With 43 seconds to play and Alabama trailing by four points, sophomore quarterback Jalen Milroe and the Crimson Tide offense were eyeing a 4th-and-goal from the Auburn 31-yard line.

It didn’t matter where in the stadium they were or what colors they were wearing, if they were able, they were standing. If they were wearing orange and blue, they were likely yelling. If they were wearing crimson and white, they were likely dead silent.

And while some had their eyes glued on the Auburn 31-yard line, others had their eyes glued on the video board that sits above the south endzone of Pat Dye Field.

One play and 31 yards stretched between Alabama’s playoff hopes being squashed.

One play and 31 yards also stretched between Auburn being the one to squash those playoff hopes.

Nine times out of 10, the situation likely favors the Tigers.

ESPN’s win probability algorithm gave Auburn a 99.9% chance to win Saturday’s football game in that moment.

However, in this specific moment, the 0.01% won. And so did the eighth-ranked Crimson Tide on Saturday night.

Milroe – with all day to sit on his heels – heaved a pass into the back lefthand corner to the north endzone. Waiting there was Isaiah Bond, who was being covered by Auburn’s DJ James.

And it was Bond who came out on the winning end of the 50-50 ball.

The play call’s name?

Alabama head coach Nick Saban wasn’t willing to give it up. However, Saban did tell reporters postgame that it was a play they run every Friday.

Meanwhile, when Bond was asked about the play’s name, he was quick to offer up the name.

“Grave digger,” Bond said.

A fitting name… when it works.

But how, exactly, did the Crimson Tide get it to work?

Or, perhaps more importantly, how did the Tigers let it work?

Saban told Milroe that Auburn would rush three – or maybe even two – players during the play and drop everyone else back.

The Tigers rushed two and chose to have linebacker Eugene Asante spy on the more-than-capable-rusher in Milroe.

Everyone else was sent to the end zone to defend the pass.

Should the Tigers have applied more pressure on Milroe? Should the Auburn have said to hell with the quarterback spy and put another warm body in the end zone?

“I mean, you can second-guess it,” Auburn head coach Hugh Freeze said. “You’ve just got to play with vision. We’ve got nine guys back there. Just play with vision and make a play on the ball and knock it down. He felt like he was shoved off, but I couldn’t tell. I mean, you can pressure him and then you’ve got one-on-ones and they throw it up. You can do that if you want.”

But Freeze and the Auburn coaching staff chose to do what it did.

And the Tigers’ head coach stood by the call.

“I like the call,” Freeze said. “I just think we’ve got to sit back there with vision and knock the ball down.”

James had recorded two pass breakups prior to the game-winning play. But he couldn’t manage to get a hand on Milroe’s pass to Bond.

“I told DJ because DJ had a hell of a game. And, you know, with corners, people just look at that one play,” Auburn Jack linebacker Jalen McLeod said. “I told him, ‘Look, DJ, I’ll take you again. You throw that ball up one time. I’ll give you another chance.’.”

Even Saban admitted the outcome on 4th-and-31 wasn’t likely.

“I must admit that I think you’ve got to be a little lucky for it to work,” Saban said. “But I’ll take it.”