By Zachary Gould
Since the arrival of Coach Saban in 2007, Alabama has had four National Championships and five SEC Championships. This season, the undefeated team is currently ranked number one, with two games left in the regular season, and are favored to win the national championship.
Alabama’s two final games are versus Mercer and Number Six Auburn. Mercer has a record of 5-5 with a very slim chance to beat Alabama. At 8-2, Auburn has a chance to upset ‘Bama, as they have recently knocked off former number one team Georgia, 40-17.
Making the matchup even more interesting is the fact that Auburn and Alabama are big rivals and in the past have had close games. In 2013, Alabama tried kicking a game-winning field goal versus Auburn, but it was short and was caught by Chris Davis, who returned it 105 yards for a touchdown.
When asked whether or not Alabama will win their remaining games, senior Aidan Harding said, “They have the resume, and have only got stronger over the years. Their last game against Auburn will be by far the hardest game of the year.”
Their last game, however, was the closest game this season against Mississippi State. They won 31-24 after trailing for a majority of the game.
“It [the Mississippi State game] shows that they are beatable,” said junior Mike Burns. “They usually just blow everyone out. I also still think they will win the national championship.”
Senior Chad Peterson agrees that Alabama will win out, saying, “They definitely will win out, (because) they play a tough schedule every year and still dominate.”
Peterson is right. In the last five years, Alabama has won two national championships, and has a program history of 16 total championships, according to ESPN. This year, Alabama has beaten their opponents by an average of 28 points, and have averaged 39 points a game, with their opponents averaging just 11 points. With the top offense in college football, they average 270 rush yards and 203 pass yards a game.
The last two times Alabama has lost to Auburn was in 2010 and 2013. In 2010 being up 24-0 at half and ended up coming back winning 28-27.
Their last game will be against Auburn which will decide the fate of Alabama’s season.
The First Launch 