2001 Iron Bowl

2001-11-17

Jordan-Hare Stadium, Auburn, AL

ALABAMA

31

WINNER

VS

AUBURN

7

Game Summary

The 2001 Iron Bowl was Alabama's emphatic answer to Auburn's recent dominance. After losing two straight to their rival, Alabama exploded for a 31-7 victory at Jordan-Hare Stadium, their largest win in the series in nearly a quarter-century. Like Auburn the following year, Alabama found an unexpected hero in running back Santonio Beard. Making his first start, Beard rushed for 199 yards and two touchdowns, shredding the Auburn defense. Quarterback Andrew Zow, also thrust into the starting lineup, played arguably the best game of his career, throwing for 221 yards and two scores. The game was never in doubt as Alabama piled up nearly 550 yards of total offense, handing Auburn a humiliating home loss.

Series Snapshot

#66

Meeting of 90

38-27-1

Series after game

1-1-0

Record in the 2000s through this game

#23

Widest-margin rank

Before this meeting, the archive record stood at Alabama 37, Auburn 27, with 1 tie. The 2001 result moved it to Alabama 38, Auburn 27, with 1 tie.

This was the 2nd listed Iron Bowl of the 2000s. Through this game, Alabama had 1 win, Auburn had 1, and the decade included 0 ties.

The teams combined for 38 points, ranking #44 in total scoring among the 90 meetings in the current archive, with 4 games sharing that total. The 24-point margin ranks #23 by size, shared by 4 games.

This archive page combines verified game data with available rivalry context for the modern series record. In the surrounding chronology, the previous listed meeting was 2000 and the next was 2002.

Decisive Moment

Santonio Beard's breakout performance (199 yards) allowed Alabama to dominate the game on the ground.

Key Players

Santonio Beard (Alabama)

Andrew Zow (Alabama)

Ahmaad Galloway (Alabama)

Jason Campbell (Auburn) ↗

📜

Historical Deep Dive

The 2001 Iron Bowl was Alabama’s emphatic answer to Auburn’s recent dominance. After losing two straight to their rival, Alabama exploded for a 31-7 victory at Jordan-Hare Stadium, their largest win in the series in nearly a quarter-century.

Unlikely Stars

Like Auburn the following year, Alabama found an unexpected hero in running back Santonio Beard. Making his first start, Beard rushed for 199 yards and two touchdowns, shredding the Auburn defense. Quarterback Andrew Zow, also thrust into the starting lineup, played arguably the best game of his career, throwing for 221 yards and two scores.

Total Domination

The game was never in doubt. Alabama jumped out to a huge lead and piled up nearly 550 yards of total offense. The win was a bright spot in a tumultuous season for Alabama and head coach Dennis Franchione. For Auburn, it was a humiliating home loss that temporarily halted their momentum in the rivalry before they embarked on “The Streak” the following year.