2008 Auburn Tigers football | |
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Conference | Southeastern Conference |
Western Division | |
Record | 5–7 (2–6 SEC) |
Head coach |
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Offensive coordinator | Tony Franklin (1st season, Fired 10/8) Steve Ensminger (interim) |
Offensive scheme | Air Raid |
Defensive coordinator | Paul Rhoads (1st season) |
Base defense | 4–3 |
Home stadium | Jordan–Hare Stadium (Capacity: 87,451) |
2008 Southeastern Conference football standings | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Team | W | L | W | L | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Eastern Division | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 1 Florida x$# | 7 | – | 1 | 13 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 13 Georgia | 6 | – | 2 | 10 | – | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Vanderbilt | 4 | – | 4 | 7 | – | 6 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
South Carolina | 4 | – | 4 | 7 | – | 6 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Tennessee | 3 | – | 5 | 5 | – | 7 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Kentucky | 2 | – | 6 | 7 | – | 6 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Western Division | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 6 Alabama x% | 8 | – | 0 | 12 | – | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 14 Ole Miss | 5 | – | 3 | 9 | – | 4 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
LSU | 3 | – | 5 | 8 | – | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Arkansas | 2 | – | 6 | 5 | – | 7 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Auburn | 2 | – | 6 | 5 | – | 7 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Mississippi State | 2 | – | 6 | 4 | – | 8 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Championship: Florida 31, Alabama 20 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The 2008 Auburn Tigers football team represented Auburn University during 2008 NCAA Division I FBS football season. Tommy Tuberville served his tenth and final season as head coach at Auburn. He was joined by a new defensive coordinator Paul Rhoads and new offensive coordinator Tony Franklin, who attempted to implement Tuberville’s new without the proper players suited for the spread offense in a failed effort to correct the Tigers' offensive struggles in 2007. Tuberville fired Franklin six games into the season.
Auburn played a seven-game home schedule at Jordan–Hare Stadium, while traveling to Mountaineer Field in Morgantown, West Virginia for the Tigers' first ever meeting with the West Virginia Mountaineers. [1] The Tennessee Volunteers returned to the Tigers' schedule for the first time since Auburn defeated Tennessee twice in AU's undefeated 2004 season. LSU, Arkansas, and Georgia rounded out Auburn's home conference schedule.
The Tigers entered the season with high expectations, ranked highly by multiple polls in the preseason. The Associated Press Poll placed Auburn at #10 [2] while the USA Today Coaches' Poll, a component of the Bowl Championship Series rankings, had Auburn at #11. [3] Other rankings include:
# 7 – Rivals.com [4]
# 8 – Athlon [5]
# 9 – Sports Illustrated [6]
# 9 – CollegeTop25 Consensus [7]
# 10 – ESPN [8]
# 13 – Lindy's [9]
# 14 – CollegeFootballNews/Scout.com [10]
Coaches All-SEC 1st Team – DT Sen’Derrick Marks & P Ryan Shoemaker
Coaches All-SEC 2nd Team – RB Ben Tate, OL Tyronne Green, LB Tray Blackmon & DB Jerraud Powers
Coaches All-SEC 3rd Team – DE Antonio Coleman
Auburn's schedule consisted of eight Southeastern Conference opponents (four home, four away) and four non-conference opponents. AU meets Tennessee-Martin and West Virginia for the first time. The WVU game, a mid-season inter-conference Thursday night matchup, is the first of a two-game home-and-home series between the two teams. Of the remaining ten opponents that the Tigers have previously faced, Auburn holds the all-time series lead against all but Alabama and LSU. Four opponents — #1 Georgia, LSU, West Virginia and Tennessee — were ranked in both the preseason USA Today and AP Polls. Alabama was also ranked in the AP Poll. Tennessee dropped out of the polls before playing Auburn; however, Vanderbilt would enter the polls by the time the Commodores played Auburn.
Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
August 30 | 6:00 pm | Louisiana–Monroe * | No. 10 | PPV | W 34–0 | 87,451 | |
September 6 | 11:30 am | Southern Miss * | No. 9 |
| Raycom | W 27–13 | 87,451 |
September 13 | 6:00 pm | at Mississippi State | No. 9 | ESPN2 [14] | W 3–2 | 52,911 | |
September 20 | 6:45 pm | No. 6 LSU | No. 10 |
| ESPN [14] | L 21–26 | 87,451 |
September 27 | 2:30 pm | Tennessee | No. 15 |
| CBS | W 14–12 | 87,451 |
October 4 | 5:00 pm | at No. 19 Vanderbilt | No. 13 | ESPN | L 13–14 | 39,773 | |
October 11 | 4:00 pm | Arkansas | No. 20 |
| PPV | L 22–25 | 85,782 |
October 23 | 6:30 pm | at West Virginia * | ESPN [14] | L 17–34 | 60,765 | ||
November 1 | 11:30 am | at Ole Miss | Raycom | L 7–17 | 57,324 | ||
November 8 | 1:30 pm | Tennessee–Martin * |
| W 37–20 | 85,365 | ||
November 15 | 11:30 am | No. 13 Georgia |
| Raycom | L 13–17 | 87,451 | |
November 29 | 2:30 pm | at No. 1 Alabama | CBS | L 0–36 | 92,138 | ||
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This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (September 2008) |
Auburn's first possession only picked up 1 first down, but the punt put UL-Monroe in bad field position. On the first play, Auburn Defensive End Antonio Coleman made a huge hit on UL-Monroe's quarterback, forcing a fumble on the UL-Monroe 9-yard line, and the Defense picked it up and took it back for the Auburn Tigers' first touchdown. A few possessions later, Auburn Receiver and Punt Returner Robert Dunn returned a UL-Monroe punt for a TD with 0:04 left in the 1st Quarter. At halftime, Auburn had a 17–0 lead after a Wes Byrum field goal. On the opening kickoff of the 3rd quarter, UL-Monroe fumbled the ball and Auburn recovered, leading to a TD run from Brad Lester. Another field goal from Byrum would make the score 27–0 going into the 4th Quarter. Kodi Burns had left the game with a cut in his leg, so Chris Todd played the rest of the game. Later in the 4th, Todd would lead Auburn down the field with an excellent and suddenly effective passing game, ending in a 3-yard Touchdown pass to Chris Slaughter to seal the victory. It was the first shutout for Auburn since a 27–0 wins over Arkansas State on November 4, 2006. It was also the first time Auburn had scored on Offense, Defense, and Special Teams since the 2003 73–7 beating of UL-Monroe. Auburn finished with 406 yards of offense, 321 Rushing yards and 85 passing yards. Auburn picked up 19 first downs while UL-Monroe picked up 12.
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
LA-Monroe | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Auburn | 14 | 3 | 10 | 7 | 34 |
Southern Miss returned to the Plains for the first time since the 1993 perfect season. Prior to that meeting, the Tigers had lost consecutive 1-point losses to Southern Miss, then quarterbacked by Brett Favre.
Despite impressive offensive numbers in their opening game where Southern Mississippi put up 633 yards (427 rushing) in a 51–21 win over Louisiana-Lafayette, Larry Fedora's team did not have an answer for Auburn's tough defense. The Tigers won 27–13, improving their lead in the series all-time to 17–5. [15]
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Southern Miss | 0 | 0 | 6 | 7 | 13 |
Auburn | 0 | 14 | 10 | 3 | 27 |
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Auburn | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
Mississippi State | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
LSU | 3 | 0 | 14 | 9 | 26 |
Auburn | 0 | 14 | 0 | 7 | 21 |
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Tennessee | 0 | 6 | 0 | 6 | 12 |
Auburn | 7 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 14 |
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Auburn | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 |
Vanderbilt | 0 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 14 |
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Arkansas | 3 | 7 | 6 | 9 | 25 |
Auburn | 7 | 6 | 7 | 2 | 22 |
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Auburn | 3 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 17 |
West Virginia | 0 | 10 | 10 | 14 | 34 |
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Auburn | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 |
Ole Miss | 0 | 10 | 0 | 7 | 17 |
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Tennessee-Martin | 7 | 6 | 7 | 0 | 20 |
Auburn | 13 | 7 | 7 | 10 | 37 |
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Georgia | 0 | 7 | 3 | 7 | 17 |
Auburn | 6 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 13 |
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Auburn | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Alabama | 3 | 7 | 19 | 7 | 36 |
Name | Position | Years at AU* | Alma mater (Year) | Note |
---|---|---|---|---|
Tommy Tuberville | Head Coach | 9 | Southern Arkansas University (1976) | Resigned following the season. Replaced Mike Leach as Texas Tech head coach following 2009 season |
Tony Franklin | Offensive Coordinator, Quarterbacks | 0 | Murray State University (1979; M.S., 1989) | Fired after week 6 of the season |
Hugh Nall | Offensive line | 9 | University of Georgia (1983) | |
Eddie Gran | Running backs, Special teams | 9 | California Lutheran (1987) | |
Steve Ensminger | Tight ends | 5 | Louisiana State University (1982) | Became Offensive Coordinator after week 6 of the season |
Greg Knox | Wide receivers, Recruiting Coordinator | 9 | Northeastern State (1986), Northeastern State (1990) | |
Paul Rhoads | Defensive coordinator, secondary | 0 | Missouri Western (1989), Utah State (1991) | Became Iowa State head coach following the season. |
Don Dunn | Defensive tackles | 9 | East Tennessee State (1976), Union College (1980) | |
Terry Price | Defensive ends | 9 | Texas A&M (1992) | Joined Rhoads at Iowa State initially, but was hired by Ole Miss before 2009 season began. |
James Willis | Linebackers | 2 | Auburn University (2003) |
*Entering season
Starters and backups. [16]
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Week | ||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | Final |
AP | 10 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 15 | 13 | 20 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Coaches | 11 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 16 | 14 | 23 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Harris | Not released | 13 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Not released | ||||
BCS | Not released | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Not released |
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Name | GP-GS | Att | Gain | Loss | Net | Avg | TD | Long | Avg/G |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Ben Tate | 12–2 | 159 | 718 | 54 | 664 | 4.2 | 3 | 49 | 55.3 |
Kodi Burns | 10–7 | 98 | 532 | 121 | 411 | 4.2 | 5 | 58 | 41.1 |
Brad Lester | 11–8 | 80 | 314 | 25 | 289 | 3.6 | 2 | 19 | 26.3 |
Mario Fannin | 12–3 | 54 | 255 | 17 | 238 | 4.4 | 1 | 35 | 19.8 |
Eric Smith | 12–1 | 21 | 98 | 15 | 83 | 4.0 | 0 | 19 | 6.9 |
Tristan Davis | 10–4 | 8 | 44 | 0 | 44 | 5.5 | 1 | 13 | 4.4 |
Neil Caudle | 2–0 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 4.0 | 0 | 4 | 2.0 |
Tim Hawthorne | 12–1 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 3.0 | 0 | 3 | 0.2 |
Robert Dunn | 12–4 | 3 | 6 | 7 | −1 | −0.3 | 0 | 6 | −0.1 |
Montez Billings | 11–11 | 2 | 0 | 7 | −7 | −3.5 | 0 | 0 | −0.6 |
TEAM | 7- | 9 | 0 | 15 | −15 | −1.7 | 0 | 0 | −2.1 |
Chris Todd | 7–5 | 33 | 47 | 110 | −63 | −1.9 | 0 | 12 | −9.0 |
Total | 12 | 469 | 2021 | 371 | 1650 | 3.5 | 12 | 58 | 137.5 |
Opponents | 12 | 408 | 1962 | 295 | 1667 | 4.1 | 7 | 63 | 138.9 |
Name | GP-GS | Effic | Cmp-Att-Int | Pct | Yds | TD | Lng | Avg/G |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Kodi Burns | 10–7 | 97.65 | 94–179–7 | 52.5 | 1050 | 2 | 52 | 105.0 |
Chris Todd | 7–5 | 106.64 | 86–156–6 | 55.1 | 903 | 5 | 58 | 129.0 |
Neil Caudle | 2–0 | 133.76 | 4–5–0 | 80.0 | 32 | 0 | 16 | 16.0 |
TEAM | 7- | 0.00 | 0–1–0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
Robert Dunn | 12–4 | 0.00 | 0-0-0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
Total | 12 | 102.01 | 184–341–13 | 54.0 | 1985 | 7 | 58 | 165.4 |
Opponents | 12 | 113.81 | 199–369–11 | 53.9 | 2146 | 19 | 44 | 178.8 |
Name | GP-GS | No. | Yds | Avg | TD | Long | Avg/G |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
R. Smith | 12–9 | 30 | 332 | 11.1 | 1 | 33 | 27.7 |
Montez Billings | 11–11 | 24 | 277 | 11.5 | 0 | 31 | 25.2 |
Mario Fannin | 12–3 | 20 | 223 | 11.1 | 2 | 52 | 18.6 |
Tommy Trott | 11–2 | 20 | 201 | 10.1 | 0 | 33 | 18.3 |
Robert Dunn | 12–4 | 18 | 193 | 10.7 | 2 | 29 | 16.1 |
Chris Slaughter | 8–1 | 15 | 179 | 11.9 | 1 | 42 | 22.4 |
Ben Tate | 12–2 | 15 | 90 | 6.0 | 0 | 27 | 7.5 |
Tim Hawthorne | 12–1 | 8 | 203 | 25.4 | 0 | 58 | 16.9 |
Brad Lester | 11–8 | 7 | 37 | 5.3 | 1 | 16 | 3.4 |
Quindarius Carr | 11–0 | 6 | 63 | 10.5 | 0 | 28 | 5.7 |
Derek Winter | 8–0 | 4 | 27 | 6.8 | 0 | 11 | 3.4 |
Gabe McKenzie | 12–1 | 3 | 33 | 11.0 | 0 | 21 | 2.8 |
Darvin Adams | 10–0 | 3 | 18 | 6.0 | 0 | 9 | 1.8 |
Tristan Davis | 10–4 | 2 | 42 | 21.0 | 0 | 22 | 4.2 |
Terrell Zachery | 12–0 | 2 | 24 | 12.0 | 0 | 17 | 2.0 |
C. Olatunji | 2–0 | 2 | 23 | 11.5 | 0 | 16 | 11.5 |
James Swinton | 9–1 | 2 | 14 | 7.0 | 0 | 10 | 1.6 |
Eric Smith | 12–1 | 2 | 3 | 1.5 | 0 | 2 | 0.2 |
John Douglas | 3–1 | 1 | 3 | 3.0 | 0 | 3 | 1.0 |
Total | 12 | 184 | 1985 | 10.8 | 7 | 58 | 165.4 |
Opponents | 12 | 199 | 2146 | 10.8 | 19 | 44 | 178.8 |
Name | GP-GS | Tackles | Sacks | Pass Defense | Fumbles | Blkd Kick | Saf | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Solo | Ast | Total | TFL-Yds | No-Yds | Int-Yds | BrUp | QBH | Rcv-Yds | FF | ||||
Jerraud Powers | 2–2 | 9 | 5 | 14 | 1–0 | 1 | 1 | ||||||
Antonio Coleman | 2–2 | 6 | 5 | 11 | 3.0–15 | 2.0–13 | 3 | 1 | |||||
Merrill Johnson | 2–2 | 5 | 4 | 9 | 1.0–6 | 1.0–6 | 1 | 1 | |||||
Neiko Thorpe | 2–0 | 6 | 2 | 8 | 2 | 1 | |||||||
Zac Etheridge | 2–2 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 1–0 | ||||||||
Craig Stevens | 2–2 | 5 | 2 | 7 | 1 | 1–6 | |||||||
Chris Evans | 2–0 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 3 | ||||||||
Josh Bynes | 2–0 | 1 | 6 | 7 | |||||||||
Mike McNeil | 2–2 | 2 | 4 | 6 | |||||||||
S. Marks | 2–2 | 5 | 1 | 6 | 3.5–10 | 1 | |||||||
Michael Goggans | 2–2 | 5 | 1 | 6 | 1.0–2 | 1 | 1–9 | ||||||
Tray Blackmon | 2–2 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 1.0–2 | 1.0–2 | 1 | ||||||
Courtney Harden | 2–0 | 5 | 5 | 1 | |||||||||
Walter McFadden | 2–2 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 1.0–5 | 1 | |||||||
Mike Blanc | 2–2 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 0.5–0 | ||||||||
D'Antoine Hood | 2–0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | |||||||||
Gabe McKenzie | 2–0 | 3 | 1 | 4 | |||||||||
Zach Clayton | 2–0 | 3 | 3 | 3.0–10 | 1.0–6 | ||||||||
Mike Slade | 2–0 | 3 | 3 | ||||||||||
Tez Doolittle | 2–0 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 1.0–4 | ||||||||
Drew Cole | 2–0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | |||||||||
Antoine Carter | 2–0 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 1 | ||||||||
Jake Ricks | 2–0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1.0–4 | ||||||||
Darvin Adams | 2–0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | |||||||||
Kodi Burns | 2–1 | 1 | 1 | ||||||||||
Spencer Pybus | 1–0 | 1 | 1 | 1–0 | |||||||||
Eric Smith | 2–1 | 1 | 1 | ||||||||||
Robert Shiver | 2–0 | 1 | 1 | ||||||||||
R. Smith | 2–1 | 1 | 1 | ||||||||||
Total | 2 | 80 | 60 | 140 | 16–58 | 5–27 | 2–0 | 9 | 9 | 3–15 | 3 | ||
Opponents | 2 | 84 | 64 | 148 | 10–31 | 2–8 | 2–17 | 5 | 13 | 3–0 | 4 | ||
Name | Punting | Kickoffs | |||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
No. | Yds | Avg | Long | TB | FC | I20 | Blkd | No. | Yds | Avg | TB | OB | |
Clinton Durst | 70 | 2947 | 42.1 | 58 | 4 | 22 | 18 | 1 | |||||
Ryan Shoemaker | 7 | 248 | 35.4 | 51 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | |||||
Wes Byrum | 26 | 1681 | 64.7 | 1 | 3 | ||||||||
Morgan Hull | 22 | 1377 | 62.6 | 3 | 2 | ||||||||
Total | 78 | 3212 | 41.2 | 58 | 4 | 23 | 20 | 1 | 48 | 3058 | 63.7 | 4 | 5 |
Opponents | 81 | 3264 | 40.3 | 59 | 7 | 24 | 25 | 0 | 50 | 3087 | 61.7 | 7 | 3 |
Name | Punt Returns | Kick Returns | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
No. | Yds | Avg | TD | Long | No. | Yds | Avg | TD | Long | |
Robert Dunn | 7 | 171 | 24.4 | 1 | 66 | |||||
Marion Fannin | 1 | 24 | 24.0 | 0 | 24 | |||||
P. Pierre-Louis | 1 | 18 | 18.0 | 0 | 18 | |||||
Tristan Davis | 1 | 14 | 14.0 | 0 | 14 | |||||
Total | 7 | 171 | 24.4 | 1 | 66 | 3 | 56 | 18.7 | 0 | 24 |
Opponents | 4 | 17 | 4.2 | 0 | 9 | 10 | 212 | 21.2 | 0 | 30 |
Nicholas Lou Saban Jr. is an American football coach who has been the head football coach at the University of Alabama since 2007. Saban previously served as head coach of the National Football League's Miami Dolphins and at three other universities: Louisiana State University (LSU), Michigan State University, and the University of Toledo. Saban is considered by many to be the greatest coach in college football history.
The Auburn Tigers football program represents Auburn University in the sport of American college football. Auburn competes in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Western Division of the Southeastern Conference (SEC).
The Alabama Crimson Tide football program represents the University of Alabama in the sport of American football. The team competes in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Western Division of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). The team's head coach is Nick Saban, who has led the Tide to six national championships over his tenure. The Crimson Tide is among the most storied and decorated football programs in NCAA history. Since beginning play in 1892, the program claims 18 national championships, including 13 wire-service national titles in the poll-era, and five other titles before the poll-era. From 1958 to 1982, the team was led by Hall of Fame coach Paul "Bear" Bryant, who won six national titles with the program. Despite numerous national and conference championships, it was not until 2009 that an Alabama player received a Heisman Trophy, when running back Mark Ingram II became the university's first winner. In 2015, Derrick Henry became the university's second Heisman winner. The Crimson Tide won back to back Heisman trophies in 2020 and 2021, with DeVonta Smith and Bryce Young.
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The 2007 Auburn Tigers football team represented Auburn University during the 2007 NCAA Division I FBS football season. Head coach Tommy Tuberville returned for his ninth season at Auburn, the third longest tenure among SEC head coaches in 2007. He was joined by returning offensive coordinator Al Borges and returning defensive coordinator Will Muschamp. Auburn played its eight-game home schedule at Jordan–Hare Stadium, the ninth largest on-campus stadium in the NCAA in 2007, seating 87,451. Conference foe Vanderbilt returned to the schedule while non-conference opponents South Florida and Tennessee Tech played the Tigers for the first time. The Tigers finished the season ranked #14 in the Coaches Poll and #15 in the AP Poll.
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The 2019 Auburn Tigers football team represented Auburn University in the 2019 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Tigers played their home games at Jordan–Hare Stadium in Auburn, Alabama, and competed in the Western Division of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). They were led by seventh-year head coach Gus Malzahn.
The 2019 Memphis Tigers football team represented the University of Memphis in the 2019 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Tigers played their home games at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium in Memphis, Tennessee, and competed in the West Division of the American Athletic Conference. They were led by fourth-year head coach Mike Norvell through the team's win in the American Championship Game, after which he left to fill the head coaching vacancy at Florida State. Offensive line coach Ryan Silverfield was initially named head coach of the team for their bowl game, the Cotton Bowl; the interim tag was removed and he was named the new head coach of the Tigers.
The 2020 Alabama Crimson Tide football team represented the University of Alabama in the 2020 NCAA Division I FBS football season. This was the Crimson Tide's 126th overall season, 87th as a member of the Southeastern Conference (SEC), and 29th within the SEC Western Division. They played their home games at Bryant–Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and were led by 14th-year head coach Nick Saban.
The 2020 Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns football team represented the University of Louisiana at Lafayette in the 2020 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Ragin' Cajuns played their home games at Cajun Field in Lafayette, Louisiana, and competed in the West Division of the Sun Belt Conference. They were led by third-year head coach Billy Napier. The Cajuns began the season with an away matchup against a preseason top-25 Iowa State and concluded their regular season at conference and in-state rival Louisiana–Monroe.
The 2021 Southeastern Conference football season is the 89th season of Southeastern Conference (SEC) football, taking place during the 2021 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The season is scheduled to begin on September 2, 2021, and end with the 2021 SEC Championship Game on December 4, 2021. The SEC is a Power Five conference under the College Football Playoff. The season schedule was released on January 27, 2021.
The 2022 Southeastern Conference football season is the 90th season of Southeastern Conference (SEC) football, taking place during the 2022 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The season began on August 27, 2022 and is scheduled to end with the 2022 SEC Championship Game on December 3, 2022. The SEC is a Power Five conference as part of the College Football Playoff system.
The 2019 LSU vs. Alabama football game was a regular-season college football game between the LSU Tigers and the Alabama Crimson Tide on November 9, 2019, at Bryant–Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. The game is considered a "Game of the Century", as it pitted the two top-ranked teams in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision, and it was the first such regular-season game since the 2011 LSU vs. Alabama game. Both teams entered the game undefeated and tied for first place in the Southeastern Conference's West Division.