Auburn took out many of its growing frustrations against Alabama A&M Saturday afternoon, beating the Bulldogs by a score of 51-7.  The win improved the Tigers record to 3-8 and they will now turn their complete attention to state rival Alabama.

     The game is always big for both teams.  For Auburn though, a win would go a long way towards easing the pain of one of the worst seasons in school history.  For Gene Chizik, a win might just be a job-saver.

     "I think that anytime you get a win in the Iron Bowl, it really sets the tone for pretty much whatever’s happened previously in that year, and I think it sets the tone for the next year, too," Chizik said. "A win in the Iron Bowl for anybody is huge.”

     If the Tigers hope to have any chance of upsetting Alabama, though, they’ll need to play their best game of the season.  Realistically, the best performance so far was a 12-10 loss to LSU on September 22^nd.  That was five losses ago.  Since that time, the team has regressed and doubts about whether the program is headed in the right direction have grown.

     For the Tigers to have a chance, they’ll need freshman quarterback Jonathan Wallace to have a big day.  The Alabama secondary has shown some weaknesses over the last several weeks. 

     Wallace will have to take advantage of those soft spots with accurate short and medium length throws to soften up the Alabama defense.  Without the threat of a passing game, the Tigers will have serious trouble running the ball.

     Defensively, turnovers will be the key to the game.  Alabama fell to Texas A&M largely because of a lost fumble and two interceptions.  The defense will need to cause at least three turnovers to have a chance on Saturday.

     They’ll also need to hold Alabama in check on the early downs.  If the Alabama offense is able to control the line of scrimmage and gain considerable yardage on first and second downs, the Tigers have little chance of victory.  The turnover opportunities rise dramatically on third and long.  Expect the Auburn defense to take some chances on the early downs to try to force Alabama into those situations.

     It is well known that the Iron Bowl is one of the biggest rivalry games in the country.  There will be plenty of talk this week (especially from Nick Saban) about “throwing out the records” when Alabama and Auburn face each other.

     Historically, though, there have been few major upsets in the historic series.

     But, there have been some surprises along the way and 2012 marks the 40^th anniversary of one of the biggest.  Let’s take a look back at the 1972 Iron Bowl.

     Entering the 1972 contest, Alabama was unbeaten and ranked #2 in the nation.  The Crimson Tide had been mostly untested and the closest game was a 35-21 win over LSU.

     With just 10 minutes remaining in the game, Alabama had a 16-0 lead and seemed to be cruising to a victory. 

     Auburn managed to get on the board with a field goal, but Alabama still led 16-3.

     The Tide was unable to move the ball and had to punt.  That’s when one of the most unlikely series of events in the rivalry and in college football history began to unfold.

     A punt by Alabama’s Greg Gantt was blocked by Auburn linebacker Bill Newton.  The ball was then picked up by defensive back David Langner and returned 25 yards for an Auburn touchdown.

     Suddenly, the Tigers were down just 16-10.

     Once again, the Alabama offense was unable to move the ball and once again, they’d have to punt.

     This time there were just 90 seconds left in the game.

     The Tigers proved that sometimes lightning can indeed strike twice.

     Almost like an instant replay of the play moments before, Gantt took the snap and his punt attempt was blocked by Newton, hauled in by Langner who rambled into the end zone to tie the game.

     The Tigers converted the extra point and earned a miraculous 17-16 victory.

     To this day the game is know as “Punt, Bama, Punt” and serves as a reminder to both teams that anything can happen in the Iron Bowl.

     One sobering reminder, though:  Even though Auburn was a big underdog that day, they also brought a 9-1 record into the game. 

     It’s hard to imagine the 2012 Auburn team having a similar outcome.