In the first two games of the 2024 season, Jarquez Hunter carried the ball just 16 times for 121 yards and a touchdown, a low figure considering he was the SEC's leading returning rusher from last year.

On Saturday night against New Mexico, that changed as he became a workhorse again, going for 152 yards and a score on 20 carries while also catching a pass for a 14-yard touchdown. It reminded Hunter of playing for the Neshoba Central Rockets.

"Yeah, it brings back the high school memories," he said. "I used to get the ball all the time."

Hunter and the Auburn run game struggled a little in the first half, although he would go into halftime with 79 rushing yards and the touchdown. His most impressive run went for just one yard but was critical on Auburn's first drive. Taking a direct snap on 4th-and-1, Hunter fumbled the ball only to have it bounce back up to him. The running back then found a way to get the first down to set up Hank Brown's touchdown pass to Camden Brown two plays later.

Part of the reason for the struggles on the ground came from what New Mexico's defense was showing.

"They played mint," Hugh Freeze said following the victory. "But we really hadn't seen them do that. We had some good runs in the first half but had a lot better plan in the second half. We have a mint plan. They kept bouncing back and forth, and then we just let our quarterback handle it the second half between two different deals. If it's mint this, if it's four-down this in the run game. It was a good plan. Jake (Thornton) did a nice job with that with his guys."

Hunter wasted no time getting off to a fast start in the second half. On the first play out of the locker room, he raced to the right and got to the boundary, running 31 yards to put Auburn at New Mexico's 44-yard line. Five plays later, he found himself with another hole, rushing 19 yards to the Lobos' 10-yard line before fumbling. Luckily for Hunter and the Tigers, Rivaldo Fairweather was there to land on it and keep the ball in Auburn's hands. Brown found Micah Riley in the corner of the end zone to make it 24-13.

The senior back wasn't done yet, though. After an interception by Antonio Kite helped Auburn set up near midfield, the Tigers got the ball down to the 14-yard line. With no one seemingly open, Brown checked down to his safety valve, Hunter, who went the rest of the way for a 14-yard touchdown catch.

"I mean, I saw everybody just bail out," Hunter said. "I tried to be slow... but pressure came in, and they just left me wide-open."

Overall, it was a performance that Hunter and his teammates expect from him. The Mississippi native knows he can't do it all by himself, though.

"I think the O-line did great," Hunter said. "They did their job. They did what they were supposed to do. Just, for us as running backs, we had to just hit the hole behind them."