Sand Mountain Reporter

I was visiting with Crossville head football coach Bill Smith Thursday morning when the subject of the Iron Bowl came up.

Coach Smith and I agreed that our alma mater won’t have an easy time securing a victory at Jordan-Hare Stadium on Friday.

I still believe it’s sacrilege the game won’t be played on Saturday, but the SEC and CBS don’t care what I think.

Coach Smith knows what it’s like to play in Jordan-Hare Stadium.

He was a senior punter on the 1989 Alabama team that became the first to play on the Plains.

Coach Smith’s memories of the game are still vivid.

He recalled the Crimson Tide made three trips inside the red zone in the first half and came away with only three points.

I had forgotten that, but I suppose I tried not to remember. I’ve never enjoyed losing, and I certainly didn’t enjoy the 30-20 loss the Tide suffered that December day.

Back in those days, I usually retained my ticket stubs as souvenirs. I think I kept the stub from that inaugural Iron Bowl in Auburn.

The Tiger athletics department printed a commemorative ticket that day. It seems like it was almost postcard-sized. I remember it wouldn’t fit in your wallet.

I traveled to the game with my brother, Jeff, and our friends, Randell and L.B. Jarrell.

Jeff lived in Albertville then, and he and Randell decided we were leaving at 6 a.m. on game day. It seems like kickoff was 1:30 p.m.

As I pulled into Jeff’s driveway that morning, I saw he and Randell getting into Jeff’s vehicle.

Bless L.B.’s heart, she was thinking of me. “They were about to leave you,” she said.

It was 5:57 when I arrived at Jeff’s, but he and Randell didn’t cut me any slack.

“We told you 6 o’clock,” Randell said.

It’s a good thing I made it when I did, because I think they would’ve actually left me.

This season also marks the 10th anniversary of Alabama’s first victory at Auburn, a 28-17 decision on Nov. 20, 1999.

I know where that ticket stub is. It’s framed with a collage of photos that hangs on my office wall.

Shaun Alexander scored three touchdowns in the fourth quarter that Saturday night on the Plains.

Shaun always had a knack for finding the end zone. He never asked how many yards he gained. Instead, he asked how many touchdowns he scored.

I traveled to the 1999 game with Jeff, our dad, Edwin, and our uncle, Barney Johnson. It was definitely a sweet ride home.

This year is also the 30th anniversary of my first Iron Bowl, the 1979 game at Legion Field.

Steadman Shealy led unbeaten Alabama to a 25-18 victory that Dec. 1. The Tide went on to claim the national championship.

No one will ever convince me there’s a greater rivalry than Alabama-Auburn or Auburn-Alabama.

And no matter the outcome of this season’s game, I don’t think anyone will be changing allegiances, because Tide and Tiger fans are loyal to their teams to the end.

Shannon J. Allen is sports editor of The Sand Mountain Reporter. He can be contacted at sports(at)sandmountainreporter.com.

Share | Save | Mail | Print | Letter

Follow the Reporter on Twitter:

SMR News and
SMR Sports

Serving Albertville and the Sand Mountain region

Publisher: Ben Shurett

1603 Progress Drive
Albertville, Alabama 35950

Tel: 256-840-3000 | Email

A Southern Newspapers publication.