Watch: Late pick-six and two-point conversion save Oklahoma from SEC upset

On the heels of Kentucky’s toppling of Ole Miss , the Auburn Tigers were four minutes away from pulling off the second major upset in the SEC on Saturday.

Up 21-16 over No. 21 Oklahoma with time winding down in the fourth quarter, Tigers quarterback Payton Thorne threw a medium pass to try and put Auburn in field goal range and potentially ice the game. But his toss was picked off by Sooners linebacker Kip Lewis and run 60 yards the opposite direction for a go-ahead touchdown.

OKLAHOMA TAKES THE LEAD WITH THE PICK-SIX pic.twitter.com/mhRKjcvg4T

— ESPN (@espn) September 28, 2024

Thorne had been nearly perfect all day, with the pick-six being his team’s only turnover of the entire game not on downs.

Oklahoma quarterback Michael Hawkins Jr., a true freshman, then made an incredible effort to convert for two points — diving and spinning over a defender to cross the goal line successfully.

— TJ Eckert (@TJEckertKTUL) September 28, 2024

The Hawkins v. Thorne battle was an attention grabber even before kickoff as both were smack dab in the middle of quarterback controversies involving benchings and un-benchings over the course of the last couple weeks.

Hawkins was the first true freshman passer to make his debut on the road for Oklahoma since Troy Aikman in 1984, per the ESPN broadcast.

Auburn had two possessions after the pick-six to try and redeem itself but failed to score points on either. Oklahoma then extended its lead to 27-21 with a field goal on its final drive, enough to secure the win.