Alabama Football: Tigers too much for Tide in Iron Bowl

Alabama football failed to deliver in one of the most important Iron Bowls, falling to Auburn 26-14. Let’s review how and why it happened.

There is no sugar-coating that can gloss over what happened in the 82nd Iron Bowl. Alabama football was outplayed and outcoached. The better team won and that team was not the Tide.

Alabama football fans are battling shock, anger, even disbelief after watching Auburn dominate on the scoreboard. Some of the stats suggest the game was closer than12 points. The Tigers gained 407 yards to the Tide’s 377 yards. That stat is misleading. The game was not that close.

Auburn ran 17 more plays and held the ball for 12 minutes longer. The Tide was 3-for-11 on third down while Auburn was 9-for-18. Auburn made its only field goal while the Tide failed to kick the ball on its lone try. Alabama made eight penalties, Auburn only four.

For too many plays in too many crucial moments, Alabama football failed to execute. Auburn played well but many of the Tide’s errors were self-inflicted.

Saban’s comments

In the post-game press review, Nick Saban said,

"I’m sorry I could not do a better job as a coach and as a leader."

Saban was quick to discard any suggestion that play-calling was the problem as he stressed the Tide’s poor execution.

"(On defense) we could not get off the field on third down. (On offense) we were not good enough on (pass) protect, not good enough getting open, didn’t throw and catch very well, needed (to do) a better job on reads."

Why did it happen and what does it mean?

Why in such an important game with championship opportunities on the line – why did the Tide fail to rise to the challenge? One game does not define a season so rushing to judgment is risky. We cannot offer clear conclusions. We can ask what we believe are legitimate questions.

Is the outcome a matter of not consistently controlling either line of scrimmage? Jeremy Pruitt had to use five and six rushers to get too infrequent pressure on Stidham. Regularly bringing extra rushers left the Tide secondary vulnerable against speedy Auburn receivers.

Was the Tide gameplan too quick to rely on the passing game? Would more running have made a difference? The run game worked on the first possession of the second half but failed on the Tide’s next possession.

Is Auburn a better team than Alabama? On this Iron Bowl night, the clear answer is yes.

Can Alabama football still qualify for a CFB Playoff berth? Yes, maybe, but only with considerable help. There are several obstacles in the Tide’s Playoff path. The most troubling being not looking like one of CFB’s best teams against Auburn.

Many other questions can be posed, pondered, and perhaps answered. Alabama football fans will demand to understand how such promise could (at least for now) end in such failure.

Next: 50 Best Alabama Football Players of All-Time

Check in with us Sunday as we try to sort through the remaining CFB Playoff scenarios. And remember, the agony of defeat makes future success sweeter.