to capture the series win on Saturday when the two teams meet at 11am CT, which is an earlier start than originally scheduled due to the threat of severe weather in the Auburn-Opelika area.

Kentucky will start Fr. LHP Taylor Rogers (4-4, 4.92 ERA) while Auburn will start Cole Nelson.

AUBURN’S BEN TATE SELECTED IN SECOND ROUND OF NFL DRAFT

Auburn running back Ben Tate was selected in the second round by the Houston Texans during Day Two of the 2010 National Football League Draft. Tate was the 58th pick overall and the sixth running back taken in the draft.

Tate is the first Auburn player to be drafted by the Houston Texans organization. He is the highest drafted Tiger running back since Kenny Irons was the 49th overall pick in 2007. In the last seven NFL Drafts, Auburn has totaled 13 player selected in the first or second round.

A Salisbury, Md. native, Tate is fifth all-time at Auburn with 3,321 rushing yards and tied for sixth in school history with 24 rushing touchdowns.

“It was very emotional,” Tate said. “When I got the call from Houston, I was very excited and the emotions started running. I’m just happy to be a Texan. It’s been a great, great experience and I want to thank everyone, including the Auburn fans for their support.”

In 2009, Tate was an Associated Press second-team All-Southeastern Conference pick and was voted the Auburn Team MVP after rushing for 1,362 yards, which is the fourth-best single-season total in school history. Tate tallied seven 100-yard rushing games as a senior and scored 10 touchdowns.

The four-year letterman compiled 12 100-yard rushing games during his four year career. Tate rushed for a career-high 184 yards at Arkansas as a senior. As a sophomore, Tate rushed for 903 yards and eight touchdowns.

F Josh Langford Sign with Auburn

BARBEE SIGNS HIS FIRST PLAYER

On Thursday, Tony Barbee signed his first player as coach at Auburn University. Josh Langford, a 6'6", 210 lb forward from Lee High-School in Huntsville, Alabama signed his letter of intent to play for Barbee's Tigers.

Langford is arguably the top basketball prospect in the state of Alabama this year and chose AU over offers from several big time schools, including Cincinatti, West Virginia, Ole Miss, UGA and others. Langford is ranked #1 on the Birmingham News Super Seniors List for the state of Alabama and was the MVP of the AL/MS High-School All-Star game in March.

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