Film Room: Alabama Steals Victory in Final Moments of 88th Iron Bowl

The later it got in Auburn on Saturday, the more it felt like Alabama was going to lose the game. With 4:58 remaining on the game clock, the belief in Jordan-Hare Stadium was at an all-time high.

Somehow, someway, the Tigers led 24-20 with under five minutes to play. And not just that, but Auburn had just picked up a crucial stop to get the ball back. On the previous possessions, the Tigers ran the ball at will, with every chunk run putting more and more juice in the raucous environment.

The Crimson Tide had to punt, putting the game in the hands of the worn out defense. Alabama's chances of winning the contest were dwindling. That was until the ensuing punt, when everything changed in the Crimson Tide's favor.

Roll the tape.

We start with Alabama's punt. Not ideal given the circumstances, but the Crimson Tide still has three timeouts, so it decided to play defense ... until this happened:

For whatever reason, Auburn decided to change punt returners in this situation, and it immediately cost the Tigers. Koy Moore is unable to get his footing and the ball bounces right off his hands and into the hands of Jihaad Campbell.

Campbell nearly had another touchdown, but the ball is dead at the spot of the muff. Instead of having to go for it on fourth down, Alabama gets the ball in great field position, almost as if it had completed a deep pass downfield. Game on.

There is plenty of time, so the full playbook is open here. Jalen Milroe decides to make the easy play and run it with his feet to pick up some solid yardage:

Notice Kendrick Law. Earlier in the game, he had been called for an illegal blindside block. Here, he makes the adjustment and doesn't do it, even though it would have given Milroe a ton of room to run. You want him to make a block, but you also don't want a drive-stopper. I think he makes the right decision here.

This play is a little predictable, and Auburn sniffs it out quickly:

Jase McClellan left the stadium on crutches, and I believe this was the play where he tweaked his foot. It will be Roydell Williams the rest of the way.

Now facing a second-and-11, the Crimson Tide needs some kind of positive gain. Instead, it's a sack, moving the sticks even further back:

Jaeden Roberts has been a terrific addition at right guard for Alabama in the back-half of the season. However, he gets beat pretty soundly here by Marcus Harris, setting up a difficult third-and-long for the Crimson Tide offense. It's a great play by Harris, who makes throwing Roberts out of the way look a lot easier than it was.

Next up is third-and-20. Alabama likely wanted to get at least half of the yardage here, setting up a manageable fourth down. This is a situation the Tigers expected Milroe's legs to play a factor, so they keep Austin Keys in the middle as a spy.

With Milroe's speed, having a spy doesn't always ensure success:

Late in the game, there isn't much left in the tank. Milroe puts 110% into this play, doing whatever it takes to move the sticks. Nehemiah Pritchett makes a great play, sticking him a yard short of the first down. Who got the worst of the blow?

On fourth-and-short, Tommy Rees was faced with the biggest play-call decision of his Crimson Tide career so far. At first it looks like a QB sneak — that's by design. Instead, it's an outside toss to Williams who picks up the first down:

Robbie Ouzts gets the block that keeps the drive, and potentially the season, alive. If Ouzts doesn't make that play, Alabama probably loses the football game.

It's 2023, but never undermine the importance of getting a hat on a hat. That and a terrific play call from Rees in a huge spot. Most importantly, a fresh set of downs.

Similar to McClellan's loss, the Crimson Tide gets a little predictable on first down:

I think the biggest reason for the play call was clock management. At this point, Alabama doesn't want to give the ball back to Auburn, which calls timeout.

Had the Crimson Tide lost, this play would have been talked about quite a bit. Seth McLaughlin snaps the football before Milroe is ready, and it rolls for an 18-yard loss:

If you watch closely, it appears that McLaughlin was triggered by a clapping defender. On Sunday, Saban reacted to seeing this play, more-or-less asking why a penalty wasn't called. There should have been a flag, but there wasn't.

These are the kinds of things that happen in the Iron Bowl at Jordan-Hare Stadium.

Milroe makes the smart play, although, I think he might have been able to scoop the ball up and quickly throw it away.

Now, Alabama is in a very tough spot. It's third-and-goal from the 26-yard line — and it only gets worse for the Crimson Tide:

Milroe does a nice job of extending the play, and the offensive line does a good job of giving him the time to do so. But, once again, he crosses the line of scrimmage with the ball before throwing an incomplete pass.

This is a play Milroe will want back when he watches the tape. Once he gets away from the pass rush, Milroe has green grass and Tyler Booker in front of him. If he had decided to tuck it and run, he could have picked up a large chunk of the yardage.

Instead, the penalty backs Alabama up to fourth-and-goal from the 31-yard line. The game is all but over, until ... this happens:

It's absolutely unbelievable. Auburn teases with three but sends just two rushers at Milroe, who has all day and night to make a decision. Even still, the Tigers have nine defenders on the back end to just five wide receivers for the Crimson Tide.

Milroe sends a missile on a rope to the back pylon, and there's Isaiah Bond. There was a little bit of a shove, but not enough to call at the end of a game like this. Everyone that has played or watched a lot of football knows that hand fighting is permitted in the final stages of a close game, especially a physical rivalry game like this.

At the end of the day, it's about making a play. Bond did, the defender didn't, and Alabama takes the lead with just 32 ticks left.

Later known as "Gravedigger," Milroe and Bond connected on a game-winner that will go down as one of the crazier plays in the Iron Bowl's storied history.

Film Room: Alabama Steals Victory in Final Moments of 88th Iron Bowl

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Takeaways from Alabama Football's Improbable Iron Bowl Victory on the Plains