Bryce Young rallies No. 3 Alabama to thrilling comeback over Auburn
AUBURN, Ala. — Haunted by a familiar litany of errors, No. 3 Alabama continued to struggle inside the house of horrors. The Crimson Tide fumbled snaps, dropped passes, and shot itself in the foot with several costly penalties.
Only this time, the home crowd didn’t storm the field inside Jordan-Hare Stadium.
With its season on the brink of disaster, Alabama rallied for a 24-22 victory over Auburn in four overtimes. The game marked the first time the Iron Bowl was decided in overtime.
"We were fighting like I've never seen us fight all year long," Alabama head coach Nick Saban said. "It's a great feeling. Players were as happy as I've ever seen them after the game. ... Wow, what a game."
Alabama (11-1, 7-1 in the SEC) won its first road Iron Bowl since 2015 while Auburn (6-6, 3-5) wrapped up a winless month of November. For much of the game, it appeared like that wouldn’t be the case.
Trailing 10-3 with 1:35 remaining, Bryce Young led Alabama’s comeback, capping off a 97-yard drive with a game-tying 28-yard touchdown pass to freshman receiver Ja’Corey Brooks with 24 seconds remaining.
"We had a one-on-one matchup. I had faith in Ja'Corey to win that matchup," Young said of the game-tying score. "In a game as big as this, in a moment as big as this, to run that route and make that catch, that says a lot about him, his preparation, his hard work and the kind of player he is."
The two teams traded touchdowns in the first overtime before settling for field goals in the second extra period, setting up college football’s new rule where games are settled by 2-point conversions.
After both teams converted on their attempts in triple overtime, Alabama was able to stop Auburn as freshman cornerback Kool-Aid McKinstry batted away a pass from Auburn quarterback T.J. Finley in the back of the end zone. Young then completed the comeback by delivering a game-winner to John Metchie III.
"[Young] just gave me a route, and I ran the route. He called it," Metchie said of his game-winning score. "It all comes down to the quarterback. The kid's the GOAT. Just following the general."
Young completed 25 of 51 passes for 317 yards and two touchdowns while throwing his first interception since Alabama’s loss to Texas A&M on Oct. 9. However, this year’s Iron Bowl will be remembered for his late-game heroics.
Taking over at his own 3-yard line, Young was charged with leading an anemic Alabama offense down the field to keep the Tide’s playoff hopes alive. The sophomore played a part in all 97 yards of the game-tying drive completing 4 of 10 passes for 85 yards while adding 12 yards with his feet.
Outside of the touchdown pass to Brooks, his most important throw on the drive came on a 14-yard completion to tight end Jahleel Billingsley on fourth-and-7 from the Auburn 42.
Alabama’s offense couldn’t come up with much on offense for the majority of the game, failing to score on its first 11 possessions. The Tide drove down to the Auburn 19-yard line late in the third quarter but came away empty-handed as holder Paul Tyson fumbled a snap on a field-goal attempt. Alabama suffered a similar fate on its following possession as Young bobbled a snap on a fourth-and-2 from the Auburn 39-yard line.
After the Tigers took over at their own 44-yard line, Alabama cornerback Josh Jobe spurred on the Tide’s resurgence with a momentum-changing interception on first down.
Alabama was finally able to get on the scoreboard as Will Reichard converted on a 30-yard field goal to cap off a gritty seven-play drive.
The Tide stopped Auburn on the Tigers’ following possession but was unable to capitalize as running back Trey Sanders was stuffed on a fourth-and-short from Alabama 46-yard line.
From there, the Tide’s defense was able to put together another stop to set up Young’s game-tying drive.
Alabama's early offensive struggles were brought on in part to losing Jameson Williams to a targeting penalty on a kickoff in the second quarter. The starting receiver recorded a pair of receptions for 43 yards before leaving the game.
After avoiding upset scares in each of its last three conference games, the Crimson Tide now faces a daunting task in No. 1 Georgia in next week’s SEC Championship Game on Saturday at 3 p.m. CT inside Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
"I think the win is what you do it for," Metchie said of Alabama's survival at Auburn. "No matter how you win, it's not about how you start, it's about how you finish. And today I think we showed that.
"Of course it's going to be something we go back and learn from. We have a lot to learn from so we can you it moving forward."
