Published On: 11.25.21 | 

By: Solomon Crenshaw Jr.

Football preview: Iron Bowl, UAB vs. UTEP, BSC in the playoffs and more

The Iron Bowl is Nov. 26 at Bryant-Denny Stadium. (Wade Rackley / Auburn Athletics)

Dating back to his days at Boise State, Bryan Harsin has been a fan of the Iron Bowl.

The current Auburn coach recalled coaching his Broncos in late games out west and tuning in to see the annual meeting between the Crimson Tide and the Tigers.

Auburn’s Tank Bigsby carries the ball during last week’s game vs. South Carolina, another disappointment for the Tigers. (Todd Van Emst/AU Athletics)

“This is one of the reasons why I wanted to be at Auburn,” Harsin said. “The Iron Bowl has been a game that everybody’s watched. Everybody knows Auburn (and) Alabama are playing. For us at Boise, we had the latest game, so you could always get a chance to watch these games.

“It’s one that everybody knows who’s playing in it,” he continued. “You sit there and you think how cool that is to have a chance for those guys to go out there and play in a rivalry game like this. And now to be here. I told our players I’m excited to be here. I’m excited to coach in the game.”

Harsin’s first Iron Bowl comes at 2:30 p.m. Saturday on CBS on Pat Dye Field in Jordan-Hare Stadium. Auburn (6-5, 3-4 SEC) saw another lead evaporate last week as it fell 21-17 at South Carolina. That means the Tigers are limping into the game on a three-game losing streak.

Odds are, that streak will go to four. According to WynnBET, Alabama, which slipped to No. 3 behind Ohio State (10-1) but ahead of No. 4 Cincinnati (11-0) in the latest College Football Playoff rankings, is a 19.5-point favorite.

Nick Saban said his team (10-1, 6-1 SEC) played well in its 42-35 victory over CFP No. 25 Arkansas. But there were critical errors that kept the Tide from putting the game away.

Alabama wide receiver John Metchie III carries the ball in the Crimson Tide’s 42-35 victory over Arkansas. With one loss, the Tide remains in the national title hunt going into this year’s Iron Bowl. (Crimson Tide Photos)

“Those are things that we obviously need to correct,” the coach said. “As I said after the game, those are things that we’ll certainly address with our players. And I’m sure our players want to make sure they get it right. They’re going to work hard to do it.”

As for the Iron Bowl, Saban said, “There are people in this state and all over the nation that have great interest in this game. A lot of people have a lot of passion for their schools, which is what makes this rivalry what it is.

“It’s always a difficult place to play on the road when you go down to Jordan-Hare Stadium.” The Tigers have won three of the past four meetings on their home ground. “This is something that our players are going to have to really have a lot of respect for and do a great job of preparing,” Saban said.

When it comes to avoiding a four-game losing streak, Harsin said the message is clear.

“The message is that we have to do things better than we did the week before,” he said. “That’s been the message each and every week. We can talk about it, (but) we’ve got to go out there and do it.”

Win or lose, Alabama has a date on Dec. 4 with CFP No. 1 Georgia (11-0) in the SEC Championship Game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. The Bulldogs play at Georgia Tech (3-8) at 11 a.m. Saturday.

Blazers close out regular season at Protective Stadium

There will be no Conference USA West Division title and no C-USA overall crown for UAB this season, thanks to a last-second 34-31 loss to undefeated, No. 22 UTSA in San Antonio last week.

The Blazers (7-4, 5-2 in Conference USA) host another opponent from the Lone Star State – UTEP – to close the regular season at 1 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 26. The Miners are 7-4, 4-3.

“They are bowl eligible, same record as us, so a good team that’s coming in here for us on Senior Day – big day for us,” coach Bill Clark said. “We have a bunch of seniors that have meant so much to me and this program. I can’t thank them enough for what they’ve done for us. That’s what we’ve said, we want to go out there and play at our best for those guys.

“We’re looking forward to finishing it out the right way,” the coach continued, “and we know we have a tough opponent coming in.”

BSC advances to playoffs’ second round

Birmingham-Southern outlasted rival Huntingdon 24-14 last week to move into the second round of the NCAA Division III playoffs. After the game, Panther quarterback Trey Patterson said reaching the playoffs for the first time in school history is what he and his teammates came to the Hilltop to do.

“But getting the win, the first win in playoff history, is a lot better,” Patterson said. “It was just as fun as I thought it would be. It was a great atmosphere hosting and I am looking forward to (the second round).”

That second-round game comes at noon Saturday in Belton, Texas. The Panthers face Mary Hardin-Baylor (11-0), whose 13-3 victory last week knocked off Trinity (Texas), the only team to beat No. 19 BSC (10-1) this season.

In other action:

Tuskegee at Alabama State (Turkey Day Classic): The Division II Golden Tigers bring a 3-7 record into the 2 p.m. Thursday contest against the Hornets (4-6) of the Football Championship Subdivision. Despite being from a smaller division, Tuskegee (3-7) has gotten the better of ASU over time, winning seven of the last 11 matchups. But Alabama State won the most recent meeting, 38-31, in September 2019.

Troy at Georgia State: The Trojans parted ways with head coach Chip Lindsey this week, replacing him on an interim basis with defensive coordinator Brandon Hall. He is tasked with leading Troy (5-6, 3-4 Sun Belt) against the Panthers (6-5, 5-2), who became bowl-eligible over the past two weeks by knocking off Coastal Carolina and Arkansas State. Kickoff is at 1 p.m. Central Saturday at Center Parc Credit Union Stadium in Atlanta.

Coastal Carolina at South Alabama: Speaking of the Chanticleers, Coastal Carolina (9-2, 5-2 Sun Belt) closes its regular season at 2:30 p.m. Friday against the Jaguars (5-6, 2-5). The teams are 1-1 against each other, with Coastal winning 23-6 last season.

Season complete: Miles, West Alabama, Samford, Huntingdon, Jacksonville State, Alabama A&M, North Alabama.

HIGH SCHOOL

Class 7A: Thompson made sure the latest “game of the century” didn’t live up to the hype. The two-time defending state champions avenged their lone loss this season by overwhelming Hoover 35-10 last week. The Warriors, No. 2 in the final regular-season ranking of the Alabama Sports Writers Association, punched their ticket for the state championship game at Birmingham’s Protective Stadium. At 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 1, coach Mark Freeman’s team (12-1) will face No. 3 Central-Phenix City (13-0), which eliminated 2020 finalist Auburn 28-17.

Class 6A: No. 10 Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa (11-2) travels to No. 7 Hueytown (12-1) on Friday in a state semifinal.

Class 5A: No. 2 Pleasant Grove (12-1) welcomes Fairview (12-1) in a state semifinal on Friday.

Class 4A: Madison Academy entertains Oneonta in a state semifinal on Friday. Both teams are 12-1.

Class 3A: No. 1 Montgomery Catholic (13-0) hosts Montgomery Academy (10-3) on Friday in a state semifinal.

Class 2A: Highland Home (8-5) heads to Grove Hill to face No. 2 Clarke County (11-2) in a state semifinal on Friday.

Class 1A: No. 1 Brantley (12-0) is on the road Friday and will square off with No. 2 Sweet Water in a semifinal pitting 12-0 teams against each other.

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