With less than an minute left in the game, two points from taking the No. 2 team in the country into overtime, Texas A&M head coach Jimbo Fisher saw what his team was made of. 
Despite the 28-26 loss to No. 2 Clemson, Fisher said while although he doesn’t believe in ‘moral victories’ he was proud to see how his team had held on and continued to fight through out all four quarters.
“I asked our guys to get better today, take steps [in the right direction] and compete,” Fisher said. “We did that, in a lot of areas. There were still some mistakes we made… When you game and a caliber team that way there’s going to be some ups and downs. Theres a lot of fight in this team and a lot of competitiveness.”
Fisher erupted in anger on the sideline after officials ruled sophomore wide receiver Quartney Davis, fumbled the ball out of the end zone giving the ball back to the Tigers. 
“It was out of bounds,” Fisher said. “I didn’t think [it was a touchback], obviously. In my opinion, that should be called from up stairs.” 
Sophomore wide receiver Kendrick Rodgers, led the team in receiving, hauling in two touchdowns on seven receptions for 120 yards, including one that almost sent the game into overtime after a failed two point conversion attempt. 
For Fisher, seeing Rodgers excel — as well as sophomores Camron Buckley and Jhamon Ausbon, who had 93 and 61 receiving yards, respectively — shows that there is room for growth. 
“There’s a lot of very good, young players,” Fisher said. “There are some guys on this team who can make plays.”
Down the stretch, sophomore starting quarterback Kellen Mond drove the offense down 49 yards in three plays to set up a potentially game tying play. Mond went 23-for-40 with 430 yards passing and three touchdowns.
Fisher said Mond’s calm and collected ’competitive leader’ qualities took over in the crucial moments, enabling Mond to make the plays needed to give the Aggies a fighting chance against the Tigers.
“The guy will put his heart and soul out there on the field and lay it out there,” Fisher said. “He makes plays with his arms, he makes plays with his legs, and the guys love it and they follow him. He went out and made some big time plays on the field, and he always leaves plays out there. The moment was not too big for him, and I love it.”
On the defensive side of the ball A&M held the Tigers scoreless in the fourth quarter. On third down, Clemson was 0-for-3 in conversations. Fisher said the defense consistently forcing Clemson quarterback Kelly Bryant out of his comfort zone was a factor that gave the Aggies the chance to come within two points of the Tigers.
“We got pressure and moved [Bryant] out of the pocket. I know we hit the guy a couple times, made him move, scramble out of the pocket and throw the ball away.”