Question: Where would you rank this IB finish vs."The Drive" and "The Kick"?

[cbi1972]

As a whole, it is probably the worst Iron Bowl I have ever witnessed in which Alabama has won.

However, If I take the question at face value, how do I rank this Iron Bowl finish, it is #1 with a bullet.

All the absurd bad juju occurrences that are the hallmarks of a painful loss in Auburn, and the feeling of utter hopelessness and despair through the first 57 minutes of the game, then suddenly the team comes alive and does just what needed to be done to slam the door in the face of the Auburn win they were so sure they had in the bag. 2009 never felt this hopeless, and The Kick ended on a field goal in regulation, not the incredible four overtimes. This is the best Iron Bowl finish in my memory.

 

[Probius]

The Kick was incredible...especially with the flow of emotion from one side of the stadium to the other -- I was there!!

This one was a Lazarus moment -- we came back from the dead. The fact that it went on and on through 4 OT's heightened the intensity.

I will put our win against UGA with Mike Shula throwing a TD to Al Bell up there with them. I was there also, but got so mad at Perkins for his stupid, close to the vest game calling, that I was storming out of the stadium when that drive took place. I've never done that since...

Enjoy...I slept over 9 hours last night!!

That's a good name for this game. The Lazarus game.

 

[selmaborntidefan]

This was without a doubt the worst football game I've ever seen.

I can think immediately of at least FOUR other games worse than this one that I've watched:

the 3-2 Auburn/MSU game from 2008
the 3-0 bowl game (I think it was Oregon St-Pitt)
the 2000 USM-Alabama game
Clemson thumping us 44-16

 

[81usaf92]

I can think immediately of at least FOUR other games worse than this one that I've watched:

the 3-2 Auburn/MSU game from 2008
the 3-0 bowl game (I think it was Oregon St-Pitt)
the 2000 USM-Alabama game
Clemson thumping us 44-16

Illinois vs PSU this year was probably worse than this.

But from a pure unwatchability standpoint… SB XLI. Other than Prince it’s the worst game that I was actually looking forward to that I watched.

 

[We_are_Bama]

The funny thing is, this is such unfamiliar territory for us. Our IB wins are mostly forgettable. 31-7, 36-0, 42-14, 49-0, 29-13, 30-12, 52-21, 42-13. Nothing about any of those really stands out other than some were revenge blow outs for some insanity that had occurred at JHS the previous year. Even 31-7 in 2001 isn't memorable other than we were, at the time, pretty big underdogs. But, we also finished with the exact same record as the barn at 7-5. Now, of course there is 55-44 in 2014. We trailed by as much as 12 at one point, but that was still pretty early in the 2nd half and once Amari Cooper caught fire, the barn was finished. And, we had the barn down by 19 late into the game before they tacked on a cosmetic 8 points. 26-21 in 2009 is a bit of fool's gold. That was a different type of ball game. As someone else pointed out, there really never was any doubt that we'd find a way to win that one. We got down 14-0 pretty fast, but we also tied up at 14-14 pretty fast. The barn caught us napping on a blown assignment to take a 21-14 lead, but 2 FG's cut that to 21-20. One more FG would have won it and the TD from GMac to Upchurch, while nice, wasn't absolutely necessary for the win. It was clear that while we had some sloppiness at times and the barn was playing above their heads, we were making the plays when needed. We were in fact the better team, and it showed. This IB was different. We had done nothing all day until the end. Unlike 2009, a FG would not have done us any good. We HAD to have a TD to send it to OT.

 

[CrimsonNagus]

“97 Yards” seems to be emerging as the title for this one.

Personally, I think it should be called "The Steal".

Great win and a great final 2 minutes/OT but, I doubt I will sit down and watch the first 58 minutes ever again, unlike some of the other great IB wins o the past. Worst offensive performance under Saban IMO. Where this game ranks for me depends on the how the rest of the season plays out.

 

[BigAlinKnoxville]

The expressions on the faces of the Auburn fans clinches this one for me.

 

[TopBamaBloke]

As for memorable wins against our in state rival, another one not mentioned here is when we scored 31 unanswered in 1998 (auburn scored the first 17 points of the game). Those were 2 sub-par teams for sure, but this win was especially sweet considering the heartbreaking loss from the previous year (let’s avoid the details of that one). It was also the final time the game was played at Legion Field, and I was in attendance!

I still see those annoying blue and orange colored 0:01 bumper stickers from time to time. Perhaps we could have a crimson and white colored 0:00 bumper sticker? There were all zeroes on the clock when every auburn fans‘ wildest dreams got crushed on Saturday night.

 

[selmaborntidefan]

Illinois vs PSU this year was probably worse than this.

But from a pure unwatchability standpoint… SB XLI. Other than Prince it’s the worst game that I was actually looking forward to that I watched.

The only reason I disagree with you on Super Bowl 41 (is that right? Roman numerals are my krytonite) is because I never thought the game was going to be any good in the first place.

 

[81usaf92]

The only reason I disagree with you on Super Bowl 41 (is that right? Roman numerals are my krytonite) is because I never thought the game was going to be any good in the first place.

The damn monsoon just made it a horrible experience

 

[Bamaatthebeach]

Being present at the 1985 game no doubt biases my opinion, but it was the most exciting finish I've ever witnessed live. The ending of this game, though, for all the reasons cited here, will be one of the best ever. I dislike them very much, and I know how I felt after that horrible 2013 ending; I think that they got a good taste of that feeling Saturday night.

 

[BamaInBham]

There's not a right or wrong answer and I'm sure recency bias plays a part but IMO, this is the best I can remember out of the 63 I've observed since I was a little boy when Bama broke AU's 5 game streak in '59 and began dominating again. Here are some of the reasons:

1 - it was so sweet to see them rise from the dead in the face of so much that had happened to them: the ejection of their top WR, the bad play of the OL for 2 1/2 qtrs, the poor play-calling for 2 1/2 qtrs, the loss of their top and only healthy RB, bad execution with dropping a few passes and not seeing open receivers, as well as the bad OL play, 2 mid-game subs on the OL including the center, 7 sacks, playing on the road at JH, muffing the snap on another short FG, 3 4th and short failures and more.

They had only gained ~250 yards all day and had to go 97 yards in 1:36 with no TOs. They were spectacular. They did not flinch in OT, though AU had one great play-call and one great throw and catch. Even though OT can be terrifying even vs an inferior opponent because of it's nature, you felt like Bama was going to win this one, not because of momentum but because they were determined and better.

2 - it was so fulfilling to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat, so sweet.

3 - kept their national title hopes alive

4 - won a magical game in JH which could ease the pressure there in the future, though Bama has won 4 of 7 since Saban got it going in 08

They avoided:

1 - what IMO would have been the most devastating loss to AU in history since AU, though not a bad team, was without its starting QB, unranked, having lost 3 in a row. It would have been only the second time in history that an unranked AU had beaten a ranked Bama team. (Bama has beaten AU four times when Bama was unranked and AU ranked.) The 4 previous losses, 3 in JH, IMO, were all understandable, but this one, even with the almost Jekyl and Hyde nature of this team, would have been almost inexplicable.

2 - the sense that Bama had wasted another opportunity to beat AU during this dynastic run (2008- ) would have weighed heavily on the entire Bama world. Though Saban has handled it incredibly well, this one would have been especially tough to swallow. Even though Bama is 10-4 during this run, 4-3 in JH, there are Bama fans very dissatisfied that AU has won even the 4 and this loss would have given even more fuel to their vent. Saban is already showing signs of resenting such but unfortunately, they don't care.

The state, University and fan base is incredibly indebted to Coach Saban and one way to repay him is to be patient, grateful and gracious while he tries to work things out, even if he should fail and decline. He deserves that and more.

(As an aside: It was gracious of AU to honor Cecil at the game - and to do it with more than words.)

 

[Rush]

“97 Yards” seems to be emerging as the title for this one.

And from the standpoint of Auburn fans, I'm rather fond of "Disaster in the Pasture"...

 

[CullmanTide]

I can think immediately of at least FOUR other games worse than this one that I've watched:

the 3-2 Auburn/MSU game from 2008
the 3-0 bowl game (I think it was Oregon St-Pitt)
the 2000 USM-Alabama game
Clemson thumping us 44-16

I was at the 2000 Southern Miss game and it was horrible, our opponent played well however. The 2021 Iron Bowl was a game both teams stunk it up with the exception of a handful of players from both teams. I can't see how anyone who isn't a fan of either could sit and watch that game

 

[JDCrimson]

I have always considered the 2000 USM game to be the absolute low point for Bama football. If I remember correctly there was a moment during that game after a timeout where we lined up snapped the football and Watts was not even back there to accept the snap...

I was at the 2000 Southern Miss game and it was horrible, our opponent played well however. The 2021 Iron Bowl was a game both teams stunk it up with the exception of a handful of players from both teams. I can't see how anyone who isn't a fan of either could sit and watch that game

 

[TideEngineer08]

This is one of the best of all time. Yeah I get we have to wait until the season is over before we close the books, but that was almost if not more improbable than Cody blocking two UT kicks including one at the buzzer. That Tennessee team was average too.

I get that AU has looked like manure over the last few weeks, but teams really do outplay themselves in rivalry games. When you are as obsessed as AU is with Alabama, and you are inconsistent as Alabama has been, well there is your recipe for what we saw over the first 57 minutes of that game. But then that drive and the OTs showed that actually this team is made of some pretty stout stuff.

 

[BamaInBham]

And from the standpoint of Auburn fans, I'm rather fond of "Disaster in the Pasture"...

Also, the Lazarus game or Miracle Drive, it does not need to be defined from AU's perspective but from Alabama's. Yes, to the country its was the Disaster in the Pasture but to Alabama it was a miracle or life out of death.

 

[JayBama_in_PCOLA]

It could have been worse.

A lot worse.

 

[JayBama_in_PCOLA]

There's not a right or wrong answer and I'm sure recency bias plays a part but IMO, this is the best I can remember out of the 63 I've observed since I was a little boy when Bama broke AU's 5 game streak in '59 and began dominating again. Here are some of the reasons:

1 - it was so sweet to see them rise from the dead in the face of so much that had happened to them: the ejection of their top WR, the bad play of the OL for 2 1/2 qtrs, the poor play-calling for 2 1/2 qtrs, the loss of their top and only healthy RB, bad execution with dropping a few passes and not seeing open receivers, as well as the bad OL play, 2 mid-game subs on the OL including the center, 7 sacks, playing on the road at JH, muffing the snap on another short FG, 3 4th and short failures and more.

They had only gained ~250 yards all day and had to go 97 yards in 1:36 with no TOs. They were spectacular. They did not flinch in OT, though AU had one great play-call and one great throw and catch. Even though OT can be terrifying even vs an inferior opponent because of it's nature, you felt like Bama was going to win this one, not because of momentum but because they were determined and better.

2 - it was so fulfilling to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat, so sweet.

3 - kept their national title hopes alive

4 - won a magical game in JH which could ease the pressure there in the future, though Bama has won 4 of 7 since Saban got it going in 08

They avoided:

1 - what IMO would have been the most devastating loss to AU in history since AU, though not a bad team, was without its starting QB, unranked, having lost 3 in a row. It would have been only the second time in history that an unranked AU had beaten a ranked Bama team. (Bama has beaten AU four times when Bama was unranked and AU ranked.) The 4 previous losses, 3 in JH, IMO, were all understandable, but this one, even with the almost Jekyl and Hyde nature of this team, would have been almost inexplicable.

2 - the sense that Bama had wasted another opportunity to beat AU during this dynastic run (2008- ) would have weighed heavily on the entire Bama world. Though Saban has handled it incredibly well, this one would have been especially tough to swallow. Even though Bama is 10-4 during this run, 4-3 in JH, there are Bama fans very dissatisfied that AU has won even the 4 and this loss would have given even more fuel to their vent. Saban is already showing signs of resenting such but unfortunately, they don't care.

The state, University and fan base is incredibly indebted to Coach Saban and one way to repay him is to be patient, grateful and gracious while he tries to work things out, even if he should fail and decline. He deserves that and more.

(As an aside: It was gracious of AU to honor Cecil at the game - and to do it with more than words.)

Couldn’t have said it any better than that!

 

[spidermayin]

I am too young to remember the kick, but I do remember the drive. There may be a recency bias at play here, but this was my favorite. I do enjoy a good beat down, but at the same time, it feels really good to beat them in a way they've beaten us by pulling victory from the jaws of defeat at the last second. In 2009, it was inevitable we were going to drive down there and win the game. This game, there was so much doubt, until there wasn't.