The No. 12 Aggies (1-1) gave the No. 1 Clemson Tigers (2-0) their best game in quite a while, but the combination of a subpar performance and a physical beating sent A&M home on the short end of a 24-10 score.

Like last year's 28-26 classic, this one started fairly slowly. Nobody scored in the first quarter, with Clemson coming closest on their first drive but missing a 47-yard field goal attempt. The Aggies held the ball the final 6:51 of the quarter and into second on a 16-play, 48 yard drive that lasted 7:33 -- the longest scoring drive of the Jimbo Fisher era.

And that would be the highlight of the game for the Aggies.

Clemson responded immediately, going 82 yards in 9 plays to take a 7-3 lead when Trevor Lawrence (24-35, 268 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT) rolled away from pressure and hit a wide open Jordyn Ross (7 catches, 94 yards, 1 TD) for a 30-yard touchdown. The Aggies looked to be taking momentum back when Kellen Mond (24-42, 234 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT) fumbled on a hit from Clemson safety Nolan Turner, which linebacker James Skalski recovered.

The Aggies held Clemson to a field goal, but the defense was back on the field in 90-degree-plus temperatures just three plays later. Even though Braden Mann pinned the Tigers at their own 11, Lawrence hit Tee Lawrence (4 catches, 70 yards) for a pair of big passes which -- along with a roughing the passer penalty on DT Justin Madubuike -- set up Lawrence to punch it in from a yard out with 33 seconds to go in the half.

"They made critical plays when they had to make critical plays," A&M coach Jimbo Fisher said.

Not only were the Aggies not making critical plays, they were getting battered by the Tigers. Both Madubuike and Jayden Peevy were knocked out of the game with injuries, though they would later return; CB Elijah Blades and DE Max Wright were also battered. RB Jashaun Corbin was injured early in the 3rd quarter and did not return.

Short-handed or not, the Aggie defense held Clemson to a single touchdown in the second half, but the 7-play, 83-yard drive put Clemson up 24-3 and essentially salted the game away. The Aggies had a shot to make it closer, but Mond was picked off at the goal line to end one drive and A&M had a safety wiped off the board by an inadvertent whistle.

A&M wouldn't score again until there were 6 seconds left in the game, when a hobbling Mond hit freshman tight end Jalen Wydermyer for a 3-yard touchdown pass, the first score of Wydermyer's career. The touchdown allowed the Aggies to beat the 17-point spread and become the first team in 12 games to come within 20 points of the defendingg national champions -- and absolutely nobody cared.

"We dominated today," Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said.

Fisher couldn't argue the point.

"I thought our guys played hard. I don't think we played particularly well at times," he said. "We have a good football team, but we have to play better."