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Iron Bowl Preview
November 28, 2014
One year after the phrase 'Kick Six' became a part of common football vernacular thanks to Chris Davis's 109-yard return of a missed Alabama field goal, one that provided the wildest finish to an Iron Bowl in the history of college's most bitter rivalry, Alabama and Auburn are set to collide again Saturday night at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa.
Before they do, however, we must review the details of what has undoubtedly caused Crimson Tide fans many sleepless nights over the last 364 days. First, we have to note how Alabama failed to put last year's game away on multiple occasions in the fourth quarter.
After A.J. McCarron put the Tide in front 28-21 with 10:28 remaining by perfectly hitting a streaking Amari Cooper down the right sideline for a school-record 99-yard touchdown pass, the Tigers could have been put out of their misery by a 28-yard field goal from Cade Foster with less than six minutes remaining. However, a false start penalty took the 10-point lead off the board, and then Foster hooked the subsequent 33-yarder wide left.
Deep in AU territory minutes later and facing a fourth-and-inches opportunity from the 13, Nick Saban decided against turning to Foster, who had already missed three times. Auburn stuffed a running play, giving it one last chance to pull even.
Gus Malzahn's team took advantage this time, scoring on a 39-yard TD pass from Nick Marshall to Sammie Coates on a play that tricked everyone at Jordan-Hare Stadium. Marshall rolled to his left as if he was running a wide sweep with zero intentions of throwing the ball. Coates at first played coy as if he was blocking for Marshall, only to release late behind the 'Bama defense and catch Marshall's throw in stride to knot the game at 28-28 following the ensuing PAT.
But 'Bama advanced to the AU 40 and out of bounds as time expired. Saban challenged the play to see if T.J. Yeldon had gone out with one tick left. The referees agreed after a video review, granting the Tide one more second to attempt a 57-yard field goal. This time around, Saban would go with Adam Griffith, whose attempt fell short by a yard.
Davis fielded the kick and ran up the middle, only to see an opening to the left. He picked up a couple of nice blocks, barely avoided stepping out of bounds on the sideline and was in the clear by the time he crossed midfield. A convoy of teammates joined him for the last 20 or so yards of his stride into the end zone.
All hell broke loose at that point. In the CBS broadcast booth, Verne Lundquist and Gary Danielson sat silent for nearly two minutes. Saban threw his headset in disbelief. McCarron sprinted toward the Alabama locker room, only to be met by his bride-to-be and national heartthrob Katherine Webb with a hug and words of consolation.
Meanwhile, Auburn fans understandably went berserk. It stormed the field without hesitation despite the thorny bushes in their way, ones planted after Georgia fans destroyed the field decades before after an improbable victory on The Plains.
Forget the Stanford-Cal finish with laterals galore with the band on the field. To hell with Kordell Stewart's bomb at The Big House or 'The Immaculate Deflection' at Jordan-Hare against UGA just two weeks before. This was, without question, the wildest, craziest and most improbable finish to a game in college football history.
And the consequences were mind-boggling. Alabama would not get a chance to win a third consecutive national title. Auburn, one year removed from a 3-9 season and a 49-0 loss to 'Bama, was the winner of the SEC West, with its ticket punched for Atlanta to face Missouri in the SEC Championship Game for the right to play in the final BCS title game.
Just like last season, Alabama comes into the Iron Bowl controlling its own destiny to win a fourth national title during Saban's sensational tenure. Unlike last year, Auburn hasn't caught breaks galore and simply finds itself in the spoiler role.
Alabama (10-1 straight up, 3-8 against the spread) has won six in a row since suffering its lone loss by a 23-17 count at Ole Miss on Oct. 4. When Saban's team knocked off top-ranked Mississippi St. 25-20 two weeks ago, it took control of the No. 1 slot in the College Football Playoff rankings.
Auburn (8-3 SU, 4-7 ATS) fell out of contention in the SEC West with back-to-back losses to Texas A&M and Georgia. The Tigers dropped a 41-38 decision to the Aggies as 23-point home favorites. One week later without top WR Duke Williams, they got smashed 34-7 at Georgia as three-point road underdogs.
As of early Thursday, most betting shops had the Crimson Tide favored by nine with a total of 53.5 points. Gamblers can take at the Tigers to win outright for a +290 payout (risk $100 to win $290).
Alabama is unbeaten in six home games this year, going 2-3-1 ATS. However, we should note that the Tide hasn't been a single-digit home 'chalk' this season. In fact, they haven't been favored by single digits in Tuscaloosa since losing in overtime by a 9-6 score to LSU as 4.5-point home favorites in 2011.
Auburn has played a murderous road schedule this year. It began with a 20-14 win at Kansas St. on a Thursday night in September. On Oct. 11, the Tigers took a 38-23 beating at Mississippi St. They survived a 60-minute war in Oxford by beating Ole Miss, 35-31. In its last road assignment, though, UGA avenged last year's loss with authority.
As a road underdog under Malzahn, AU owns a 3-1 spread record with a pair of outright victories.
After missing consecutive games, Williams will return to the starting lineup in Tuscaloosa. He has made a team-best 38 catches for 609 yards and five TDs. Marshall has a 15/6 touchdown-to-interception ratio and 11 rushing scores. Marshall has 1,859 passing yards and 731 rushing yards.
Cameron Artis-Payne has rushed for a team-high 1,410 yards and 11 TDs, averaging 5.5 yards per carry. Coates has 25 receptions for 511 yards and a pair of TD grabs.
When McCarron departed for the pros, most pundits felt like FSU transfer Jake Coker would win the starting QB job. But that hasn't happened and senior Blake Sims has exceeded any and all expectations. Sims has completed 62.0 percent of his throws for 2,662 yards with a 19/4 TD-INT ratio. He has also run for 252 yards and five scores, and a pair of scrambles on third-and-long plays were the difference in the game-sealing drive against Mississippi St.
Sims has the country's best WR in Amari Cooper, who will play Saturday despite leaving last week's win over Western Carolina with a minor knee injury. Cooper has 90 catches for 1,349 yards and 11 TDs. Yeldon has run for a team-best 758 yards and six TDs, while Derrick Henry has 682 rushing yards and seven scores.
Alabama is second in the nation in scoring defense, allowing just 14.5 points per game. This unit is also second in the country against the run. Meanwhile, Auburn's defense has been an unmitigated disaster in its last five SEC games, giving up at least 31 points each time out.
The 'under' is on a 5-1 run in 'Bama's last six games. The 'under' is 6-4 overall for the Tide, 3-2 in its home games with a total. They have seen an average combined score of 49.5 PPG.
The 'over' is 6-5 overall for Auburn, but the 'under' has cashed in three of its four road assignments. The Tigers have seen their games average a combined score of 58.5 PPG.
Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Eastern on ESPN.
**B.E.'s Bonus Nuggets**
-- Florida has won outright in four of its last five trips to Tallahassee. The last time FSU tasted a defeat was when Will Muschamp's squad went into Doak Campbell Stadium and won a 37-26 decision in 2012. The Gators were 7.5-point underdogs as of early Thursday.
-- As of early Thursday, there was still no line for South Carolina at Clemson due to the uncertain status of Clemson freshman QB Deshaun Watson. He has missed nearly all of the last six games, playing in just the first quarter of games against Louisville and Ga. Tech before leaving with injuries. Dabo Swinney's team is 0-6 ATS in those contests.
-- South Carolina has won five in a row over Clemson, with each victory coming by double-digit margins.
-- Multiple reports late Thursday night indicated that Clemson offensive coordinator Chad Morris has agreed to accept the head-coaching job at SMU. Although this space thinks the Swinney-to-Florida rumors/reports this week have been erroneous, they can't help the focus of the Tigers going into this rivalry game against their hated enemies in the Palmetto State.
-- As of early Thursday, most spots had Mississippi St. favored by 2.5 at Ole Miss in the most anticipated Egg Bowl in decades. After getting injured in last week's loss at Arkansas, Rebels' QB Bo Wallace has the all clear to play against the Bulldogs.
-- Tennessee won't have All-SEC LB A.J. Johnson or star WR Marquez North for Saturday's regular-season finale at Vanderbilt. Also, WR Jason Croom is a question mark after injuring his knee at Tuesday's practice. Butch Davis called Croom's injury a minor one to his hamstring, but that notion has been disputed by ever media member in Knoxville who witnessed the injury during the portion of practice that's open to reporters.
-- Georgia is a 13-point home favorite vs. Ga. Tech. In his first career start last year, Hutson Mason rallied the Bulldogs from a double-digit halftime deficit against the Yellow Jackets. Mason helped UGA force overtime and it eventually won in the second extra session on The Flats in Midtown Atlanta.
November 28, 2014
One year after the phrase 'Kick Six' became a part of common football vernacular thanks to Chris Davis's 109-yard return of a missed Alabama field goal, one that provided the wildest finish to an Iron Bowl in the history of college's most bitter rivalry, Alabama and Auburn are set to collide again Saturday night at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa.
Before they do, however, we must review the details of what has undoubtedly caused Crimson Tide fans many sleepless nights over the last 364 days. First, we have to note how Alabama failed to put last year's game away on multiple occasions in the fourth quarter.
After A.J. McCarron put the Tide in front 28-21 with 10:28 remaining by perfectly hitting a streaking Amari Cooper down the right sideline for a school-record 99-yard touchdown pass, the Tigers could have been put out of their misery by a 28-yard field goal from Cade Foster with less than six minutes remaining. However, a false start penalty took the 10-point lead off the board, and then Foster hooked the subsequent 33-yarder wide left.
Deep in AU territory minutes later and facing a fourth-and-inches opportunity from the 13, Nick Saban decided against turning to Foster, who had already missed three times. Auburn stuffed a running play, giving it one last chance to pull even.
Gus Malzahn's team took advantage this time, scoring on a 39-yard TD pass from Nick Marshall to Sammie Coates on a play that tricked everyone at Jordan-Hare Stadium. Marshall rolled to his left as if he was running a wide sweep with zero intentions of throwing the ball. Coates at first played coy as if he was blocking for Marshall, only to release late behind the 'Bama defense and catch Marshall's throw in stride to knot the game at 28-28 following the ensuing PAT.
But 'Bama advanced to the AU 40 and out of bounds as time expired. Saban challenged the play to see if T.J. Yeldon had gone out with one tick left. The referees agreed after a video review, granting the Tide one more second to attempt a 57-yard field goal. This time around, Saban would go with Adam Griffith, whose attempt fell short by a yard.
Davis fielded the kick and ran up the middle, only to see an opening to the left. He picked up a couple of nice blocks, barely avoided stepping out of bounds on the sideline and was in the clear by the time he crossed midfield. A convoy of teammates joined him for the last 20 or so yards of his stride into the end zone.
All hell broke loose at that point. In the CBS broadcast booth, Verne Lundquist and Gary Danielson sat silent for nearly two minutes. Saban threw his headset in disbelief. McCarron sprinted toward the Alabama locker room, only to be met by his bride-to-be and national heartthrob Katherine Webb with a hug and words of consolation.
Meanwhile, Auburn fans understandably went berserk. It stormed the field without hesitation despite the thorny bushes in their way, ones planted after Georgia fans destroyed the field decades before after an improbable victory on The Plains.
Forget the Stanford-Cal finish with laterals galore with the band on the field. To hell with Kordell Stewart's bomb at The Big House or 'The Immaculate Deflection' at Jordan-Hare against UGA just two weeks before. This was, without question, the wildest, craziest and most improbable finish to a game in college football history.
And the consequences were mind-boggling. Alabama would not get a chance to win a third consecutive national title. Auburn, one year removed from a 3-9 season and a 49-0 loss to 'Bama, was the winner of the SEC West, with its ticket punched for Atlanta to face Missouri in the SEC Championship Game for the right to play in the final BCS title game.
Just like last season, Alabama comes into the Iron Bowl controlling its own destiny to win a fourth national title during Saban's sensational tenure. Unlike last year, Auburn hasn't caught breaks galore and simply finds itself in the spoiler role.
Alabama (10-1 straight up, 3-8 against the spread) has won six in a row since suffering its lone loss by a 23-17 count at Ole Miss on Oct. 4. When Saban's team knocked off top-ranked Mississippi St. 25-20 two weeks ago, it took control of the No. 1 slot in the College Football Playoff rankings.
Auburn (8-3 SU, 4-7 ATS) fell out of contention in the SEC West with back-to-back losses to Texas A&M and Georgia. The Tigers dropped a 41-38 decision to the Aggies as 23-point home favorites. One week later without top WR Duke Williams, they got smashed 34-7 at Georgia as three-point road underdogs.
As of early Thursday, most betting shops had the Crimson Tide favored by nine with a total of 53.5 points. Gamblers can take at the Tigers to win outright for a +290 payout (risk $100 to win $290).
Alabama is unbeaten in six home games this year, going 2-3-1 ATS. However, we should note that the Tide hasn't been a single-digit home 'chalk' this season. In fact, they haven't been favored by single digits in Tuscaloosa since losing in overtime by a 9-6 score to LSU as 4.5-point home favorites in 2011.
Auburn has played a murderous road schedule this year. It began with a 20-14 win at Kansas St. on a Thursday night in September. On Oct. 11, the Tigers took a 38-23 beating at Mississippi St. They survived a 60-minute war in Oxford by beating Ole Miss, 35-31. In its last road assignment, though, UGA avenged last year's loss with authority.
As a road underdog under Malzahn, AU owns a 3-1 spread record with a pair of outright victories.
After missing consecutive games, Williams will return to the starting lineup in Tuscaloosa. He has made a team-best 38 catches for 609 yards and five TDs. Marshall has a 15/6 touchdown-to-interception ratio and 11 rushing scores. Marshall has 1,859 passing yards and 731 rushing yards.
Cameron Artis-Payne has rushed for a team-high 1,410 yards and 11 TDs, averaging 5.5 yards per carry. Coates has 25 receptions for 511 yards and a pair of TD grabs.
When McCarron departed for the pros, most pundits felt like FSU transfer Jake Coker would win the starting QB job. But that hasn't happened and senior Blake Sims has exceeded any and all expectations. Sims has completed 62.0 percent of his throws for 2,662 yards with a 19/4 TD-INT ratio. He has also run for 252 yards and five scores, and a pair of scrambles on third-and-long plays were the difference in the game-sealing drive against Mississippi St.
Sims has the country's best WR in Amari Cooper, who will play Saturday despite leaving last week's win over Western Carolina with a minor knee injury. Cooper has 90 catches for 1,349 yards and 11 TDs. Yeldon has run for a team-best 758 yards and six TDs, while Derrick Henry has 682 rushing yards and seven scores.
Alabama is second in the nation in scoring defense, allowing just 14.5 points per game. This unit is also second in the country against the run. Meanwhile, Auburn's defense has been an unmitigated disaster in its last five SEC games, giving up at least 31 points each time out.
The 'under' is on a 5-1 run in 'Bama's last six games. The 'under' is 6-4 overall for the Tide, 3-2 in its home games with a total. They have seen an average combined score of 49.5 PPG.
The 'over' is 6-5 overall for Auburn, but the 'under' has cashed in three of its four road assignments. The Tigers have seen their games average a combined score of 58.5 PPG.
Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Eastern on ESPN.
**B.E.'s Bonus Nuggets**
-- Florida has won outright in four of its last five trips to Tallahassee. The last time FSU tasted a defeat was when Will Muschamp's squad went into Doak Campbell Stadium and won a 37-26 decision in 2012. The Gators were 7.5-point underdogs as of early Thursday.
-- As of early Thursday, there was still no line for South Carolina at Clemson due to the uncertain status of Clemson freshman QB Deshaun Watson. He has missed nearly all of the last six games, playing in just the first quarter of games against Louisville and Ga. Tech before leaving with injuries. Dabo Swinney's team is 0-6 ATS in those contests.
-- South Carolina has won five in a row over Clemson, with each victory coming by double-digit margins.
-- Multiple reports late Thursday night indicated that Clemson offensive coordinator Chad Morris has agreed to accept the head-coaching job at SMU. Although this space thinks the Swinney-to-Florida rumors/reports this week have been erroneous, they can't help the focus of the Tigers going into this rivalry game against their hated enemies in the Palmetto State.
-- As of early Thursday, most spots had Mississippi St. favored by 2.5 at Ole Miss in the most anticipated Egg Bowl in decades. After getting injured in last week's loss at Arkansas, Rebels' QB Bo Wallace has the all clear to play against the Bulldogs.
-- Tennessee won't have All-SEC LB A.J. Johnson or star WR Marquez North for Saturday's regular-season finale at Vanderbilt. Also, WR Jason Croom is a question mark after injuring his knee at Tuesday's practice. Butch Davis called Croom's injury a minor one to his hamstring, but that notion has been disputed by ever media member in Knoxville who witnessed the injury during the portion of practice that's open to reporters.
-- Georgia is a 13-point home favorite vs. Ga. Tech. In his first career start last year, Hutson Mason rallied the Bulldogs from a double-digit halftime deficit against the Yellow Jackets. Mason helped UGA force overtime and it eventually won in the second extra session on The Flats in Midtown Atlanta.
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