The Iron Bowl is finally upon us.
Auburn and No. 10 Alabama will take to Pat Dye Field at Jordan-Hare Stadium on Saturday to release a hatred that brews for 365 days of the year.
The Tigers will aim to derail the Crimson Tide’s College Football Playoff hopes while fighting to avoid a fifth-straight losing campaign and keep their bowl-game aspirations alive.
Alabama, which owns just one conference loss this season, is looking to continue its winning ways in the series as it rides a five-game win streak into Saturday’s matchup. The Crimson Tide would love nothing more than to put the cherry on top of yet another disastrous season for the Tigers.
But it simply cannot be ignored that the annual rivalry will be played inside a “haunted” venue.
Yes, Jordan-Hare Stadium. Tabbed as boasting a sort of “voodoo” magic and home to some of the most memorable Iron Bowl moments ever.
“I’m telling you…The place is haunted,” legendary Alabama coach Nick Saban said of Jordan-Hare Stadium on ESPN’s College Gameday last year.
Can Alabama prevail against this magic that resides in Jordan-Hare? In recent history, it typically does. Having won the last two matchups in Auburn by a combined five points, one would assume that the Crimson Tide would own a winning record in Jordan-Hare Stadium. After all, Alabama holds a 51-37-1 advantage in the all-time series.
But that simply isn’t the case. Since the first Iron Bowl was played in Jordan-Hare Stadium in 1989, Auburn owns a 10-7 record on its home turf. In his 17-year tenure in Tuscaloosa, beginning in 2007, former Alabama head coach Nick Saban was on the winning side of only five of those contests.
Simply put, the unpredictable unveils itself when the two teams take to the field in Auburn.
For certain, the Iron Bowl is home to some of the greatest moments in Auburn history: the 2013 “Kick Six,” the 2010 “Camback,” the “4th-and-31” in 2023, “Bo Over the Top” in 1982, and “Punt, Bama, Punt” in 1972, to name a few, but the Tigers have not been victorious in the rivalry since a 48-45 home win in 2019.
In 2021, Bryan Harsin – in his first year on the Plains – battled a third-ranked Alabama squad to the first overtime game in series history. The Crimson Tide prevailed in the fourth overtime period as eventual Heisman-winning quarterback Bryce Young found John Metchie III on a 2-point conversion to seal the deal.
Auburn, which finished that season with the 61st total defense in the FBS, held the Crimson Tide without a touchdown until the final minute of regulation. When it mattered most, Auburn could not get the stop.
Fast forward to 2023; Hugh Freeze’s first year on the Plains. Auburn nursed a 6-5 record as an eighth-ranked Alabama squad waltzed into Jordan-Hare Stadium on a nine-game win streak. Auburn wide receiver Koy Moore was set to field a punt with under five minutes to go as the Tigers clung to a 3-point lead. He muffed it, and Alabama recovered, leading to the miraculous “4th-and-31” where Jalen Milroe connected with Isaiah Bond on a last-chance heave to the back of the endzone, sealing a 27-24 victory for the Crimson Tide.
Auburn, with virtually nothing to lose and everything to gain this season, is focused on giving the Crimson Tide everything it can handle. The Tigers have put up 100 points in their last two games under the direction of offensive coordinator Derrick Nix. They’ve done so behind two exceptional performances from Ashton Daniels and Deuce Knight under center.
Alabama followed a 23-21 demerit to Oklahoma on Nov. 8 with a 56-0 thumping of FCS foe Eastern Illinois last Saturday, so both squads are riding a wave of momentum into Saturday’s matchup.
It’s true: weird things happen in the Iron Bowl. And even weirder things happen in Iron Bowls held in Jordan-Hare Stadium.
Can Auburn find itself on the right side of the “voodoo” magic this year, or will Alabama continue its streak?
The wait is over. It’s time take a seat, buckle up, and let the show begin. TG
