The two leaders for Alabama football both came from out of state.
Bryce Young is from California, and Will Anderson hails from Georgia, but both know how important this week is for Crimson Tide fans.
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Every former Alabama player is asked three questions by fans at the end of their careers:
What was your record versus LSU? What was your record against Tennessee? What was your record against Auburn? All three schools are bitter rivals for the Tide, but Auburn involves the state of Alabama. The Tuscaloosa community believes it’s the best, while the people of Auburn get the most joy in defeating Alabama.
Jordan-Hare Stadium is Saturday’s venue, and Nick Saban has not fared well there as the Crimson Tide’s head coach.
He looks to make a statement in the Iron Bowl.
Anderson got his first career sack in the 2020 matchup as a freshman, while Young learned the rivalry from watching Mac Jones and Najee Harris. Both guys know about the atmosphere at Auburn and how Tiger fans will be up for the contest.
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On Monday, Young and Anderson explained to reporters the moment they knew the Iron Bowl was a real thing.
Ironically, both used an incident at Walmart as the moment.
“When I first got here, I was at a Walmart in Tuscaloosa, and someone was in full Auburn gear,” Young said. “You could tell everyone was looking at him weird. People were giving him dirty looks, and that showed me as a community and state how big this rivalry is.”
Anderson grew up closer to Alabama than Young, but clothing selection for the Iron Bowl got him.
“When I first got here, I knew it was serious,” Anderson said on the rivalry. “We went to a Walmart, and they had a very small section of Auburn stuff. It was like one shirt on the aisle, and I said ‘Oh yeah, this is serious.’ They don’t play around when it comes to Iron Bowl. It was one Auburn shirt on a rack and it was surrounded by Alabama stuff.”
Both individuals will have their A-game and look to push Alabama to victory.
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Stephen M. Smith is the managing editor and senior writer for Touchdown Alabama Magazine. You can “like” him on Facebook or “follow” him on Twitter, via @CoachingMSmith.
