- [Narrator ] t's November 26, 2010.
We're at a packed Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
Down 21 to 27 in the fourth quarter,
Auburn is scrapping to save their magical undefeated season.
Not only could their title hopes be ruined
but it would come at the hands of their biggest rival,
Alabama.
Before this next snap,
we need to understand a role reversal taken place
between these teams.
The hatred between these schools.
And how an underdog quarterback
surrounded by controversy is on the brink
of delivering a final blow that will send shock waves
not only through the state of Alabama but the whole nation.
To do that, we need to rewind.
(upbeat music)
Down six, the Tigers face a 3rd and 4
from Alabama's seven yard line.
Yeah, there's 12 minutes left on the clock
but knowing this stingy Alabama defense,
Auburn isn't guaranteed another shot like this.
Getting a touchdown here would put them one step closer
to snatching a victory against a team
who they share just a tad of it history with.
This is the 75th Iron Bowl,
a showdown between these teams
that dates all the way back to 1893.
We're talking a century plus years of hate.
Firstly, you gotta understand
there's no professional sports in the state of Alabama.
So this game really is the game every year.
It's a 365 day beef within the state that comes to a head
when the teams touch the field.
Off the field, things can even get a little carried away
between fans.
There was a 41 year stretch where these teams didn't play
because football would just intensify the hate.
It was that real.
When the series finally renewed,
the only common ground that the two schools could find
was agreeing to play at the neutral site
of Legion Field in Birmingham.
That stadium hosted a number of nail-biting battles
between the two schools.
But Bama upgraded their stadium,
and in 2000, the Iron Bowl touched down on Alabama's campus
at Bryant-Denny for the first time in series' history.
While Bama typically saw Auburn as their little brother,
it was the Tigers who dominated the 2000s
and earned the bigger piece of chicken at family dinner.
Although the tide could be turning back in Alabama's favor
as they won the past two matchups.
Auburn looks to keep feasting here and top off the decade
with a sweet treat of beating their most hated rival.
But just two quarters ago that treat tasted like shit.
Luckily for Auburn, they've turned shit into sugar
all season.
Coming into the 2010 season,
Auburn set some high expectations for themselves.
Entering his second year as head coach,
Gene Chizik and his coaching staff hammered into this team
that eight ain't it.
A model of referring to the Tigers' win total
from the previous year.
While eight wins certainly won't sniff a chance
at a BCS Bowl,
Chizik inherited a squad that wasn't deep enough
at key positions.
Luckily Chizik didn't have to do everything alone.
He brought on Gus Malzahn,
one of the top office of minds in college football.
Despite having very few playmakers,
Gus came in and immediately revamped a poor offense
into one of the more lethal units in the country.
And this season Auburn's offense
continued to steam roll under Malzahn's hurry up
no huddle system which pounced on defenders
being out of place.
You know what the old football cliche says though,
defense wins championships.
And Auburn's defense has been pretty mid
so far this year.
Just like on offense,
the defense lacked depth and experience.
When it mattered most though,
this Auburn defensive unit came alive.
Already this season, Auburn has survived three games,
where they trailed by 10 points or more.
They came up big in an early test against Clemson,
given up just seven points in the second half
before winning in overtime.
Against Georgia,
they gave up 21 points in the first quarter.
From there, the defense strapped in and held UGA scoreless
in just two quarters.
They've been clutch in the second halves of games.
Shutting out four teams in the fourth quarter.
But Auburn escaped all those games at home.
And in this game on the road,
their second half performance was needed a little earlier.
Auburn actually got their spark
as Bama tried to finish the job early.
With 12:38 in the second quarter,
running back Mark Ingram caught the ball up field
with his eyes set on the end zone.
But Ingram slipped leaving room for defensive Antoine Carter
to track him down and punch out the ball.
Which the defense freely watched fly 12 yards
into the back of the end zone.
Here's the thing.
Footballs aren't supposed to land and keep rolling
in a near straight line.
Footballs have edges.
And those edges typically catch the grass
and send the ball shooting sideways.
On that play, Auburn caught a physics defying moment,
and it was just what they needed.
From there, they were lights out.
On the flip side, Bama is known for their defense.
And they find themselves with a chance
to come up big in a major moment.
That's kind of what Bama has become known for.
Thanks to one man, head coach, Nick Saban.
The University of Alabama was a mess
in the early 2000s.
Plagued with sanctions involving the loss of scholarships,
Bama could never stay consistent.
With Bama searching for a fresh start,
Saban came on but struggled to immediately right the ship.
Shaking off year one,
Saban transformed the Crimson Tide program
improving the school's win total each year,
and snatching a national championship
in just his third season.
That feat was unthinkable just a few years ago
and earned the coach a statue.
Cause yeah, giving a coach a statue after three seasons
seems totally normal and it has nothing to do
with the obsessive nature of football
in the state of Alabama.
Anyways. With his squad returning double digit starters
and a roster filled with players
ready to suit up on Sundays, it was no surprise
they were chosen as the preseason number one overall team.
But things didn't necessarily go as planned.
After five weeks of cruising through competition,
Alabama suffered a week six loss
against South Carolina on the road.
Then three weeks later took another L
in an upset by rival LSU.
With their second loss, both in conference,
the SEC Championship and a shot at repeating
seemed out of range.
But this was still a dominant squad with freak athletes
at every position that hadn't lost
in 20 straight home games.
Plus while championships are nice,
if Alabama could only win one game each year,
they'd want it to be the one against Auburn.
So it didn't come as a surprise
that Bama entered the game as a favorite,
despite their two losses.
And as the game kicked off, Bama play just like it.
They ran up the count quickly.
Scoring touchdowns on their first three possessions.
Auburn simply didn't have an answer for Bama's force.
Luckily for Auburn though,
football games don't end after one quarter.
On top of the defense stepping up,
they've got a superhero playing quarterback.
That guy right there, that's Cameron Newton.
The road it took him to get here,
was filled with all types of potholes, falling trees,
slow drivers in front of him.
You know what I mean, adversity.
Cam Newton flat out balled
at Westlake High school in Georgia.
At six foot five, 220 pounds, the five-star prospect
was highly recruited coming out of high school.
It's just universities wanted him to play tight end.
Only three schools offered him a spot at quarterback.
One of which being the University of Florida
where Cam eventually committed.
The Gators already had their quarterback
of the future in Tim Tebow,
a sophomore fresh out of helping his team
win the national championship.
Cam's spot to hold Tebow's clipboard wasn't even guaranteed.
And that was before he suffered a season ending injury
in the home opener of his sophomore season.
If that wasn't enough to endure,
Cam certainly didn't help his case off the field.
Cam got a little handsy with a laptop.
The story goes that Cam swiped a laptop
that was eventually reported as stolen by another student.
When the laptop was traced to Cam's dorm,
police questioned him and the laptop somehow found his way
into a garbage can outside his dorm
with his name written in white paint on the front.
Yeah, I mean it does sound a little fishy,
but who doesn't I'd like to add a little flare
to their laptop.
I typically go with stickers, Cam just went with paint.
Who am I to judge?
Well, the University did and Cam was arrested.
Sprinkle just a smidge of alleged academic misconduct
on top of all that and Cam's time as a Gator came to an end.
He kept it moving, transferring to Blinn College,
a small junior college in the middle of nowhere Texas.
Putting up absurd numbers and leading the school
to a national championship,
Blinn was simply a redemption tour for Cam
to prove his worth and make his way back
to division one football.
Now the number one junior college prospect in the country,
with several offers thrown his way,
it was time for Cam to make a decision.
He saddled up and hit the Plains,
where he looked to become Auburn's starting quarterback.
While he initially had to compete for the starting role,
Cam earned the job even before summer practice began.
Plus Malzahn's system was tailored
for an athletic dual threat QB like Cam.
He was a menace whenever he touched the field.
Whether it was torching teams through the air
or an annailiating you on the ground,
Cam couldn't be stopped.
That was never more true than during his Heisman moment
against number six LSU.
Tied at 10 with just under 12 minutes to go
in the third quarter Cam called his own number
and took over the game.
He took a QB keeper up the middle of the field,
split through defenders stumbled,
and had the ability to switch gears like it was nothing
as he found his way into the end zone.
It was an extraordinary feat of athleticism
and a play rarely ever made by quarterback.
But for Cam and Auburn, the road to a national championship
still ran through Tuscaloosa
and a battle for state bragging rights.
But as easy as it was on the field for Cam,
off of it, things were once again less smooth.
See getting Cam to Auburn, wasn't that easy.
He had several major programs fighting for him
to join their school.
One of those schools had a little more involvement
than others, Mississippi state.
The NCAA launched an investigation
alleging a pay for play deal.
The NCAA claimed that Cam's father Cecil Newton
saw upwards of $100,000 from a Mississippi state booster
in and exchange for Cam to lace up his cleats for state.
Despite the allegations being just that, allegations,
the Crimson Tide fans didn't need to hear anything else.
They took any and every jab they could at Cam situation.
Come game time Cam looked lost.
Bama's defense grinded away at Auburn,
as the team didn't see a first down
until the second quarter.
The only time Auburn's offense looked remotely alive
in the first half was when Cam hit receiver,
Emery Blake for a 36 yard touchdown
making the score 24-7 going into halftime.
Whatever was said in the locker room,
the Tigers came out in the second half
like a completely different team.
Led by the dude that got them there, Cam let loose.
In just two plays out the half,
Cam hit Terrell Zachery on a deep bomb
that he took all the way for a 70 yard touchdown.
Just like that is 24-14 and Cam's got his swag back.
He rolled around on the field in excitement
like a kid who finally got some candy
after begging their parents.
Later in the third, Cam marched his team down the field,
75 yards in eight plays punching in a one yard touchdown.
21-24.
The momentum had clearly shifted Auburn's way
and it looked as if Cam refused to let his team lose.
Now we're here. It's 3rd and 4
and Cam is on the verge of wheeling his team
to take the lead against Auburn's most bitter rival.
If Cam Newton can get his team into the end zone,
it'll cap off not only a remarkable comeback,
but it will be the highlight of a redemption story.
If they come up short,
Bama has a chance to ruin their rivals season
and shut down any talks of who's best in the state.
It comes down to Gus Malzahn drawing up the perfect play
for his Heisman hopeful.
Versus Nick Saban and his terrorizing Crimson Tide Squad.
One play here could be the determining factor
for Auburn's miracle season.
So let's sit back and watch what happens next.
Welcome to a moment in history.
(crowd cheering)
- [Commentator] Cam takes the stand,
looking for the receiver,
he's got Lutzenkirchen touchdown Auburn!
Touchdown Auburn!
Watch Lutzenkirchen, throw it back across the field.
- [Narrator] All right, let's put a bow on this.
Auburn had to make a few stops.
Cam converted a risky fourth down conversion
over the top on their own 37 yard line.
They killed some clock and made Bama turn the ball
over on downs late in the fourth. Ballgame.
(upbeat music)
What up y'all thanks for watching.
Don't forget to like and subscribe.
Every time you do a beautiful angel gets its wings.
If you wanna see some more crazy match-ups
between these two teams, check out this video.
Or if you're interested in seeing how Cam Newton's career
progressed after Auburn check out this video.