Auburn finished the 1957 season 10-0 and were voted national champions by the Associated Press. It was the schoolâs first AP title; Auburn won another in 2010. The Iron Bowl was the last game they played that year, and there was no doubt about it by half-time.
34-0 at the interval
It was cold and windy at Legion Field on 30 November, with 45,000 in the stands. Bill Atkins ran in touchdowns from one yard and six yards. Lloyd Nix scored from two. Tommy Lorino returned an interception 21 yards and Jackie Burkett returned another 66 yards. Auburn led 34-0 at half-time. Nix added a 27-yard touchdown pass to Jim Phillips in the third quarter for the final margin: six touchdowns, four conversions, 40-0.
The defence
Auburn conceded 28 points across the entire ten-game season. It is the statistic the 1957 Auburn side is remembered for, and it is why the national championship was not seriously disputed on the field.
The championship they could not take anywhere
Auburn spent the season on NCAA probation. An assistant coach had given $500 each to two prospective players; the money was returned the following day by the recruitsâ father, a minister, but the violation stood and the NCAA barred Auburn from bowl games after both the 1956 and the 1957 seasons. The best team in the country therefore finished its year on 30 November in Birmingham, with nowhere to go on New Yearâs Day.
The end of Whitworth
Alabama finished 2-7-1. It was J.B. Whitworthâs third season and his last; his three years produced four wins. His contract was not renewed, and on 3 December 1957 â three days after this game â Alabama hired Paul âBearâ Bryant away from Texas A&M.
Auburn had now beaten Alabama four years running by a combined score of 128-7. The scale of the collapse is what made the hire possible, and the hire is what ended the run.