Baylor's Failed 2-Point Attempt Resulted in National Honors for Auburn
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The Baylor Bears produced one of the most memorable plays in college football this past weekend, and that moment resulted in multiple national awards. Unfortunately for the program, those honors went to a player on the opposing team.
On Wednesday, the Football Writers Association of America awarded the Bronko Nagurski National Defensive Player of the Week to Eric Winters, the Auburn safety who tackled Baylor tight end Matthew Klopfenstein inches short of the goal line on a critical two-point attempt. Winters also took home the Lott Impact Trophy Player of the Week for the stop, which directly determined the outcome of the game. If not for his efforts, the Bears would have otherwise taken the lead with less than 10 seconds left in regulation.
The award-winning moment
On the two-point attempt, Baylor offensive coordinator Jake Spavital called a sprint-out play designed to funnel the ball to Klopfenstein. The Bears' wide receivers ran pick routes that cleared space for the tight end in the flat. At that point, quarterback DJ Lagway simply needed to place the ball on Klopfenstein's outside shoulder and watch his teammate cross the plane for the go-ahead score.
However, Lagway aimed his pass too far inside, forcing Klopfenstein to turn back toward the quarterback and slow his momentum. That opened the door for Winters to sift through the trash and make contact with the tight end short of the end zone.
BAYLOR FALLS JUST SHORT OF THE GOAL LINE 😲
— ESPN College Football (@ESPNCFB) September 5, 2026
Auburn wins in the final seconds with a CLUTCH tackle ‼️ pic.twitter.com/JCgjTS1fC6
Had Baylor scored on the two-point attempt, Auburn would have still had time left to mount a comeback. However, Winters' tackle of Klopfenstein eliminated that necessity. Instead, the Bears had to resort to an onside kick. That try failed, finally putting the game out of reach.
The fallout
The choice to go for two instead of playing for overtime became a flashpoint for criticism. After the game, Baylor head coach Dave Aranda defended his decision.
"We had a bunch of guys getting Band Aided up," Aranda said during his postgame press conference. "We had a chance to kind of close it out, and we wanted to do that.
"There was no hesitation with that. We referenced the book, and the book said to go for it. But it wasn't so much that. It was more of we had so many guys that were just doing everything they can to try to push through and close this game out. I just didn't feel playing longer was going to benefit us."
The future?
Even if Aranda's decision put him and the program under the microscope, that doesn't necessarily mean he'll approach those situations differently in the future. As Baylor Bears On SI's Brad Teague wrote after the game, Aranda hasn't exactly hidden his penchant for keeping the offense on the field for fourth downs and point-after plays.
The Bears won't always have a talent disadvantage as they did against Auburn. Accordingly, their games won't usually come down to a kick-go call like Saturday's two-point attempt. And while Winters' tackle determined the outcome, Aranda probably wouldn't hear many complaints had Lagway put the ball in the right spot and Klopfenstein scored.
Still, for a regime facing existential concerns this season, every decision can become a referendum on the coaching staff. Fair or not, Aranda's 36-38 record leaves him vulnerable, and heartbreaking losses like Saturday's won't win him much support with the people who will determine his future.
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Jason B. Hirschhorn is an award-winning sportswriter and member of both the Pro Football Writers of America and the Football Writers Association of America. He is a co-founder of The Leap, a Green Bay Packers newsletter. His work has also appeared at NFL.com, SB Nation, Sports Illustrated, and other major outlets.
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