“I am very proud of our defense”, Malzahn said. “We’ll have to carry (ourselves) the same way, just like we did with Austin Peay, have the same game plan”. With 3:22 to go, Auburn scored a TD on a Kerryon Johnson wildcat play and cut the score to 6 points.
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Clemson didn’t have that win secured until Sean White’s desperation heave into the end zone fell incomplete on the final play.
Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said he chose to pass on the field goal because he was anxious about a blocked kick.
“They all had different packages, different situations and plays they felt comfortable with”, Malzahn said.
Swinney nearly had to do just that. The game of musical chairs continued all the way to the end of the game even as Auburn finally got whiffs of the end zone in the fourth quarter.
Clemson finished with 399 total yards but was 6-for-17 on third down and turned the ball over twice.
You could have posed the same question to Clemson coach Dabo Swinney 50 times in 50 ways, and he would have replied the same way with the same level of conviction: He was not sending out that field-goal unit in the last minute of Saturday night’s opener at Auburn. Aside from the 2014 season (where his coaching mistakes are a big reason Auburn lost the Nation Championship), Malzahn’s tenure at Auburn has been nothing but disgusting and disappointing.
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“I’m not curious. I know what he can do”, Malzahn said Tuesday, via Auburn’s team website.
Deshaun Watson didn’t look like himself, causing the Clemson offense to struggle most of the night.
On the ensuing drive, Clemson quarterback Watson squeezed forward on a third-and-one play to keep possession; two snaps later, receiver Mike Williams hauled in a back-shoulder catch along the sideline for 20 yards, followed by a 20-yard scamper by tailback Wayne Gallman.
Clemson was scoreless in the first quarter, went almost the final 10 minutes without a point and survived a late touchdown to eke out the victory. Swinney went for it on fourth and 4 instead of attempting a 34-yard field goal.
The defenses continued to play well, with Jadar Johnson making a touchdown-saving interception, but on the ensuing series Deshaun made a bad throw that was picked off.
With the help of a questionable pass interference call that set up a Greg Huegel field goal, Clemson led 10-3 at intermission.
Johnson had 94 yards on 23 carries for Auburn, which gained 224 of its 262 yards in the second half.
– Fan requests that Malzahn defers to Clemson if Auburn wins the coin toss so his team can “embarrass and shame the Clemson offense right out of the gate”. All of Clemson’s other receivers caught 10 passes for 74 yards.
Three Auburn quarterbacks battled it out for the starting position in camp. I’m here to tell you that there were enough positives in this game for Auburn fans NOT to write the season off… yet. We may continue to do that.
Malzahn had his reasons to give up on Roc Thomas over injuries minor enough to let the Oxford High grad play 10 games but lose his starting job last season, but there’s no doubt that Thomas got exhausted of getting no benefit of the doubt. John Franklin also lined up at quarterback, but threw just one pass and did not run the football.
Clemson would try to milk the clock, but went three and out.
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– “Usually the first game of the year special teams has a lot of impact plays”. FS Johnathan “Rudy” Ford was the only Auburn player to enter this season with more than 200 career tackles (216). Auburn PK Daniel Carlson has made 97 consecutive PATs, the fourth-longest streak in program history.
