AU has upper hand
By Staff
Paul Finebaum
FCT Sports Columnist
Next week's Iron Bowl will mark the 25th anniversary of Paul Bryant's final regular-season game in 1982 against Auburn. Does it seem possible that so much time has passed us by?
Well, it's not so easy to swallow, particularly when you consider Alabama has had eight head coaches since then. Auburn has had three. What's even more remarkable is that the Auburn victory on that November Saturday broke a nine-game losing streak to the Tide. When the game finally ended, the goalposts came crashing down and the scene on the field looked like a snapshot from Pakistan today with people running wild in every direction.
To say that that Iron Bowl was a turning point would be a colossal understatement. It was a seminal moment in time.,Including the 1982 game,
Auburn's record since is 15-10 over Alabama.
Going into that game, there were myriad rumors about Bryant's future status as head coach. And for good reason.
Alabama had nearly won three straight national titles from 1977-79, finishing No. 2, No. 1 and No. 1 in the final polls. In 1980, the Tide was No. 1 for most of the year until Mississippi State ended the Tide's 28-game winning streak in Jackson. The 1982 season begun with high hopes, as Alabama had climbed to No. 2 in the nation before being stunned by Tennessee in Knoxville, ending an 11-game winning streak over the Vols. That loss marked only the Tide's fifth SEC defeat in the last 82 conference contests. There would be more to come shortly as the Tide was bludgeoned by LSU a few weeks later and then Southern Miss beat them at Bryant-Denny Stadium, ending a 57-game winning streak in that stadium dating back to 1963.
All week long in the lead up to the 1982 game, Bryant denied rumors of his impending retirement. However, before the game, according to Pat Dye's autobiography, "In the Arena," he sung a different tune.
"He told me, 'Pat, I'm thinkin' about getting out.' I said, 'Well, if you're gonna get out, if you promise to get your (tail) out, I'll let you beat me one more year.'"
Dye, who coached at Alabama for nine years under Bryant, laughed it off and walked away.
However, it was Dye who had the last laugh that day, as Bo Jackson went over the top down the stretch and the Tigers held on for a 23-22 upset.
So much changed that fateful day.
Including the win in 1982, Dye would win six of the next eight (and frankly, could have easily won eight straight – losing at the end in 1984 when Bo went the wrong way on the goal line and 1985 when Van Tiffin kicked a 52-yard field goal at the gun). He took a 6-3 mark against Alabama into the game in 1990 as a favorite. He would lose his last three in the series.
Mostly, Dye made Auburn people believe they could win and by beating Bryant, the complexion of the series changed, perhaps forever.
It spawned a generation of Auburn fans who did not know what it was like to have to play second-fiddle to Alabama, or to Bear Bryant.
Instead of living in fear of Bryant and the Alabama mystique, the generation of Auburn fans coming of age during this period either saw the Tide as an equal or a program in chaos.
And it all changed that day in 1982 – a mere 25 years ago.
Paul Finebaum is a guest columnist for The Franklin County Times. He can be reached via e-mail at finebaumnet@yahoo.com.
