Alabama- Auburn

FOOTBALL RIVALRIES AND ALABAMA–AUBURN

The last Saturday in November was college football’s Rivalry Saturday, when historic foes met for annual grudge matches. It’s a unique day on the annual sports calendar, as rivalry games are replete with special energy and emotion.

I was in California’s Orange County and made my way to a Buffalo Wild Wings Restaurant to take in the gridiron action. BWW has become a preeminent sports bar chain, with multiple large screens showing grid contests from across the nation. It was a perfect venue for Rivalry Saturday.

One of the rivalry games was UCLA-USC, and I shared a table with two blue-shirted UCLA Bruin fans. To our front was a table of red-shirted USC Trojan fans. After the game started, other Bruins fans sent drinks to our table. I was wearing a white shirt, but having accepted the free libations, I felt obliged to become a Bruins fan.

Other games were on BWW’s multiple screens, and I noted that Ohio State improved its record to 12-0 with a 42-41 win over arch-rival Michigan in Ann Arbor—where wondrous things have occurred in the past.

A Bruin alum at our table had a sister going to UCal-Berkeley. Cal had earlier lost its rivalry game at Stanford, 63-13. It was a tough loss for the Bears, but I pointed out that the greatest college football play of all time occurred at Cal when the Bears beat Stanford and John Elway in 1982. A last second kick-off was returned for a touchdown, a return that included five laterals. The Stanford band was coming out on the field when Kevin Moen scored the winning TD, bowling over Cardinal trombone player Gary Tyrrell.

 

“Check it out on You-Tube,” I advised. “Truly the greatest football play of all time.”

 

And then—suddenly—there was a NEW “greatest football play of all time!”

 

It was loud and raucous and most BWW patrons were focused on UCLA-USC, but on an alternate screen I saw a replay of a kick-return for a touchdown and fans swarming out on the field. Upon closer examination, I learned that the undefeated, defending national champion Alabama Crimson Tide had lost to arch-rival Auburn, 34-28.

Last year Alabama trounced Auburn in the annual Iron Bowl by a score of 49-0. But this year, Auburn came into the rivalry game at 10-1, fresh off an improbable 43-38 win over Georgia. Auburn won that game with a last minute touchdown pass on fourth and long.

 

The 2013 Alabama-Auburn Iron Bowl had apparently ended in a 28-28 tie, making it an instant classic already. But officials found one second left on the clock, and Bama Coach Nick Saban opted for a 57-yard field goal attempt. The attempt was short and Chris Davis caught it nine yards deep in the end zone. Around 15 seconds later, after he’d returned the ball 109 yards for a touchdown, Davis became an immortal.

As long as he lives, Davis will be remembered for those 15 seconds. His run got him on the cover of Sports Illustrated, and the ball he carried into the Promised Land was soon valued at $100,000. He’ll never have to worry about finding a job. He’s now set for life, assuming he can handle the adulation.

Was Davis’ return the greatest play in college football history? I think so, given the circumstances. The 1982 rivalry game between Stanford and Cal featured two .500 teams. The Alabama-Auburn game had national championship implications. And there is so much more. Subplots like “Saban is a jerk.” The frenzied passion of SEC football. On and on.

After the game, I found the play on You-Tube. It had already been viewed 7000 times. By the next morning the viewing total had surpassed a half million. Check it out. The greatest play ever!

(Oh yeah. UCLA beat USC 35-14. Go Bruins!)