Things are not going great for Auburn this year. Not only did the team lose a game against arch rivals Crimson Tide, but they also lost an important member of their staff. After suffering yet another championship setback, the team's defensive coordinator, Ellis Johnson, was fired.
Last year's Iron Bowl between Auburn and Alabama was one for the record books. It took place at Jordan-Hare Stadium in Auburn. With one-second left on the clock and the game tied, Auburn's Chris Davis returned a kick-off over 100 yards for one of the most astonishing wins of a last season.
This season, however, the Tigers haven't had such luck. Saturday marked the Iron Bowl rematch of these two teams, and everyone was exited and buzzing about the potential outcome.
In the end the Crimson Tide's nearly impeccable record grew in stature, while simultaneously an opportunity to move toward the Championship opened up. It must be gut-wrenching for Auburn to watch their rival progress, but recent developments have revealed another hard-hitting blow.
Auburn's Defensive Coordinator, Ellis Johnson, was fired the day after Alabama solidified their victory.
Maintaining a thick skin and walking tall with appropriate amounts of confidence is a necessity for those involved in college or professional sports, and even though Ellis Johnson will need those skills now more than ever, they are not as important as pumping out positive results.
According to Yahoo Sports, this was a rather abrupt lesson for Johnson to learn:
"Auburn fired defensive coordinator Ellis Johnson a day after giving up 55 points to rival Alabama...[It occurred] Sunday following a late-season slide that ended with a 55-44 loss in the Iron Bowl. The 20th-ranked Tigers gave up 539 yards to the top-ranked Crimson Tide on Saturday night in the highest-scoring Iron Bowl. They allowed an average of 483 yards and 39 points over their last six SEC games, losing four of them."
Now, Alabama's head coach Nick Saban will have yet another shot at glory. USA Today has the details on the game that greased the barrel:
"For much of the night, as Auburn was slicing up Alabama's defense and getting three interceptions off quarterback Blake Sims, [some] began to wonder whether the mighty Southeastern Conference might somehow wind up excluded from the first College Football Playoff altogether. But we don't have to worry yet about what the selection committee would do with a two-loss Alabama team because the Crimson Tide survived a wild Iron Bowl and heads to next week's SEC championship game matchup with Missouri at 11-1."
For some it is a sad day. For others an exiting one. Which category are you in? Let us know in the comment section below.
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