Auburn. Alabama. The biggest rivalry in college sports takes place in a state with less than 5 million people in it. With no other sports teams in sight, in Alabama, you have to pick a side. And that's why the Iron Bowl means so much. To the rest of the country, this is a game that will usually determine who is playing in the college football playoff every year. But to the state of Alabama, it's life.
As there is in all life, the Iron Bowl's defining feature, is hate. Alabama hates Auburn and Auburn hates Alabama. This has held true for over a century, when an Alabama state congress that was dominated by former 'Bama alumni begrudgingly agreed to allow the construction of a new state in college in the city of Auburn. A 4-year long debate lead to Auburn's first of many wins over the city of Tuscaloosa.
From that point on, the state of Alabama seemed to have little to no care about the other university in the state. It was in the 1870's that the state legislature mismanaged Auburn's endowment. This nearly brought Auburn to an end, which would have greatly benefitted the University of Alabama, of course. Clearly, Auburn managed to pull through and soon enough, the two schools would be playing against each other on the gridiron. In a game that kicked off a tradition, Auburn won 30-22. As the years moved on, the state legislature still seemed keen on letting Auburn burn out and simply go away. That wasn't happening. After Auburn finally received some funding from the board of education, 8 hundred thousand dollars to be precise, they were only given about a third of it. Meanwhile, Alabama was fully funded. Around the same time, the game was suspended. Why the 1907 game was the last played for almost 40 years, nobody really knows, but it is assumed that the schools disagreed on essentially every issues surrounding the game. The schools would both continue to grow over time, despite the state legislature still waiting for Auburn to "become so weak that......it could be absorbed" by Alabama. The President of Auburn at the time even claimed that Alabama called Auburn "the illegitimate children... born out of the misery of the reconstruction period. But, Auburn had grown to be too large. Alabama had no chance of simply absorbing the school as Auburn had grown into its own. So at that point, it was time for football.
Of course, the football wasn't without controversy either. Every game from 1947 to 1989 was played in Tuscaloosa, essentially a home game for the University of Alabama. Alabama had refused to go to the plains. For whatever reason, Alabama was unwilling to travel to Auburn to play a football game. Eventually Jordan-Hare Stadium would be made to what it is today, a fantastic place for a football game. With that, Alabama deemed it worthy that they play there. From this point on, it was nothing but football.
Clearly, the history behind the game has lead to what is the most passionate rivalry in sports, but it is the game itself that has had enough defining moment to spend a lifetime talking about. In a torrential downpour in 1967, Alabama quarterback Ken Stabler ran for a 47 yard touchdown to give 'Bama a 7-3 win. A few years later, Auburn, down 16-3, blocked two consecutive Alabama punts and returned both of them for touchdowns. In a game that ESPN ranked as the 8th most painful outcome in college history, Auburn won 17-16. That game is now referred to as Punt 'Bama Punt. Of course, more recently, Alabama broke open a 24-0 lead over the undefeated Auburn Tigers in 2010. Cam Newton refused to be denied and lead Auburn on a 28-3 stretch to end the game and win by a score of 28-27 in "The Camback." Then, there was the greatest play in college football history. It's not one I need to describe in detail. Chris Davis took a missed field goal back 109 yards as time expired to help #4 Auburn beat undefeated, #1 Alabama by a score of 34-28. The Kick Six will never be forgotten by Tiger fans. And then, not even two weeks ago, a 9-2 Auburn team defeated an undefeated, #1 Alabama team, 26-14. Sounds familiar doesn't it?
There is not any rivalry in sports that means as much as this one does to the University of Auburn and the University of Alabama. The University of Auburn and its students have been disrespected for over a century, and the only way to take it out is on the football field. That's why every win feels so good and that's why it's such a joyous occasion when Alabama falls. Because they deserve it. War Eagle.
