There is no 24-hour rule after the Alabama Crimson Tide stampeded past Eastern Illinois. Before sunset in Tuscaloosa on Saturday, it was already Iron Bowl week.
Some members of the Auburn football staff have been preparing for the Alabama Crimson Tide for months. Auburn will also get three weeks of earnest preparation for Alabama with a bye week, the Mercer no-need-to-prepare game, and the actual game week.
Some Alabama football fans are always anxious when the Crimson Tide plays Auburn in Jordan-Hare. The game will again be Auburn's Super Bowl. DJ Durkin will be coaching for a head coaching job. All Aubies are pained by five straight losses to Alabama. The Tigers will have every reason to be college football's most motivated team in Week 14.
Alabama will have plenty of motivation as well. The Crimson Tide beat itself against Oklahoma, gifting the Sooners 17 of their 23 points and choking on an easy field goal attempt. Bizarrely, the result prompted the CFB Playoff Selection Committee to severely downgrade Alabama, putting the Crimson Tide's playoff chances in some jeopardy.
Auburn has a sturdy defense, and Duece Knight can make plays that the Tigers' more experienced quarterbacks can't. On Saturday, Knight produced 401 yards of offense against Mercer. Auburn fans are convinced he is an immediate lock for the 2026 Heisman and that he will lead the Tigers to an Iron Bowl win this season.
The Tigers came close to beating Vanderbilt, with the Auburn offense producing 563 yards. But the 'sturdy' Auburn defense gave up 544 yards. Twelve Auburn penalties to Vandy's three was the difference in the game.
In conference games, the Vanderbilt defense has allowed 6.25 yards-per-play. Only two SEC football teams are worse.
There are four solid reasons why the Alabama Crimson Tide should win the Iron Bowl.
Alabama Crimson Tide Iron Bowl Victory
- The Crimson Tide will also be highly motivated. An Iron Bowl loss would end Alabama's playoff chances. The Auburn program will not need an Iron Bowl win as much as will Alabama.
- Ty Simpson has something to prove. For Simpson, the pressure he puts on himself to perform flawlessly can harm his performance. But Auburn will not have faced a more prepared quarterback than Simpson. That preparation, combined with his considerable skills, will propel Alabama to a win.
- Alabama has Ryan Grubb, and Auburn doesn't have any comparable coach. Even without much of a rushing attack, Grubb's play-calling will produce points the Tigers cannot match.
- The Alabama defense has improved significantly. Only one SEC defense is better than Alabama's, and it is not Auburn's. Over the Crimson Tide's last five SEC games, it has held opponents to 5.04 yards per play. In all conference games, Oklahoma is No. 1 at 4.8 yards. Over the same five games, Kane Wommack's defense has allowed only 3.6 rushing yards per carry. Auburn is statistically better, but not by a significant margin. Alabama is a far better pass defense team. In SEC games, Alabama is No. 1 in the SEC in Passing Defense Rating. Auburn is No. 9.
Note: Stats provided by cfbstats.com and Sports Reference