SEC 360: Why does Alabama lose to Auburn so much?
In 2010, Mark Ingram was charging toward the end zone to put Alabama up 28-0 in the Iron Bowl. As Ingram furiously barreled down the sideline, Alabama fans salivated the thought of beating undefeated Auburn, but more important, shutting up Cam Newton.
What they weren’t expecting was Ingram to be chased down by a 250-plus-pound defensive tackle, who promptly poked the pigskin out of Ingram’s snare, the ball rolling ramrod straight through the back of the end zone and the referees declaring, “Auburn football!”
Welcome to the Iron Bowl.
All week long, you’ve had an opportunity to talk to your vent partner about what happened last Saturday on The Plains. You’ve texted, you’ve called, you’ve posted in message boards, you’ve sought psychological advice. So if you are experiencing Iron Bowl fatigue or feeling a bit verklempt, hold on with me a second (no pun intended) because I think this article has merit.
Allow me to say from the outset that I’m not trying to rub anything in Alabama fans’ faces nor beat a dead horse. Conversely, this essay is not an attempt to mitigate what Auburn has done. Let’s give credit where credit is due.
But I really want to know: Why does Alabama lose to Auburn so much?
It’s a phenomenon that’s as intriguing as Uri Geller’s ability to bend spoons. Is it costly mistakes? Does Alabama play tight? Does Auburn just want it more? Does being the year-to-year favorite in this rivalry carry with it a heavy crown?
For these purposes, I’d like to concentrate on analyzing the Iron Bowl in Auburn, where Ol’ St. Nicholas appears to be snakebitten (and Gus Malzahn is the sneaky adder lying in the grass). Remember in Saban’s opening press conference? You know, the day he took the Alabama job, the day he discussed “dominating” the in-state opponent? Overall, he’s 8-5 against Auburn, but 3-4 at Jordan-Hare Stadium. Not exactly domination, if you ask me.
But it’s not just that it happens — Auburn beating Nick Saban, that is — it’s how it happens. Watching the 2019 Iron Bowl was like watching one of those reality TV shows where drunk people are screaming and throwing things. Sure, it was entertaining, but you almost needed a shower when it was all said and done. And you can just see Gus Malzahn, the Master of Disaster, laughing at the chaos like Jack Palance in the movie Tango & Cash.
Remember 2013 when Auburn wielded, of all things, a sewing machine on the sideline to stitch up a player’s jersey in the 4th quarter of the Iron Bowl? It’s that kind of craziness you just can’t make up. It’s one thing if bizarre things happen once, but when bizarre things continue to happen and allude back to a previous bizarre thing (the 1-second deal), you have to wonder — Are there supernatural forces in play that we need to know about? Yes, this is a rivalry game and we ought to expect weird, wild stuff, but this weird?
Often, when Bama wins, it’s a blowout. But when the game is close, look out.
Even when Alabama is great, “Auburn Away” still poses a major problem. Case in point: It took a screen pass from Greg McElroy to Roy Upchurch to seal a 26-21 victory for 11-0 Alabama over 4-loss Auburn in 2009. In 2015, Alabama may have Derrick Henryed their way to a 29-13 win over 6-5 Auburn, but the game was tight — 19-13 — heading into the 4th quarter. Alabama subsequently went on to win the national championship, while Auburn took buses to beat Memphis in the Birmingham Bowl.
Which makes me wonder: What is it about playing in Auburn that gives Alabama the willies?
The Dye Factor
B.D. and A.D.: Before Dye and After Dye. That’s how the history of the Alabama-Auburn rivalry ought to be divided. Because ever since Patrick Fain Dye set foot on the Auburn campus in 1981, the Iron Bowl has been a completely different ballgame.
Before Pat Dye became Auburn’s coach, Alabama led the overall series 27-17-1. Since Dye, Auburn leads 20-19.
That means that Alabama fans born in 1980 have endured 20 Sunday-afters, wallowing in the misery of having lost to little brother — that “cow college” across the state. That’s despite Alabama’s 6 national titles, 10 conference championships, 83 All-American selections and gobs of players selected in the NFL Draft.
How does this happen? How does Auburn go toe-to-toe with the greatest college football program of all time?
Several years ago, I sat down with coach Dye at his farm, Quail Hollow Gardens and Crooked Oaks Hunting Preserve in Notasulga, Alabama. He told me this about his mind-set as he approached the Auburn job in 1981. Here’s what he said: “I had a feeling when I got here that all people wanted to talk about was Alabama,” Dye said. “I didn’t want to hear that. And I felt that many of the Auburn people were intimidated by Alabama. Being intimidated, that is a terrible thing.”
Even though Auburn had lost 8 straight to the Tide, Dye wasn’t intimidated. And in 1981, when Auburn dropped its 9th straight in the rivalry, he wasn’t a bit deterred. The next year, Auburn shocked the world with a little thing called Bo Over the Top. Then, putting together a little scratch, Auburn won the next year, too. And though Alabama won the next 2 games, Auburn dominated the latter part of the 1980s (if you think about it, Auburn was 2 field goals from winning 8 consecutive in the rivalry). In 1986, there was Lawyer Tillman’s “Reverse to Victory.” In ’87, there was the shutout. In ’88, it was the Tracy Rocker show. And in ’89, it was the Attack of Slack — Reggie Slack, that is. That set the tone for the A.D. era of the Iron Bowl, and the greatest decade in Auburn football history.
Couple that with the fact that Dye had the gall to wrest the Iron Bowl away from a place it had been ensconced since 1904 and you’ll understand a little more why Auburn has had success against the Tide in the post-Bryant era. Auburn had beaten Alabama 3 times in a row at Legion Field and now it was looking at playing at home every other year? Shoot! You had to like Auburn’s chances in this dynamic.
Another factor in Auburn’s success is that it took Alabama so long to pull off a victory in Auburn. After Bama dropped the first 4 games on The Plains, Jordan-Hare Stadium became a spooky place for the Tide. It wasn’t until 10 years after the teams began playing in Auburn that Alabama won its first game at Jordan-Hare Stadium. No other SEC coliseum has presented similar problems. Since 1989, Alabama is 12-4 at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge, 10-5 at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, 12-4 at Davis-Wade Stadium in Starkville and 10-3 at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium in Oxford.
One of my Auburn friends laughingly suggested that they get help from a little “Lee County Witchcraft,” while another person suggested the cause of the peculiar is an old Indian burial ground located beneath Jordan-Hare Stadium.
Either way, the home fans usually go home happy after 60 minutes of arch-rival football.
Is it Auburn, or does Alabama stub its own toe?
Besides the Kick-6, the miraculous interceptions, the field goal doinks and a little help from the gods, what can we say about Alabama’s performance that will help us understand why it fails to have success in Auburn? Analyzing data, Alabama’s struggle comes down to these few things:
- Missed field goals (special teams)
- Inability to convert on 3rd down
- Inability to get off the field on 3rd down defensively
- Crucial penalties
Let’s take 2013 as an example. Alabama missed 3 field goals (4 if you include the Kick-6), was 4-for-13 on 3rd down (while Auburn was 8-for-15), and was penalized 6 times for 45 yards. You make the 3 field goals, you win.
But it was Alabama’s inability to capitalize when it mattered most that ultimately spelled doom for the Crimson Tide. If you’ll remember, Alabama was up 28-21 in the 4th quarter when Auburn went for it on 4th-and-1 from its own 35 and didn’t get it.
Game over, right? Wrong.
Bama running back T.J. Yeldon then hustled for a quick first down and another solid run down to the 15, and just about the time you thought the Tide was about to put the game out of reach, the Auburn defense stiffened, stuffing Yeldon on 3rd-and-1 (it was a terrible spot) and again on 4th-and-1. Above the fiasco on the field, announcer Gary Danielson made two salient points. First, he said, “When your kicker makes you worry, you go for it,” then he cogently pointed out the busted blocking assignment on Auburn defensive tackle Carl Lawson, who made the heads-up play on Yeldon.
After taking over on downs, Auburn went backward and was forced to punt from its own 3 with 4:41 left. Returner Christion Jones fielded the punt and ran it all the way back to the Auburn 26, where Alabama had yet another golden opportunity to put the game away. But on 3rd-and-2 from the 17, the Tide were flagged for a holding penalty after Yeldon scampered around right end for a first down. To add further insult to injury, an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty against Alabama’s DeAndrew White offset Jonathon Mincy’s flag of the same caliber. That backed Alabama up to the 27, where it was facing 3rd-and-12. After a McCarron incompletion, Cade Foster lined up for a 44-yard field goal attempt to put Alabama up 10 with 2:41 remaining. But the kick was blocked, and Auburn had another thread of hope. A late hit penalty on backup tight end Brandon Green tacked an altruistic 15 yards onto Auburn’s next series.
Lulling Alabama to sleep with several Tre Mason runs down Broadway, Auburn then went to the air with 43 seconds remaining. Quarterback Nick Marshall tucked it and ran around left end, but then pulled up and hit receiver Sammie Coates for a 39-yard jaw-dropper.
After the extra point to tie the game, Alabama took over at its own 29. A McCarron incomplete pass drank several seconds off the clock, and Alabama was still deep in its own territory with 16 seconds remaining.
Why Saban elected to go for a score instead of kneeling the ball at this point is anyone’s guess. Perhaps the thought of overtime tasted rancid to him at that moment in the game. Perhaps he had confidence in McCarron’s ability to lead the troops down the field. Regardless of his mind-set, the rest is history, and Chris Davis’ runback will be forever etched into the minds of college football fans from Uniontown, Alabama, to Ulan Bator.
Four years later, undefeated Alabama, led by Jalen Hurts, marched into Jordan-Hare Stadium to face 9-2 Auburn. Hurts, who had already accumulated 1,828 yards passing and 686 yards rushing on the season, was conducting an offensive freight train that was averaging north of 41 points per game — the best in the SEC at the time. But the Auburn defense derailed the Hurtsian locomotive, holding Alabama to 314 yards and forcing a 3-for-11 night on 3rd down.
Alabama had opportunities, but miscues — including 2 bad snaps — defined the second half for Saban’s Tide. Defensively, Alabama allowed Auburn to convert on 9-of-18 3rd down attempts, and the Tide was penalized 9 times for 65 yards. Auburn also won the time of possession and the kicking game battle, as the Tigers were 2-for-2 while Alabama did not attempt a field goal.
Same old story, same result.
Now to 2019.
One mistake I penciled in on my Alabama Goofs List, one that went basically unnoticed, was the Crimson Tide’s decision to pooch kick with under 1 minute remaining in the first half. It was a blunder that gave Auburn the ball at the 35-yard line. Say what you will about the controversial 1-second call, Alabama basically handed Auburn a field goal to end the half because of advantageous field position.
At the time, Alabama had all the momentum. Wide receiver Jaylen Waddle had just housed a 58-yard strike from Mac Jones, and the Tide was up 31-24 — and getting the ball back at the start of the second half. With the pooch kick, however, Auburn was 2 passes from being in field goal range. The make with 1 second remaining in the half took KOed all of Alabama’s momentum, and Tide could not capitalize when it received the ball to start the second half.
Secondly, I understand the crushing penalties, the missed field goal, the Pick-6s all affected the game the same way. But Alabama’s inability to stop Auburn’s offense, in my opinion, was the difference. It’s a sickening feeling knowing you can’t stop someone, and to give up 48 total points to the No. 53 offense in the NCAA is absolutely inexcusable.
Alabama forced 3 punts and only 1 3-and-out to a team that had been railed upon all year long for its offensive anemia. But that’s been the Crimson Tide’s defensive year in a nutshell. There have been times when the Alabama defense makes hobo-like offenses look like they’re the bell of the ball. South Carolina, a team averaging 22.4 points per game and ranked 96th in the country in total offense, put up big numbers on the Tide (459 total yards, 23 points) and Texas A&M, ranked 71st overall in total offense, hung 28 on the Tide.
But, but Al … it’s a “new age” of offensive football, people say.
My response is this: Clemson stops people.
Let’s look at a few more alarming statistics from Saturday. It wasn’t that Auburn posted incredible yardage numbers — 354 total yards is modest — it’s that when Auburn had the ball, it scored. The Tigers had the ball for 14 drives and scored on 9 of them. It should be noted that Auburn punted on its first 2 drives, after which it scored on 75 percent of its possessions (9-for-12).
Last week, 247Sports ran an article about Auburn’s offensive woes after it crosses midfield. Either Gus Malzahn self-corrected and is the greatest coach in the world or Alabama’s defense isn’t very good.
The following is a list of statistics from Alabama’s past 3 losses at Jordan-Hare Stadium. As you can see, there’s no real rhyme or reason, and that’s why the aforementioned problems are the real reasons why Alabama doesn’t win at Auburn.
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In summary, Alabama fans have to be disgusted at the failure to win these winnable games, and the complete absurdity of losing all three of them.
Should he stay or should he go?
After the game, some Alabama fans took a bit of solace in hoping that Gus Malzahn could hang around Auburn for a few more years. Frankly I don’t understand this line of thinking, nor why any Alabama fan would want Auburn to keep Malzahn. Sure, every year he always loses a game he isn’t supposed to lose and has yet to lead his team to the College Football Playoff. Sure, he’s twitchy and might go 8-4. But he darn sure beats Alabama.
Malzahn has a Dye-esque nature about him, in that he doesn’t seem to be too scared of his in-state rival, nor Saban for that matter. Here’s what he said in the postgame press conference after the Alabama game: “You know, he’s a great coach,” Malzahn said, talking of Saban. “Everybody knows that, but this is Auburn and they’re Alabama. This is the best rivalry in college football. It’s not about me. It’s about our players. Our players believe they can beat them. All the other teams, for the most part, hope.”
Not many coaches would have the guts to say that, and that makes him a dangerous coach in late November.
In the end, Saban’s legacy as one of the greatest football coaches of all time is cemented, without question. Alabama’s five national championships in the Saban years speak loudly, but in the background you will always be able to hear the faint sound of a Tiger’s roar.
They win because the rest of the college football world is always rooting for them to win.. Because we hate Alabama..
I don’t hate Bama, and some years have rooted for them against Auburn.
But I was all in with the War Chickens last week to prevent the Roll Tiders from whining their way into another undeserved playoff spot. Delicious!
“Whining their way into another undeserved playoff spot”? Umm when has this occurred? Which season are you referencing?
2014 – Alabama was SEC Champ with 1 loss, lost in the semi-final.
2015 – Alabama was SEC Champ with 1 loss, won title.
2016 – Alabama was SEC Champ with no losses until title game.
2017 – Alabama was SEC West Division Co Champ (Tie break went to Auburn) with only 1 loss, won title.
2018 – Alabama was SEC Champ with no losses until title game.
Every time Bama has won the SEC, I have cheered my head off for them! (And I still haven’t forgiven them for losing to Urban’s Blackeyes in ’14).
But Bama did NOT deserve to be in the title game in ’11 or ’17. How can a non-conference champ win the NC? That makes the conference title irrelelvant.
Sadly, the Roll Tiders don’t care, and would steal a used national title out of an alley wino’s pocket if they could. You are the leader of the best conference, and you have helped to diminish it to the level of the other peasant conferences.
@wickedgrin…I think the fact that Bama won the CFP in 2017 trumps you saying they didn’t deserve to be in. They clearly did. That’s the point of the CFP committee, to not make anything about set rules like only conference champions can get it. They evaluate the teams based on a lot of factors and pick the best 4.
That’s also why they dropped Bama to 12th in latest ranks with only 2 losses.
The CFP wasn’t around in 2011, and Bama made it to the title only because the teams ahead of them lost. Had those teams simply won, Alabama doesn’t get into the title game. How is that “whining” to get into the title game?
In 2017, Alabama was 11-1, and did not represent the SEC West. Fine, I get that, but the next options for the CFP were a 11-2 Ohio State and a 11-2 USC. There was also a 12-1 Wisconsin team, but they lost their conference champ game to Ohio State. Had Wisconsin simply won, Alabama doesn’t go to the CFP in 2017. So once again, how is that Alabama “whining” their way in?
Example: Is Utah deserving to be in the CFP this year? Some say yes, others say no. Right now they sit at #5 in the CFP rankings, and, if LSU defeats Georgia, and the Utes defeat Oregon, they get in. Would Georgia fans or Utah haters have any right to declare Utah isn’t deserving to get in? It wouldn’t be Utah’s fault if a team above them loses, allowing the Utes to ascend. That’s what happened with Alabama, and they merely benefited from being next in line.
And I assure you, I hate that we lost to Ohio State in 2014 as well.
Listen, I don’t expect our brothers in the SEC to like us, or any of their rivals within the league, but if we’re not being fair in our assessment of each other’s success and failings, as well as our own, then we’re not being good college football fans.
Which season? 2017
WHY? I don’t get it!!!
TrophyKing80 Your last statement is spot on. Rivalry is okay. In fact, I love it. But when it comes to bashing and meanness for no reason- I don’t think you have the right to be a fan of that team, because you’re not being a good college football fan!
Because Bama has beaten you for the last several gamesa ha
The hilarious thing about the 2019 Iron Bowl, is Alabama clearly had the better team. Malzahn did everything he could, and needed to do to keep his team in the game, and then the luck happened, again!
The two pick six’s. What are the odds? Without either one of those the outcome is different and Alabama wins.
Then there’s the undeniable. Gus Malzahn outsmarted Saban again. The High School trick alignment – punt thing actually worked!
It reminded me of how the Kick 6 went down, but that was Saban asking for and getting the one second added to the clock.
But “you can’t get a play off in 1 second” – Apparently unless you’re Alabama…
The Kick 6 was Saban desperately trying a field-goal that everybody in the stadium knew his kicker couldn’t make, and give Malzahn credit for having a returner at the ready, while Saban had only big body’s on the field to prevent a blocked kick.
As a Georgia fan, I hope Auburn keeps Malzahn for many years to come. He is Saban’s Kryptonite, and Kirby has done well against him…
You have to credit our defense a lot though. Look at the 2nd pick 6. Bama had 1st and Goal and our D stuffed the run. Then a 3rd down personal foul gave Bama another 1st and Goal at the 2yd line. Defense stuffs the run again. Then a PI gives Bama yet another 1st and goal at the 2. The fact that our D had been stuffing the run made Sarkisian not even try to run on 1st and Goal…a great strong side blitz forces the bad throw..and the rest is history.
I’d hardly call that luck! Auburn defense making big plays when it mattered is why we won the game IMO.
@ WarEagle: The fact that the pass bounces offa players back and into your player’s hands is the luck part. I don’t dismiss anything else you said, but it’s not like your D Cooridnator said to the guys, “Blitz, and we’ll catch the errant pass off a player’s back”
Very true…I agree that’s a lucky bounce for sure.
And that’s sometimes all it takes. And those breaks happen for all teams.
But it does sometimes feel like Auburn has a rabbits foot under their helmets or something.
Swings both ways! We have some games we just look so so so so bad and nothing goes our way. Which is why a winning coach who has beaten Bama more than anyone else is still considered on the hot seat.
Hell, if we hadn’t won the Iron Bowl this year, there’s a decent chance Gus was gone with an 8-4 record.
I know Alabama gets the lucky bounces, I just can’t recall too many in the Iron Bowl.
The article noted the Ingram fumble….dude, he was like at the twenty when the Auburn player knocked the ball out, and the ball tumbled twenty yards, never bouncing out of bounds, all the way out of the end zone….that’s ridiculous luck, no? Not the strip, mind you, just the fact that a player fumbles the ball along the sideline and it tumbles for twenty yards, never wavering, and then out of the end zone.
The completion/TD off the Georgia players a few years back; the Auburn player never broke stride and it just falls right into his hands.
The pick six off the player’s back? Whaaa…?
Obviously, the athletes still need to perform when those breaks go their way, like Auburn’s player stripping the ball, or catching the pass off the deflection, etc., but I’d be lying if I said it did not seem like those bounces favor Auburn more than they don’t.
Must be something in that Toomer’s Lemonade.
W E 14-0, I agree with everything you said about the Auburn defense, etc. But like T K 80 said, that bounce off the receivers back and into the hands of the db was pure luck, and how often does any team get 2 pick 6’s in one game against a good offense?
In the end, it was the punt alignment that sealed the deal, and you have to give Malzahn full credit for it..
A point noone mentioned is penalties against Bama vs Penalties against Auburn in Auburns stadium the last ten games at Dye Field is some good home cooking lmao!!!
If anything…the reason Auburn won the Iron Bowl is Bama’s defense is pretty sub-par this year. UGA should know how Auburn’s offense performs against a good D! LOL
WarEagle14-0, I agree our D was not good this year but injuries played a big part of it. Our backup QB put 515 yards of offense on that elite defense of Auburn.
I agree our D didn’t perform well either, but a lot of that was early in the game. Najee Harris almost had 91 yards in the first quarter alone, but ended with 146. When it mattered late in the game, our D stepped up.
I actually think Alabama went away from the run in the second half. It almost seemed as if Alabama’s offense played panicked in the second half. It was a back and forth game, with both teams never getting up by more than a few points, yet it seemed like Alabama was wanting to pass on every down and moving the ball as if they only had a few minutes to score. Even the final drive, that led to the missed FG, could have been more methodical. Had Alabama made that FG, Auburn gets the ball with plenty of time left to score a game-winner.
But yes, your D did also play better against the run in the second half, when Alabama ran it.
Yes and everybody has injuries n we had freshman QB too so? Gotta stop with injuries but I’ll ets sat
@ Tim Rupert: “But “you can’t get a play off in 1 second” – Apparently unless you’re Alabama…” Umm, Yeldon went out of bounds, so the clock stops and does not restart until the snap of the ball on the next play. The added second in this year’s game occurred with a player tackled in bounds, and had the clock never been stopped for review, Auburn DOES NOT get the snap off in time. No one could. That’s the difference.
I would have to assume there will be a rule change soon that addresses this. A 3 second runoff or something if a review happens while the clock is supposed to be running.
I agree with you, the new video replay age we are living in gave Auburn a free FG attempt. Gotta give credit to Daniel Carlson for nailing a 52 yarder too with a quick snap.
Oh yeah, I don’t discount that the kid still had to go out and make the FG, which he did.
And I wasn’t necessarily complaining about what happened. It is what it is. What else could officials do in that case? I just wanted to clarify the original comment.
I think in cases of review, if a team has no timeouts, and the review is prompted by the officials, perhaps there shouldn’t be runoff, since the officials prompted the review. Then again, if a team has not timeouts, they can’t seek the review, so I dunno.
I agree, though, it will be addressed, and it’s no fault of Auburn’s; they merely benefited from the situation, which no one can really argue with since there was nothing in play, rules-wise, to address this.
I actually think the game was fairly well-officiated and well-played when I stop and look back on the game.
Alabama called a timeout? It was finally confirmed n u can go to bama website n u will see under analytics for the Iron Bowl game! Somehow it just wasn’t figured out by announcers in the game! Doesn’t matter now bama kicker missed another field goal? How does that keep happening n why players getting hurt is what I would b worried bout? Just saying excuses lead nowhere! Auburn finds a way to beat Bama when they can but at least Saban doesn’t lose games cuz of stupid play-calling like Gus can?Y’all need to be grateful instead of crying as we all do I agree,we are just crazy bout our football in Alabama
If the clock never stopped for review in 13 the game would’ve went into OT.. also in this years game Alabama called a timeout. I encourage to go look at the game logs on the Auburn and Alabama websites.
Tim Rupert, the SECW is kryptonite to Kirby.
“It’s a phenomenon that’s as intriguing as Uri Geller’s ability to bend spoons”
Yes, that was quite amazing!
Say, Al, on an unrelated topic, I have some magic beans I can sell you for really cheap! They only work if they are planted by someone with child-like naivety and belief in magic, and you’re the perfect dupe, uh, I mean buyer!
Shoot me your email, let’s do this!
Just what Bama fans needed to cap off their season.
It’s simple: the black magic of Jordyn-Hare Stadium in November. Somebody sold their soul for it.
I am confused. I thought that Alabama won 8 of the last 12… My memory must be failing.
I love how you choose 12 as the arbitrary number. How about Auburn has won 11 of the last 20?
The relevant number is the Saban era…and like the article says he’s 8-5 against Auburn. Here’s how the rest of the SEC stacks up against Saban’s Bama. See the point now?
AU 5-8
LSU 4-10
UM 2-11
UGA 1-6
UF 1-7
TAMU 1-7
MSST 1-12
UT 0-13
No, I don’t see the point. “Why does Alabama lose to Auburn so much?” implies a much better win margin than 8-5 or even 9-11. There just isn’t any way you can divide it up that would make sense for the headline. If you want to go back to pre-Saban times, at best you can say “why is the Alabama-Auburn series so even” or perhaps “why did Auburn beat Alabama this year”.
Sabans Bama has lost to Auburn 5 times. Only 2 other SEC teams have ever beaten him more than once. I suppose an article could also be written about why they lose to LSU more than other teams as well. But the point is, most teams can’t beat Saban’s Bama…but Auburn does more than anyone else.
But the title doesn’t ask why Alabama loses to Auburn under Saban “more than to other teams”. It asks “why Alabama loses to Auburn so much” as if Alabama just can’t seem to figure Auburn out. The answer to the question of why they lose to Auburn more than to other teams is simple, it is a rivalry game with very ripe emotions.
Gotcha…we can agree on the poor title. Because when I first saw it on Facebook I was like…hmm, do they?
I think you need to check your numbers again.
Or, how about the entire series as a whole, with Bama still leading the series by 9 games.
That works too! I just got a chuckle that he arbitrarily chose 12 to try and make his argument more relevant.
I didn’t “arbitrarily (choose) 12 to try and make (my) argument more relevant”. If I was going to do that, I would have chosen 1972 to 1982. I chose the most recent 12 because going back beyond 2008 didn’t make much sense to me. Unless one “arbitrarily” chooses a chunk of historical data (such as 2002 to 2007 for example), my argument is equally valid. Any way you slice it I think that the title is overly dramatic and gives the wrong impression of the series. I probably would have had something to say if it said “Why Does Auburn Lose to Alabama So Much” as well. I’ve lived through a lot of Iron Bowls and as an impartial observer living in the state of Alabama (despite what they say it IS possible) I’ve always considered it to fall into the “anything can happen” category more than any other rivalry game that I can think of.
I have a comment on this awaiting moderation. Fiddle sticks.
You’ll likely have to figure out a way to reword it, trophy. I have yet to figure out why some comments have to “await moderation”, but I’ve never had one come back like that that ever actually made it to the board. None of them have even remotely been inappropriate either. Some of the ones that get posted no problem are probably more inappropriate.
Reworded to escape the moderators:
Anyone who tries to take a sampling of the whole is obviously doing so because the whole doesn’t support their narrative. As a Bama fan, I don’t know why any other Bama fan would simply take a sample size of any series between any SEC teams, as currently, Alabama has a winning record against them all. Sure, as the article indicated, Auburn is having a great run of success against Alabama, more so than any other team, and that’s fine and I won’t try to dismiss this, but you can’t simply ignore the entire history.
If Auburn or Alabama play a FCS opponent 99 times, defeating them each time, but lose that 100th game, do we suddenly say, “Whelp, that FCS team owns us”? Heck no.
I don’t expect any rival SEC fanbase to like my team and vice versa, but I wish we could be better college football fans, giving honest assessments of our teams and our rivals.
And I say this knowing all too well the many Alabama fans who had LASIK done in Crimson and White.
I guess we can talk about next year, next year, but my early thoughts are I wouldn’t want to be an Auburn or LSU fan……
Saban has a bigger turnaround job than either Orgeron or Gus. I know the insinuation about Saban and revenge games…but this Bama team/staff has major defensive issues that are becoming a trend.
Yeah, probably, but Coach O and Malzahn both ran their mouths after the games. Not a good idea.
LSU loses Burrow, who we can all agree is the reason for LSU’s success. Doubt me? Can you tell me any other head coaching job Orgeron has had in which his teams have even come close to this type of success. This season will be a flash in the pan for Orgeron-led LSU. Enjoy it while it lasts.
As for Auburn, they’re losing their defensive stars, and a comment further up on this thread noted how it was Auburn’s defense that helped secure this win, even noting the run-stuffing at the goal-line that led to Alabama electing to pass on a 1st and goal play that resulted in a 100-yard pick six. Those defenders will be gone next year. And I’m sorry, but Mr. 50% Bo Nix isn’t that great of a QB. He’s not terrible, but he’s not great either.
I like Alabama’s chances in both of those match-ups next season just based upon the things I mentioned above.
I would have hoped Malzahn would have learned his lesson about running his mouth after the 2017 Georgia game. Oh well.
There will be a drop off on the Auburn DL, but the defense will not fall off a cliff. Overall, it will be stronger with all the returning talent in the secondary and at LB. Did I miss something? I don’t recall Gus saying anything inflammatory after this year’s win.
I was just going to ask the same question…what did Gus say after the game?
Next year will be very interesting for Auburn. I do think Bo Nix is going to be a great QB. What he did this year as a true freshman, to me, was pretty remarkable. That’s a tough thing, and to navigate us to 9-3 with that schedule is awesome.
We lose our entire O-Line…we lose a lot of defense, but the cupboard is not bare.
The schedule is “friendly” except for UGA and BAMA away…I think it will be another 9-3 type of year. Auburn 2021 with Bo as a Junior will be the very intresting one…maybe our best shot at a CFP run.
@ WarEagle14-0: What are you seeing that indicates that Nix will be great? Just curious. And I’m asking sincerely, by the way, because I simply do not see it. Outside passing for 50% on the nose against Alabama, he completed less than 50% against Top 25 teams. And while he has good mobility, he’s also not gonna completely break teams being a running QB.
In my honest assessment, it was Auburn’s defense, more than Nix, that helped lead the Tigers to a 9-3 record.
@ Weagle99: Don’t misunderstand me; I’m not implying that Auburn will sputter to a disastrous 3-9 season or anything like that. But I think the advantage swings a little more in favor of Alabama next season. I say that knowing that it was likely in favor of Alabama this season and Bama still lost to Auburn.
@TrophyKing80: Regarding Bo Nix…I think just watching him this year he has made some very freshman mistakes and throws. The kind of things that get better with experience and practice. He has also made some really great throws, like the bullet to Sal Canella on the run in the Iron Bowl, or the very accurate pass into double coverage to Seth Williams(which Seth caught with 1 hand to make it amazing). Heck…if Bo didn’t make a terrible freshman mistake against UGA and underthrow that 4th down play to end the game, I really think Auburn would have won and we are 10-2.
Then combine that with his scrambling ability and the RPO, whicch this year as a freshman again he didn’t make some good decisions on when to pull the ball.
I just think he WILL get better, and he has a skill set that should make him a very good QB as he matures and gains experience. My hope is by his Junior season we are a threat to make the CFP.
Fair enough. We’ll have to wait and see. I wasn’t really too impressed with Joe Burrow coming into this season, and well, he made me looking silly for doubting, so perhaps Nix will do the same.
And I agree, what I’ve seen of his play, some of it is definitely freshman error and can be improved. I don’t think he’s awful, mind you, I’m just not seeing all the hype that you currently see. Time will tell.
What did Gus say?
We’ve got to stop the staff turnover and stop losing asst coaches more than anything. I really believe that has been the biggest issue Bama has dealt with. Lack of consistency has hurt the program, look at Clemson. Give Dabo credit he has kept his staff in tact and they are still in the top 4 and undefeated. But you are right, the defensive side of Bama has some real issues and it’s not going to be a quick easy fix.
Defensive Secondary is supposed to be Saban’s group and his area of expertise, but it’s been our defensive secondary that has struggled the past couple of seasons. Even when we had to start freshman on the defensive line and at the linebacker spot, those players improved and, in my opinion, did a great job of limiting Auburn’s rushing attack. It was the secondary that continued to screw up. That’s on Saban.
But yeah, our Defensive Coordinator sucks. I miss the good ol days with Coach Smart directing our defense. He was a huge asset.
Why? I think they’ll both do well now that Saban has gone all in on west coast oklahomerish football…defense wins big games more times than not and both BogKatU and WarBuzzardU are recruiting lights out on the d side while you still keep reading about the 5star dual threaters and rbs for bama.
We ain’t skear-red.
Those Barners have
no concept of karma. Nor do LSU folks. Here’s an oldie but goodie. The university is not named for the town or vice versa. It’s an early acronym: Alabama Usually Beats Us Red Necks. Except we Southerners wear Redneck as a badge if honor, so there’s that.
Seems legit. Did your sister/wife help you come up with that?
Why can’t SDS make a chart properly…
It’s funny to me how the rest of the SEC hates us so much. I mean I really only pull against Auburn. I even started pulling for Tennessee this year as they started to improve, because I know the Vol fans are starved and want to win after so many bad years. Too proud of a program to be down so long and we need Tennessee to be good for the SEC.
I pull for all SEC teams against non-SEC teams for sure. But I read all of these comments and so many people hate Alabama, why such hatred? I realize we all have some crazy, idiot fans but most Bama fans that I know are not arrogant self righteous fans that we always get portrayed as. Look I remember the late 90’s and early 2000’s when we were going 3-8 and losing to Louisiana Monroe, Central Florida and no coach wanted to come to Alabama when we had a vacancy, which was often.
I am proud of what Bama has accomplished in the last 10 years and I get the “Bama fatigue” factor somewhat by why so much hate toward us? I am pulling for Georgia against LSU in the SECC game because the Dawg fans have waited since 1980 for a Natty. They are due and I hope they get another shot, plus I like UGA and Kirby. So Go Dawgs! But either way I hope the SEC brings the National Title back to the SEC!
Speaking just for me, I don’t hate Bama at all. I really don’t “hate” any other team. I probably should hate Bama though. Based on the losses.
I just don’t pull for them. We have to recruit against them and the other SEC teams. Doesn’t make much sense for me to hope Saban has yet another ring to show recruits. Nothing personal. Just business.
They only hate us because we’re one of the more-dominant teams currently. If Alabama was going through a rut, only winning 7 or 8 games per season, losing 3 or 4 conference games, then the disdain would probably only come from the Auburn fanbase, which makes sense. But following this loss to Auburn, I saw comments from LSU fans (your team had already beaten us, I don’t get it) Florida fans, Tennessee fans, Georgia fans….oddly enough, not so much from Kentucky or Vandy fans.
Anyway, they hate us cause we’ve been the winning team of late, but we all know that’s not going to remain the case.
TrophyKing, the reason you don’t get it about LSU fans posting, is because you probably don’t know that Bama fans troll LSU sights all season. It builds resentment. Just last year some were trolling LSU fans that were getting good impressions about Joe Burrow, insisting he was just a game manager compared to Alabama’s superstar Tua. Although Joe had an average season last year, we could see flashes from him we never see from others. His ability to make checks against the defense, his toughness, cool under pressure, etc. His intangibles are off the charts. Also, the comments about Bama fatigue certainly have something to do with it, similar to the NFL Patriots. A lot of people like to root for the underdog, which isn’t Bama.
Most of it is Bama fatigue. It’s not just the rest of the SEC that wants to see the king fall. It’s human nature. Personally, I have great respect for Bama’s teams and history. I don’t like Saban…which is no secret. It all started with his comments about hating those “A-holes” during the 2008 Iron Bowl.
If Auburn sustains a dominant run in the near future, you’ll see what it’s like to be on top, with everyone hating you. It’s not a fun spot, because you, as a fan, only think the best of your squad, and won’t be able to convince anyone that your team is simply being successful at achieving the goal of the game….to win.
In a way, this two-loss season (maybe 3 if Bama doesn’t show up for their bowl game) is a reprieve from the vitriol. Let folks hate on Clemson for a bit or something. ::shrugs::
We felt it a bit with Cam and Fairley in 2010. Felt like the entire country was rooting against us. Cant imagine that feeling every year.
I don’t think I hate Bama and I don’t have too many bad experiences with their fans either. I hate UGA. I was happy when Bama beat them last year. And I’ll be happy when LSU beats them this year.
I think the hate is just because Bama has had so much success. Just like peopel are happy when the Patriots lose.
Dated a girl from Boston; they’re awful people. We’ll leave it at that.
Hate Leghumpers, Weagle? Say it ain’t so. I’m shocked. Leghumpers love oak trees and fire hydrants, I don’t get it.
Exactly what I have been wanting to say!!!
@BamaAtlanta ^post above!
Don’t overthink this. This a huge rivalry game, which means most of the time you can toss the records out. Lots of emotion leads to unpredictable results sometimes. That’s why we watch college football!!
Here is the secret. Auburn has a gremlin or leprichaun. He sits in the end zone opposite the scoreboard. Maybe he is a relic from Donohue the Irishmen or a ghost player from Heisman’s day.
He looks like a cartoon goofy character and has a pair of football britches common to the thirties, an illfitting old fashion leather helmet and huge white oversized white sneekers. When Auburn is united he comes onto the filed. When Bama comes to town he always plays unless the Auburn team has no heart. When he plays they amost do not lose and you can expect to see what you have seen. He almost never goes on the road except to T town. When Auburn has heart he is on the squad that day there as well. Or he is simply absent. He hates Florida, Tennessee and LSU stadiums for some reason but loves Grant field and Athens. Go figure.
I have seen him many times in close games there.
Because they suck.