Nix to Williams: 'a huge moment for Auburn'

Nix to Williams: 'a huge moment for Auburn'Nix to Williams: 'a huge moment for Auburn'

Celebration after Seth Williams' touchdown catch

ARLINGTON, Texas – It took his father nearly three years to have his signature moment.

It took Bo Nix one game.

Patrick Nix was a redshirt sophomore in the 1993 Iron Bowl when he threw perhaps the most famous touchdown pass in Auburn history: 'Nix to Sanders.'

"I think that was my first 'Bo to Seth,' moment," said Bo Nix of his 26-yard touchdown pass to Seth Williams with 9 seconds remaining that gave No. 16 Auburn a 27-21 win over No. 11 Oregon Saturday in the AdvoCare Classic at AT&T Stadium.

"That was the first moment we were able to come through and we were able to do something for our team that we had struggled to do all day," Nix said. "It was just a huge moment for Auburn and I was grateful and glad to be a part of it. It was a huge win."

Nix made one play after another in Auburn's game-winning, 11-play, 60-yard drive. Trailing 21-20, the first true freshman to start the Tigers' season opener in 73 years picked up a do-or-die first down on fourth-and-3, gaining just enough yardage to reach midfield and move the chains.

"I saw a whole bunch of white jerseys," he said. "Everybody I felt like was covered, and it just hit me that I guess I better run for it. I got it."

With 21 seconds left, on third-and-10 from Oregon's 39, Nix completed to Williams for 13 yards, getting the Tigers in field goal range with 16 seconds remaining.

Auburn coach Gus Malzahn elected to take a shot at the end zone. Nix and Williams did the rest. After trailing for 55 minutes, the Tigers took their only lead of the night.

"I gave him a chance," Nix said. "And I knew he was going to catch the ball."



Williams knew too, Last season as a true freshman, he delivered the game-winning catch against Texas A&M in the final minutes.

"I knew he was going to look my way," said Williams, one of Auburn's biggest targets at 6-3, 224 pounds. "When he threw it up, I saw the ball, I thought, 'just catch it.' The only thing you have to do is come down with it and you win the game, and I caught it."

For a moment, Williams did not realize the magnitude of his reception. Auburn fans instantly informed him.

"At first, I was like, oh it's just a touchdown," he said. "But In the way the crowd reacted, I looked at the scoreboard, I said, 'Oh, snap. I just won the game. This is the same thing that happened in the Texas A&M game.' I was extra hyped."

'Nix to Sanders' helped Auburn come from behind to win the 1993 Iron Bowl, completing an 11-0 season.

'Nix to Williams' helped Auburn come from behind to defeat the first of six highly ranked opponents this season, establishing Bo Nix as a cool-under-pressure leader, just like his father a quarter-century earlier.

"Never did we doubt each other," Nix said. "Never did we start pointing fingers. That's when it kind of hit me that we have a really good chance of coming back because it's not anybody's fault. We have a great mindset. We were down. We knew what we had to do. We had to go out there and do it.

"We had a great leadership up front. Five seniors and they really put it together, and they just started blocking people and really getting after it. And so we just started running the ball. And everything worked in our favor there in the second half.

"When they looked at me and they knew they needed a spark, I looked at them and knew I needed a spark. So we went together and we moved the ball down the field and we scored a touchdown."

A touchdown that ushered in a new era of Auburn football - The first 'Bo to Seth' moment - arriving in the Nix of time.

Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on Twitter: @jeff_shearer