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Auburn DC Ron Roberts describes Alabama's final touchdown play, OC Philip Montgomery 'proud' of the offensive effort

Justin Hokansonby: Justin Hokanson11/26/23_JHokanson
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Auburn defensive coordinator Ron Roberts (Photo by Matt Rudolph/Auburn Live)

AUBURN — The way Auburn lost to No. 8 Alabama on Saturday night will be remembered forever.

Facing 4th-and-31, Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe dropped back, stood in the pocket for what seemed like minutes, and then threw a strike to Isaiah Bond in the corner of the end zone for a miraculous touchdown. Auburn cornerback DJ James was in coverage and was close to Bond, but couldn’t get in position as Bond sealed James off and made the catch along the sideline.

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The immediate question following was, why didn’t Auburn send more pass rushers? And why did Auburn spy Milroe when a touchdown was needed from 31 yards out?

Defensive coordinator Ron Roberts was asked postgame about the play and this is how he described his thought process.

“They had eight plays inside the 20. It came down to those last two. Last play of the game, they have to get to the goal line, so we played trail man and three on the goal line knowing the shot has to go to the end zone,” Roberts said. “Any vertical route we have help from the safeties in the end zone. We practice it, that’s what you do in last play of the ballgame from (the 31) and they have to score. The kid just did a good job of holding the football and waiting, waiting.”

Roberts added, “that’s a hard one. It was tremendous effort for four quarters. We just have to find ways to get it done at the end of the ballgame. I thought our guys played exceptionally hard in an emotional ballgame. It’s a tough one for them to swallow.”

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Meanwhile, Auburn’s offense, in particular the offensive line, played a fantastic football game. The Tigers rushed for 244 yards, actually 272 yards and over six yards per carry when the sacks are removed from the stats.

Offensive coordinator Philip Montgomery was awfully proud of his group’s effort.

“I was proud of all three phases, but I thought the offensive line came off the football and opened up some holes,” Montgomery said. “I thought our backs ran extremely hard, and I thought our guys played with a ton of passion tonight. We tried to mix up some things and keep them off balance, but that’s a good defense, but I was really, really encouraged by what our running game was able to do…”

More from Roberts and Montgomery below:

Roberts said Milroe’s ability to run was a concern all night.

“That was the challenge with him all the time. I feel like we had a pretty good plan of how we were going to handle him on the rush. Where we were concerned coming into the ballgame was first and second downs when you aren’t having designed rush patterns — we don’t have designed rush patters to keep him contained. That’s where he got most of his yards on the night.”

Roberts on what the extra bowl practices mean for the program:

“It’s huge. For us, in the first year of the program, those 15 practices is a chance for young guys to get reps, a chance for us to grow as a football program and get better going into spring practice.”

Montgomery on what can be said, if anything, to the players in the locker room after that loss:

“We told them how proud we were of them. Ultimate fight right there. I thought our guys played their tails off. I loved the way they came together, how strong they were together and we’re growing. That’s a tough one to take for sure.”

On Payton Thorne‘s gritty performance:

“All of those guys played their tails off and I thought Payton did an outstanding job. He’s a great competitor, he continues to stay driven about the process. All of those guys that stepped on the field played with heart and passion.”

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