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Alabama finishes the regular season with a 9-3 record after their win over rival Auburn. (Jason Clark/Getty Images)
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — It wasn’t pretty, but then nothing about this Alabama season has been. In the 89th installment of the Iron Bowl, Alabama outpaced Auburn for a 28-14 victory that kept the critics of the wobbly Kalen DeBoer regime at bay and kept the faint flames of a College Football Playoff berth alive.
To boil down a rivalry game to a question of how it will impact the College Football Playoff, as announcers did during Friday night’s Georgia-Georgia Tech game, is to utterly miss the point of a rivalry game. Alabama and Auburn have been battling for more than a century, and no newly created playoff structure is going to dent the fury, rage and loathing that animate this perfect rivalry.
Whatever happens with the CFP selection committee, happens. The Iron Bowl is about much more parochial concerns — like who’s going to have bragging rights for the next year at offices, grocery stores, churches, cookouts and golf courses around the state of Alabama.
That said, there were indeed playoff possibilities at stake on Saturday — faint, yes, but possibilities nonetheless. When South Carolina knocked off Clemson shortly before kickoff, Alabama effectively moved into the “first team left out” spot in the playoff bracket, meaning a loss by a higher-seeded team could potentially have opened the door for the Tide.
Auburn, meanwhile, was fighting for bowl eligibility, and for self-respect after a season that didn’t even reach “underwhelming” status. Pride was at stake for the Tigers, and pride can carry you a long way in a rivalry game.
Alabama needed to make a statement to the CFP selection committee, and in the first half, the Tide made the exact same statement they’ve made all season: roars…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/alabama-holds-strong-in-testy-iron-bowl-keeping-faint-college-football-playoff-hopes-alive-001546611.html
Author : Yahoo Sports
Publish date : 2024-12-01 00:15:00
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