“Good, Bad and Ugly” by Ryan Fowler from Alabama’s Iron Bowl win

The Crimson Tide ended their regular season with a 28-14 victory over the Auburn Tigers, solidifying a 9-3 regular season record in Kalen DeBoer’s first season. We do this at every home game. So what was good, bad and ugly about the Crimson Tide’s dominant Iron Bowl win?

The good

Alabama dispatched the Auburn Tigers, ending Auburn’s fourth straight losing season and effectively eliminating its chance to play in a bowl game. Jalen Milroe had a remarkable rebounding performance, throwing for 256 yards and rushing 17 times for 109 yards, scoring three touchdowns. Germie Bernard also stood out with 111 receiving yards on seven catches, marking his highest totals in both yards and receptions while wearing a Crimson Tide jersey. Alabama’s offense was well balanced and kept the Tigers’ defense guessing all afternoon. The Crimson Tide controlled the game with 36 minutes and 35 seconds of possession compared to Auburn’s 23 minutes and 25 seconds, reflected in Alabama’s impressive 12 of 18 in converting third downs.

Kalen DeBoer now shares with Frank Thomas the record for most wins by a head coach in his first season with the Crimson Tide, totaling nine wins. Despite some challenges, the team finished the season undefeated at Bryant-Denny Stadium. During the postgame press conference, DeBoer took a moment to thank the fans for the supportive atmosphere they created throughout the season.

Going into the season, it was clear that Alabama’s defense would rely heavily on multiple first-year players in key roles for success. Despite numerous season-ending injuries, Kane Wommack’s defensive unit continued to improve each week, indicating a promising future. Notably, Alabama’s defense limited Auburn to just 4 of 12 on third downs.

We would like to recognize the 19 seniors who leave Tuscaloosa having never lost to Auburn and who contributed to the Crimson Tide’s five straight wins over the Tigers. Thank you, seniors, for unforgettable memories and exciting wins against Auburn.

The evil

The Crimson Tide entered the game leading the SEC in turnover margin, while Auburn had the lowest turnover margin in the conference. Alabama’s fumble kept the game competitive, and although Auburn only scored three points from those turnovers, it prevented the Tide’s offense from increasing their scoring. Once again, Alabama’s defense deserves credit for stepping up and preventing the Tigers from scoring.

The ugly

This article will be my final “Good, Bad and Ugly” post for the 2024 season and I want to maintain a consistent message: The Southeastern Conference needs to improve its officiating.

There is more parity in college football than ever before, putting more pressure on officials to call plays correctly. The conference office will have to address this issue in the offseason. Although I don’t have any specific solutions, I hope that better results can be achieved through extensive brainstorming sessions. A random thought is that adding an additional officer might help ease some of the pressure on current officers. How was it possible that no compensatory penalties were called during the Auburn courtside fight?

Alabama experienced several critical breakdowns in the game that prevented them from scoring any more points. A few sloppy moments made the end result more respectable than it could have been. Personally, I would have liked to have seen Alabama beat Auburn by a larger margin, but I realize that is my bias.

These are just a few of my thoughts on the Iron Bowl. I’ll be sharing more about “The Game with Ryan Fowler” tomorrow at 2 p.m. on Tide 100.9 and online at Tide1009.com. I’m always excited to hear your opinions and analysis every Monday as we discuss the good, bad and ugly, sponsored by Daniel Moore Art, which leads to some great conversations. We even give away prizes on Mondays!