Two similar plays. Two very different results.
The plays demonstrated why No. 1 Alabama leads No. 22 Auburn 21-3 at halftime of the annual Iron Bowl.
Alabama’s DeVonta Smith and Auburn’s Seth Williams ran almost identical routes.
They were both wide open.
There was bracketed coverage with the corner and the safety on both plays. Both receivers made the safety bite.
The results couldn’t be any more different.
For Smith, the result was a 66-yard touchdown reception from Mac Jones to cap a four-play, 78-yard, first-quarter drive to give Alabama a 7-0 lead.
Auburn responded late in the second quarter with almost the same route. But for Williams, the ball went right through his hands and resulted in an incomplete pass on first-and-10 from the Auburn 42 with 41 seconds left in the first half and trailing 21-3. Four plays later, Nix was intercepted, and the scoring opportunity was wasted.
“We had a touchdown dropped right there,” Auburn coach Gus Malzahn told CBS Sports at halftime. “That would’ve been big. First quarter, we were sleep walking. We woke up in the second quarter.
“We’re gonna have to mix it up the run and pass. We to put some points on the board bottom line.”
Mark Heim is a sports reporter for The Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @Mark_Heim.