After Kentucky scored on each of its first two drives, there was a sense of deflation in the air about Auburn’s defense.

The Tigers had given up 10 quick points to an offense that had yet to score more than 20 points in a Southeastern Conference game, and it looked like things could only get worse.

After Auburn finished the first quarter down 10, things started to happen for the defense. Kentucky didn’t score a point in the final three quarters and gained just 109 yards.

What has changed for Auburn’s defense?

“There were some mental mistakes and some things where we really had to block our jobs,” defensive end Keldric Faulk said after the game. “We’re very good once we focus on what we’re supposed to do.”

Faulk and other Auburn players attributed the first-quarter struggles to mental errors and missed tackles. Some of that was obvious, but Kentucky’s early success was also largely due to wide receiver Dane Key.

Key is Kentucky’s leading receiver this season and caught passes of 21 and 34 yards on the first two drives, both catches coming in tight coverage.

Auburn began to consistently bring more pressure after those drives, and Kentucky quarterback Brock Vandagriff never looked comfortable. He seemed to be affected by the pressure on almost every dropback, and the most notable mistake was an interception by Jay Crawford.

Vandagriff split snaps with dual-threat quarterback Gavin Wimsatt in the first half, but after a rough second quarter, Kentucky went with Wimsatt full-time in the second half.

For much of the second half, Auburn kept up the same success, posting 22 total pressures in the game. Jalen McLeod led the way with four, but he, Faulk and Keyron Crawford consistently disrupted the pocket.

“They can’t block our D-line. Almost nobody in the country can do that, blocking them 1-on-1,” quarterback Dorian Mausi Jr. said after the game. “J-Mac, Keldric, d-tackles … they just make plays.”

The back end was also solid, picking off Kentucky twice, the second sealing the game on a goal line stand. Both Kayin Lee and Crawford played well on the outside, catching Auburn’s two interceptions.

Crawford’s play has been one of the stories of the season for Auburn, impressing as one of many freshmen to see playing time. It had a coverage rate of 87.9, according to Pro Football Focusallowing just two catches for 25 yards on six targets.

“I won’t consider myself a freshman now. I consider myself a sophomore,” Crawford said. “We’ve played, what, eight games now? I just feel like going into next year, it’s going to be better for me going into next year knowing that I have a lot more experience than a lot of the other guys.”

While all the numbers look nice, the sweetest part of the performance for Auburn’s defense was seeing it pay off. The unit has become no stranger to seeing the offense squander great defensive plays, but Jarquez Hunter’s 278 rushing yards prevented that from happening against Kentucky.

It’s a performance Auburn hopes it can replicate as it returns home for the first time in over a month to face a Vanderbilt team that is difficult at worst and dangerously good at best.

“The hope is you come and win one on the road and it builds your confidence for next time,” Hugh Freeze said. “Because it’s not going to get any easier with the teams we’re playing.”

Peter Rauterkus covers Auburn sports for AL.com. You can follow X at @peter_rauterkus or email them at [email protected]m