Down 13-3 to second-ranked Clemson in the third quarter, Auburn quarterback Jeremy Johnson threw an interception downfield that turned Jordan-Hare Stadium, which had been raucous for most of the night, deathly quiet. Three plays later, however, Auburn corner Josh Holsey made a diving interception to bring the crowd back into the game.
The sequence would serve as a microcosm for the Tigers' defensive performance in the 19-13 home defeat.
Clemson's offense, led by Heisman-contending quarterback Deshaun Watson and featuring one of the most talented lineups for any unit in college football, managed just 19 points and 399 total yards at Auburn on Saturday night. It was Clemson's worst offensive performance since November 2014, when Watson was injured on the first drive at Georgia Tech and the Tigers managed just six points.
"Hats off to the defense," said Auburn coach Gus Malzahn after the game. "Coach (Kevin) Steele had a great gameplan and our guys played their guts out."
Clemson was able to move the ball well at times, rolling up 233 yards in the first half, but going to the locker room, they only had 10 points to show for their efforts. They gained just one first down on a short field goal drive early in the third quarter and failed to fully recapture their explosiveness until late in the game.
"I think (people) learned that we improved on defense," said defensive tackle Montravious Adams. "Everything they've been talking about is not very true. We go out there and work every day at practice and when we get in the game, it shows."
The only Clemson player to consistently move on the Auburn defense was receiver Mike Williams, who looks to have a big year after missing last season with an injury. He torched Auburn with nine catches for 174 yards. All of Clemson's other receivers caught 10 passes for 74 yards.
"They made a couple of back-shoulder plays," Malzahn said. "(Williams) made a couple of difference-maker plays, especially in the fourth quarter when we were trying to get the ball back. Instead of running the clock out, they were throwing back-shoulder. He was very impressive."
Despite Williams getting the best of Auburn's secondary, the Tigers are confident in their defensive abilities after such a strong start. One of the strongest performances on Saturday night was by sophomore linebacker Deshaun Davis, who made a career-high five tackles in his first career start.
"It was fun to go out and compete in front of our crowd," Davis said. "We had great energy from our crowd all game. I feel like the defense played well. We held the No. 2 team in the country to 19 points. At the same time, it wasn't enough. We're going to go back to the drawing board. We made a lot of errors. We can correct some small things we did wrong and get better for next week."
Along with containing Clemson's explosive offense, Auburn was also able to force two turnovers and hold Dabo Swinney's Tigers to 6-for-17 on third down and 1-for-3 on fourth, including a late stop that gave Auburn's offense one last chance.
While Holsey recognized that the defense has plenty of room to improve, he didn't shy away from his thoughts on what his unit could flourish into, calling the defensive line "the best front four in America, hands down" and going into detail about the defense's expectation.
"We're a defense that's going to be reckoned with for the year. We're trying to be the top defense in the country and I feel like if we keep working and keep doing what we can, we can be the top defense in the country."
Despite how strong of a performance it was, the defense's mindset can be summarized by Auburn defensive back Nick Ruffin. When asked if he felt good about the defense's performance, he had a clear answer.
"No, because we didn't win."
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