As the designated away team, Auburn made the call at the pregame coin toss.

The call was tails, and tails it was. After winning the toss, Auburn elected to defer to the second half, meaning the Tigers would boot the opening kickoff away and give the ball to the Maryland’s offense to start the game.

And considering the Terrapins’ offense was set to feature a new starting quarterback for the first time this season after Tualia Tagovailoa opted out of Saturday’s TransPerfect Music City Bowl, giving Maryland the first possession didn’t feel like a major risk as one would’ve expect Billy Edwards Jr. to need a bit to settle into his first start of the season.

Instead, the Maryland offense drove 75 yards down the field and scored on just five plays.

The Terrapins’ scoring drive was set up by a 61-yard chunk play – a quick screen pass from Edwards to Maryland running back Roman Hemby, who found a massive stretch of open, green turf after making Auburn’s first defender miss.

Maryland would find the end zone on the very next play as Edwards plunged in for a rushing touchdown from two yards out.

“They hit us in a big screen on the first drive and everything just kinda snowballed,” Auburn head coach Hugh Freeze said after the game.

And “snowballed” might’ve been putting it nicely as it felt like Maryland instead caused a first-quarter avalanche as the Terrapins piled 21 unanswered points on the Tigers en route to Maryland’s 31-13 Music City Bowl win.

After Auburn’s defense suffered a gut punch on the first drive of the game, the Tigers looked to their offense to answer the call.

Instead, Payton Thorne and Co. couldn’t find the phone, much less pick it up.

The Tigers’ offense went three-and-out in their first two drives of the game. Auburn narrowly avoided a third three-and-out drive thanks to Oscar Chapman successfully executing a fake punt from inside the Tigers’ own 15-yard line.

However, that gamble wouldn’t get the Tigers very far as Thorne and the Auburn offense eventually turned the ball over on downs, ending a 14-play, 42-yard drive that stalled near midfield.

“I mean, they had that big play on offense, and we came out and went three-and-out at least twice in a row,” Thorne added. “We didn’t help our defense at all, and that’s on us.”

Coming into Saturday’s matchup with the Terrapins, it was no secret the Tigers were going to be thin on defense – especially in the secondary as veteran defensive backs DJ James and Nehemiah Pritchett both opted out of the bowl game as they turned their attention to the 2024 NFL Draft. Jaylin Simpson was also absent from Saturday’s game, though it’s unclear if he opted out or was still nursing his nagging hamstring injury.

Knowing Auburn’s situation in the secondary, Maryland head coach Mike Locksley made it a point to test Auburn’s young defensive backfield, while also challenging his pair of young and inexperienced quarterbacks.

It was a decision that paid off as Edwards and Maryland’s freshman quarterback Cameron Edge shredded Auburn’s defense in the first quarter as they combined for 158 passing yards and a pair of touchdowns through the air.

“I was real surprised,” Freeze said of Auburn’s early defensive struggles. “I know we were playing some young kids, but really thought we would start faster and catch up with these guys.”

Eventually, Auburn’s defense settled in.

Come the second half, Auburn held Maryland’s offense to just 41 total yards and just 1.7 yards per play.

Unfortunately for the Tigers, however, “eventually” didn’t come until the second half. And at that point, the damage had been done as Auburn trailed Maryland 24-7.

“We have to wake up and understand we have to be ready to play a football game,” said Auburn lineback Eugene Asante. “Regardless of the circumstances, we have to go out there and execute. I pride myself on being a guy that gets guys going, and I think I needed to do that more today and I didn’t do it early on. That’s on me. I can’t be flat. We were flat. I think guys got off the bus sluggish and we adjusted in the second half, but in football, that can’t happen.”