Two hundred and eight years ago, in 1893, Auburn and Alabama met on Birmingham’s Lakeview Baseball Park, an event that started the largest rivalry game in the NCAA: The Iron Bowl. Auburn won the first game with a score of 32-22. While Alabama technically leads the series 39-34-1, what we Auburn fans actually need to focus on is: At Auburn, AU leads 6-2 and at Tuscaloosa, AU leads, 6-0. Well that statistic looks like it should work in our favor!
As we know this year, Alabama, is well, very good. Sorry to say it, but Nick Saban is one of the greatest coaches of our time; however, so is Gene Chizik, so we also have that going for us! On Alabama’s offense, we have Trent Richardson, who I’m sure you’ve heard of by now! He has 1205 yards this season, after touching the ball 204 times, averaging 5.9 yards/carry. Well Auburn has someone named Michael Dyer, who has 1037 yards this season, after 199 attempts, averaging 5.2 yards per carry.
Overall, my prediction for this game is that it will not be an offensive shoot-out. Alabama’s defense is ranked number one in the nation, allowing an average of 187 points per game. Good news for us is that their offense is number 30 in the nation. We are going to have to rely on our defensive leaders, DE Nosa Eguae, Corey Lemonier, and LB Eltoro Freeman to hold back Alabama’s offensive. If any of you saw the LSU/Bama game, we know if we have to make them attempt a field goal, we will be OK!
This year, Alabama is obviously a better team but the Iron Bowl is never like any other game of the season. The players play with unparalleled passion, because winning the Iron Bowl is, at least for some, better than the National Championship. We host “The Tide” at Jordan-Hare in two weeks, and we will PROTECT THIS HOUSE!
Emily Gray is a pyschology major at Auburn University. You can email her to discuss the latest in sports at eag0011@tigermail.auburn.edu