2009 Iron Bowl

2009-11-27

Jordan-Hare Stadium, Auburn, AL

ALABAMA

Ranked #2

26

WINNER

VS

AUBURN

21

Attendance: 87,451

Series Snapshot

#74

Meeting of 90

40-33-1

Series after game

3-7-0

Record in the 2000s through this game

#67

Widest-margin rank

Before this meeting, the archive record stood at Alabama 39, Auburn 33, with 1 tie. The 2009 result moved it to Alabama 40, Auburn 33, with 1 tie.

This was the 10th listed Iron Bowl of the 2000s. Through this game, Alabama had 3 wins, Auburn had 7, and the decade included 0 ties.

The teams combined for 47 points, ranking #26 in total scoring among the 90 meetings in the current archive, with 3 games sharing that total. The 5-point margin ranks #67 by size, shared by 4 games.

Explore the score, game details and rivalry context for this Alabama-Auburn meeting. In the surrounding chronology, the previous listed meeting was 2008 and the next was 2010.

Decisive Moment

Greg McElroy's 4-yard touchdown pass to Roy Upchurch with 1:24 left capped 'The Drive' and won the game.

Key Players

Greg McElroy (Alabama)

Roy Upchurch (Alabama)

Julio Jones (Alabama) ↗

Terrell Zachery (Auburn)

📜

The Game

The 2009 Iron Bowl was the hurdle Alabama had to clear to reach perfection. At 11-0, the #2 Crimson Tide entered Jordan-Hare Stadium facing a 7-4 Auburn team that played its best game of the season. The result was a classic that came down to a legendary final possession.

Auburn’s Valid Threat

Auburn head coach Gene Chizik and offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn emptied the playbook. They used trick plays, including a 67-yard touchdown run by Terrell Zachery and a touchdown pass from Chris Todd to Darvin Adams, to build leads of 14-0 and 21-14. Alabama’s Heisman contender, Mark Ingram, was held in check (30 yards) by an inspired Auburn defense.

The Drive

Trailing 21-20 with roughly eight and a half minutes to play, Alabama took over at its own 21-yard line. What followed was “The Drive.” Quarterback Greg McElroy engineered a methodical, 15-play, 79-yard march that consumed 7:03 of game clock. Facing intense pressure, McElroy made clutch throws, including a key third-down conversion to Julio Jones. With 1:24 remaining, McElroy found Roy Upchurch in the flat for a 4-yard touchdown. The 26-21 victory preserved the perfect season, leading to an SEC Championship win over Florida and Alabama’s first national title under Nick Saban.