Auburn running back Kerryon Johnson was named the SEC's offensive player of the week, the league announced Monday.

Johnson was honored after his career performance against Ole Miss in a 44-23 win for the Tigers. The junior running back had 28 carries for a career-high 204 yards and three touchdowns. He averaged 7.3 yards per carry and had touchdown runs of 17, 48 and 5 yards -- all in the first half -- as Auburn cruised to its third straight SEC blowout.

Johnson became the first SEC player in the last 20 years to run for at least three touchdowns in three consecutive games.

Johnson's three touchdowns gave him 11 in the last three games and 12 for the season. His 12 rushing touchdowns are the most in the country, while his 12 total touchdowns are tied with San Diego State running back Rashaad Penny for most among FBS players. His 12 rushing touchdowns are also more than nine entire teams in the SEC have this season.

Despite missing 2 1/2 games due to a hamstring injury, Johnson leads Auburn with 504 rushing yards, which ranks fourth in the SEC. His 126 yards per game would lead the SEC if he qualified, while it would also rank in the top-10 nationally and eighth among FBS running backs.

"He's played pretty well the last three weeks, really," Auburn coach Gus Malzahn said. "The thing about Kerryon is that he's one of the toughest players that we have. I don't know of a lot of players that week one will be running for a touchdown, and they pull a hamstring bad enough to where they have to go down and then be able to come back two weeks later and be able to play at the high level he is right now.

"It says a lot about him. We'll get him 100 percent in the near future. I really like how he's playing right now."

Tom Green is an Auburn beat reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @Tomas_Verde.