Alabama rallies late, survives 4 OTs to beat Auburn
AUBURN, ALA. » Pushed to the limits, Alabama delivered plays to celebrate in a stadium that has produced a few devastating ones.
The result was another unforgettable Iron Bowl.
John Metchie caught a scoring pass from Bryce Young in the fourth overtime to give No. 3 Alabama a 24-22 comeback victory over rival Auburn on Saturday, rescuing the Crimson Tide’s national title hopes.
It was the first overtime in the Iron Bowl.
“Wow, what a game,” Tide coach Nick Saban said.
Freshman Kool-Aid McKinstry tipped away T.J. Finley’s pass in the final OT and Young hit Metchie just as he did in the previous one.
Alabama (11-1, 7-1 SEC, No. 3 CFP) moves on to face No. 1 Georgia in the league championship game. The Tigers (6-6, 3-5) dropped their fourth straight game after smothering Young and the Tide’s prolific offense most of the way.
“After halftime, it just seemed like everybody was all in and we were fighting like I’ve never seen us fight all year long,” Saban said. “Our players were as happy as I’ve ever seen them after the game.”
Young capped a 97-yard drive with a 28-yard touchdown to freshman Ja’Corey Brooks — his fourth catch and first touchdown this season — with 24 seconds left in regulation.
The Tigers had been trying to win their third straight Iron Bowl at Jordan-Hare Stadium, and fourth in five years. They nearly pulled it off. Auburn had won with a Kick-Six (2013) and two pick-sixes (2019).
“There was a lot of fight from our team,” first-year Auburn coach Bryan Harsin said. “I’m proud of our guys. I told them I was proud of their fight . ... Our guys played hard and put ourselves in a position to win the game. We just came up short.”
(1) GEORGIA 45, GEORGIA TECH 0 » Stetson Bennett passed for 255 yards and four TDs, two to tight end Brock Bowers, and Georgia (120) finished its undefeated regular season by overwhelming Georgia Tech (3-9).
(9) BAYLOR 27, TEXAS TECH 24 »
Blake Shapen threw for 254 yards and two TDs in his first start for Baylor, and the Bears (10-2, 7-2 Big 12, CFP No. 8) held off Texas Tech (6-6, 3-6) to keep alive their hopes of making the Big 12 title game.
(11) OREGON 38, OREGON STATE 29 »
Anthony Brown Jr. threw for 275 yards and two TDs and ran for a score, and Oregon (10-2, 7-2) beat Oregon State (7-5, 5-4) to win the Pac-12 North Division and claim a spot in the conference championship game.
NORTH TEXAS 45, (15) UTSA 23» UTSA’s (11-1, 7-1 Conference USA) undefeated season ended in a blowout as North Texas (6-6, 5-3) running backs DeAndre Torrey and Ikaika Ragsdale combined for five TDs.
(19) HOUSTON 45, UCONN 17 » Clayton Tune threw for 301 yards and four touchdowns and Houston (11-1, 8-0 American Athletic Conference) completed its regular season with a victory over UConn (1-11) in cold and windy conditions.
(21) WAKE FOREST 41, BOSTON COLLEGE 10 » Sam Hartman threw three TD passes and ran for a score to help Wake Forest (10-2, 7-1) beat Boston College (6-6, 2-6) for a spot in the ACC title game.