FIFTEEN MINUTES FOR ALL TIME
Starting the fourth quarter with second down at his own six, Shula again handed to Turner, who got four more. On third and four, Auburn sent the house, and Jelks took the handoff. He got past the blitz and appeared for all the world to be gone, but Auburn got him 39 yards up the field on the Alabama side of the fifty. Now away from the shadow of his own goalpost, Shula handed to Humphrey, who ran right for seven yards. Shula then went for the home run, a bomb to the end zone that was picked off by Auburn DB Kevin Porter. Alabama had gone 94 yards in just six plays and had nearly broken the game open with a few big ones. Auburn was fortunate to only be trailing by six points, but all of a sudden the momentum shifted when the Tigers took over on their own 20.
With 13:15 left in the game, Bo Jackson carried off right tackle for a yard. On second down, he went right for eight and was stopped just short of the first down marker. Washington then gave it to Reggie Ware, who went up the middle for the first down at the 33. Washington then gave it to Bo again, and he went up the middle for nine. Agee went up the middle for a first down, followed by Jackson, yet again going up the middle for nine more. Alabama fans had seen this from Jackson before, and murmurs of concern masked feelings of fear. Auburn was giving Alabama a dose of what the old Bryant teams had administered game after game: keep hitting the hole over and over and over, and eventually, you'll break through for the big payday (not to be confused with Cam Newton's bagman). Agee went up the middle on second down, and all of a sudden Auburn had gone 41 yards in 7 plays and lined up ready to scrap again. They went back to Jackson, who gave a sort of misdirection to the right then the left and then the middle and got 11 yards to get a first down at the 28. For the first time in the entire game, Auburn fans began to sense they had the momentum, and Alabama fans were left uneasy by that same feeling. Agee tore up the middle for ten, and if any one play warned the Tide that the defense was tiring quickly, this was it. Nothing against Agee, a talented back in his own right, but Bo Jackson cutting you to pieces is one thing; Tommie Agee is something else altogether. Agee was good, but he wasn't Bo Jackson.
Although they were tired, the Tide defense still had a lot of fight left in them. Cornelius Bennett sacked Pat Washington for a ten-yard loss and then called timeout because the fatigue was getting to the defense. Washington then passed to Weygand, again incomplete. It was 3rd and 19, and Alabama had a major decision to make. Although the 1985 Tide defense was not a blitzing machine - they rarely called them, in fact - the reality was that Pat Washington was not an accomplished passer, and this situation mandated a pass play. Auburn was down by six points and had a mediocre field goal kicker as well. If the Tigers didn't score a touchdown here, they might well lose the ballgame. Figuring no harm could come from it - and there was no way on earth Auburn would go to Jackson on a carry - Alabama sent the house. Washington read the blitz and tossed a little flare over the onrushing defense to Bo Jackson, who ran like rampaging animal behind two blockers. It was going to be a touchdown, and the Alabama nightmare of losing to Bo Jackson was going to continue. But somehow Vernon Wilkinson managed to get just enough of Jackson to force him down at the five-yard line and save the points, at least for the time being. On first and goal, Jackson got a pitch for two. Hoping to catch the Tide locked on Jackson on second down, Washington missed his tight end wide open in the end zone (come to think of it, that's a bad sentence). On third down, Washington kept the ball, but got nailed at the goal line by Wilkinson and Joe Godwin, unable to get in the end zone and unable to pitch it. It was now fourth down. Oh boy.
Through the years, Alabama's defense had become an enduring legend through goal line stands, particularly those in the fourth quarter. The most famous, of course, was the one that beat Penn State in the 1979 Sugar Bowl, but there had been others as well. Two years later on their first-ever trip to Happy Valley, Alabama had held Penn State out of the end zone despite the Nittany Lions running seven plays inside the five-yard line thanks to a penalty. Two weeks before that stand came one that held off Mississippi State's attempt at a second consecutive upset over the Tide. And, of course, there was the recent experience of 364 days ago.
One year earlier in a similar situation, a lesser Tide defense had held Auburn out of the end zone and won the biggest upset in the history of the Iron Bowl when, as Rory Turner memorably said, "I waxed the dude." Turner was on the field for this play, too, and Pat Dye might as well have gotten a microphone and announced to the entire national TV viewing audience what play was coming. Alabama knew it. Everyone who had seen more than two Auburn games knew it. Dye called for the play labeled "Number 43." Auburn fans, though, had a different name for it: "Bo Over The Top." In 1982, Auburn had called the same play in almost the same situation: trailing in the fourth quarter on fourth down, and Jackson had won the game with his score. In 1984, Auburn had opted to NOT call the play, giving instead to Brent Fullwood, who got hit for a loss, in part because Jackson failed to block for him. Auburn got ready for the play everyone knew was coming when all of a sudden, Pat Washington called timeout.
It was a smart move on Washington's part. Auburn had lined up with twelve men on the field, and the rules of 1985 (unlike today) did not penalize a team if they lined up with twelve players or had more than 11 in the huddle. All this really did, of course, was give Alabama a few more seconds to catch their breaths but that alone might be decisive in a game this close. Bo went over the top for the touchdown, and the Auburn fans in Legion Field went nuts. The game was tied and as soon as Johnson kicked the PAT, Auburn would lead for the first time all day. But Johnson missed the kick, and the Tide faithful breathed a sigh of relief that the game was only tied. This, however, was wishful thinking because the Tide had lined up for the PAT with 12 men on the field themselves. Given a reprieve, Johnson made the second kick, and Auburn now led, 17-16. In a moment that could not be believed, however, Alabama somehow had 12 men on the field on the second attempt. The Tide was in disarray, and it would get worse before it got better.
Auburn had run the ball right down Alabama's throat. A sixteen play, 80-yard drive that took 6:22 off the clock, ended in a touchdown, and gave Auburn the lead. It was a drive that Coach Bryant would have respected even had he been on the receiving end. Bo Jackson was earning the Heisman the hard way. Auburn would even get to kick off from the ALABAMA 45, so why not try a pop kick? Auburn did, and it held in the air long enough for four Tide players to collide with each other and miss the ball – with a fifth player nearby in pursuit. Alabama's hopes were saved only because the ball rolled out of bounds before Auburn recovered it. This was the Tide at its worst, a reminder of the entire 1984 season: lack of discipline, stupid penalties, and the defense losing because they stayed on the field too long. It was now up to Mike Shula to get the points back, and he was at his own 11-yard line.
A first down pitch to Jelks lost a yard, but a beautiful sideline pass to Al Bell put Alabama at the Auburn 26. A defensive holding penalty on the Tigers was declined, and Alabama lined up for the next play. Thornton Chandler lined up as a tight end and when Shula pitched to Jelks, Chandler pushed his defender out of the way with a block that almost seemed to occur in slow motion. Suddenly, Jelks started up the middle, went behind Chandler's block, darted back to the left and tore down the sidelines with the crowd roaring louder each step. Alabama radio announcer Paul Kennedy saw what was unfolding and began screaming, “Run for glory! Run for glory!" to the thousands of fans listening on radios across the state. Auburn never touched Jelks, whose touchdown gave the lead back to Alabama only three plays after they’d lost it. With the score of 22-17, Bama went for two. Shula connected with Humphrey, but he was short of the goal line, and the play was no good. There was 5:57 left in the game.
While the Jelks run had been scintillating, there was a major drawback to the quick score. The Tide defense was exhausted beyond explanation, and it would have been much better if Shula could have taken the clock to nothing and won it late. How tired they were became clear when Fullwood took the first carry after the touchback up the middle for ten yards and a first down. Jackson took the next pitch to the left for two yards, and Washington then connected on one of his rare good passes, this one to Weygand for 22 yards. Auburn was back in Alabama territory in only three plays. Jackson carried up the middle for 4, right for 2, and Washington then attempted a handoff that he failed to make. The timing on the play was off, so Washington held onto the ball and took off running for a first down at the Tide 32. The clock was ticking, which was what Auburn needed. Jackson went up the middle for five, and Washington again dropped back to pass. When the pocket collapsed, he again took off, running all the way to the Tide 23 before he was planted by Todd Roper. It was third and short, and Bo Jackson carried it out of bounds to the 18, when the most important play of the game thus far occurred.
Jackson had the first down, but Kermit Kendrick hit Jackson well out of bounds, hitting him so hard that Bo ran into the fence separating the player's benches from the walkway around the field. The officials rightly flagged Kendrick for a late hit, and the ball was now at the Tide 12. In retrospect, Kendrick's penalty saved Alabama time by spotting Auburn 15 yards. It is unlikely Alabama would have ever gotten the ball back but for Kendrick's mistake, but strange things happen every single day. In this case, the mistake would turn out to be a net positive for the Tide.
On first and goal at the Tide 8, Agee went up the middle for two, and Bo went up the middle for five. On third and goal at the one, Reggie Ware scored in the middle, and Auburn was back on top again, 23-22. Auburn's two-point conversion failed when a swing pass to Bo was knocked down by Cornelius Benett. When Auburn kicked the ball into the end zone, Mike Shula took over at his own 20-yard line with 57 seconds left, one timeout, and needing a field goal from a long distance booter who would have to make it into a slight breeze after failing on his last kick. Frank Broyles reminded viewers of what Shula had done so far in 1985. The comeback against Georgia, the near comeback against both Penn State and Tennessee, and the drive to tie against LSU. Mike Shula had been tested repeatedly in 1985 and he had passed most of them. Could he get close enough for a game-winning try by Van Tiffin? Could he maybe slice the defense as he did Georgia and hit Bell for a touchdown? Tide fans hopes from coast to coast were on Shula's shoulders as the offense took the field.
But this was not going to be very easy, either. In the second half - excluding Jelks's lightning bolt run - Alabama had 91 total yards on the other four possessions and had two three and outs, an interception, and a missed field goal to go along with the Jelks TD. Auburn had 160 yards with two touchdowns in just the last twelve minutes, holding the ball for 11:22. The Auburn defense was well-rested as they took the field for a "do or die" drive for both teams, and Shula would need to get at least forty yards just to give Van Tiffin the tiniest chance of a game-winning kick.
The drive very nearly ended on the first play. Shula threw into triple coverage and was very fortunate the ball wasn't picked off right there. On second down, the pocket collapsed, and Shula was sacked at his own 12 yard-line and forced to call the final timeout he really needed to preserve for the field goal attempt. It was now third and 18, but Shula calmly fired an outside route sideline pass to Jelks, who went out of bounds with it at the Tide 26 to set up fourth and four. The Iron Bowl crowd was getting louder with each passing moment, Tide fans hoping for a miracle and Auburn fans hoping for a stop. George Henshaw then called another "do or die" play, a reverse. Shula took the snap and pitched it to Jelks who started right. Jelks then handed the ball to the tall, lanky receiver, Al Bell. It looked as though Auburn would stop the play to win the game, but Shula threw a textbook perfect block that gave Bell just enough room to clear the side, and the speedster started down the sidelines. He gained 21 yards before going out of bounds at the Alabama 46, and the prospects of success looked brighter indeed.
On first down, Shula went across the middle to Greg Richardson, and the ball was almost intercepted. Tommy Powell came close to a pick and tipped the ball, which was very fortunate for Luvell Bivins, who actually got there and hit Richardson slightly too early for what would have been a defensive pass interference. The lack of a flag thrown on the play suggests the tipped ball wasn't the decisive factor, but there is no doubt Bivins hit Richardson well before the ball arrived. The ball was on the left hash mark as on second down, Auburn dropped into pass coverage, and Shula had time to do his taxes while awaiting a receiver to break free. He spotted Richardson racing left to right across the field at the 45 yard-line and fired towards the little receiver. Richardson was nearing the right hash mark short of the first down when he caught the pass. Short of a first down to stop the clock and needing at least five yards just to give Van Tiffin a glimmer of possibility, Richardson hauled in the pass and made a beeline for the sidelines. There was another important factor in the college football game of 1985: if Richardson was tackled in bounds, the game was going to be over simply because even in the improbable event of Alabama lining up the run a play, the spike play was not a part of the game at that time (it was not added until 1990 and the new rule played a contributing role to the Fifth Down fiasco that year). Richardson was in no man's land, and he had to get out of bounds fast. He quickly turned upfield and got the yardage for the first down, running at a diagonal angle for more yards and to make the sideline before the clock ran out. Right on top of the 40-yard-lin paint, Bivins latched onto Richardson. Pull him down and win the game. Legs in motion but slowing each step, Richardson made six strides, four long ones and two more as he was going down, and dove out of bounds into the Auburn sideline with Bivins landing on him to set up a first and ten at the Auburn 36 with only six seconds left to play.
