Increased Fan Interest in College Basketball in Alabama: Just a Minute

The upcoming edition of the Iron Bowl of men's basketball is one of the most anticipated, ever.

Auburn Tigers head coach Bruce Pearl and Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Nate Oats shake hands as Auburn Tigers take on Alabama Crimson Tide at Neville Arena in Auburn, Ala., on Saturday, Feb. 11, 2023. | Jake Crandall / USA TODAY NETWORK

One often-unheralded possibility which stems from a mediocre stretch of basketball for a program is dwindling fan interest. Frequently cited by athletic directors among publicly stated reasons to part with coaches, fan support is as indispensable to a team as anything.

Alabama's Nate Oats and Auburn's Bruce Pearl were, in part, entrusted with building fan rapport and support for their respective programs. In addition to their very many other successes, which have the Crimson Tide and Tigers among the nationally elite teams in men's college basketball, they have done just that.

As a result, this Saturday's Iron Bowl of Basketball (which could feature the rivals being ranked No. 1 and No. 2 in the AP Poll) is one of the most anticipated games in the history of the rivalry. ESPN's College GameDay is set for its second-ever trip to Coleman Coliseum and previously served as the backdrop to the rivalry in February 2023 at Auburn.

Tickets will come with a hefty asking price, but all the same, there are not likely to be too many empty seats in Tuscaloosa.

Just a decade ago, these two programs were struggling. At this exact moment 10 years ago, Alabama was about halfway through what would become a six-year NCAA Tournament drought. Oats was still an assistant coach at Buffalo under Bobby Hurley.

Pearl was at Auburn, with his first Tigers team sitting one game out of .500 and heading to an eventual 4-14 finish in league play (though the squad made it to the semifinals of the SEC Tournament as the No. 13 seed).

Neither program had been, or was close to, the men's Final Four (Auburn's women's program has been to three, while Alabama went in 1994). Both have now, with Auburn making its first appearance in 2019 and Alabama making the trip in 2024.

All of this growth has provided an impetus for basketball fans to follow and follow each team they certainly have.