Tigers focus on rare fifth straight win over Alabama

[AUChizad 0]

Figured this could boost the Iron Bowl week excitement level.

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Tigers focus on rare fifth straight win over Alabama

Monday, November 13, 2006

CHARLES GOLDBERG

News staff writer

AUBURN - Tre Smith can't pal around with any teammates from the best game of his career.

Remember it? The unsung Auburn freshman. The emergency starter. The guy who came out of nowhere to beat Alabama in Tuscaloosa.

"I don't think anybody who was on the team the first time I played there is even on the team any more," he said.

Smith's heroics came in 2002. Since then, he was passed on the depth chart by Carnell Williams and Ronnie Brown, found himself redshirted as a junior and then passed on the depth chart by Kenny Irons and Brad Lester.

But Smith has something that can't be taken away. His 126 yards against Alabama has earned him a place in Auburn lore. Nothing before or since has mattered. That's how important one win can mean in the Iron Bowl, though Smith says he doesn't have any mementoes of that day.

"My mom does. My parents keep stuff," Smith said. "They've got a game tape and stuff, and they watch it. Other people talk about it. I don't think about it that much."

Auburn doesn't know who will be its next hero, or even if there is one in the offing, but the Tigers do know this: Saturday's 37-15 loss to Georgia erased any hope of winning the BCS championship, leaving the Tigers with a clear head toward winning the state championship for the fifth straight year for the first time since the 1954-58 seasons.

The last time anybody has won five straight Iron Bowls came during Alabama's nine-game streak from 1973-81.

There's more for Auburn than just a win, of course. A victory would give Auburn a 10-win season and probably send the Tigers to either the Outback Bowl in Tampa or the Cotton Bowl in Dallas. A win would also give Auburn a chance to return to the Top 10 after the bowls after falling from fifth to 15th in Sunday's Associated Press and coaches poll. It would give the senior class a school-record 40 wins.

And a victory would even keep the Tigers alive to play for the SEC title.

That may seem stranger than fiction, but it's possible.

If Arkansas loses to LSU and Mississippi State, and LSU beats Arkansas and Ole Miss, and Auburn beats Alabama - catch your breath - there would be a three-way tie for the SEC West title, and Auburn would win the tie-breaker.

Why? The short version: Because Auburn beat LSU.

But since that seems unlikely, Auburn focused on the only thing that really matters in Sunday's senior meeting, especially after playing its worst game of the year against Georgia.

"As our seniors said, they look forward to going out and playing and seeing how much better they can play than what they played the week before," coach Tommy Tuberville said. "That was the tone of the meeting."

Ten wins. A good bowl. A longshot chance to win the SEC West. Redemption. And something to re-energize the batteries?

"It's been a long season. They're mentally tired, physically tired; but Alabama's played 12 straight, too," Tuberville said. "Two pretty similar teams going into the game."

In some areas, both teams are struggling. In some areas, there are some strengths. It'll be a pretty typical Iron Bowl."

And as Tre Smith knows, that's good enough.

[AUChizad 0]

More on seeking a fifth win:

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Pleading the fifth

Tuberville playing down 'fear the thumb' motto

Tuesday, November 14, 2006

By EVAN WOODBERY

Sports Reporter

AUBURN -- Tommy Tuberville's celebration wasn't subtle.

As the seconds ticked away last November during Auburn's fourth consecutive Iron Bowl victory over Alabama, Tuberville gleefully raised an arm with four extended fingers.

The move delighted the Jordan-Hare Stadium crowd, but left some Tide fans simmering.

A month later, as Auburn arrived for bowl practice in Orlando, Fla., Tuberville was photographed outside the team hotel wearing a "Fear the Thumb" T-shirt -- the thumb being the fifth digit to be raised if Auburn were to win a fifth consecutive game over Alabama.

Overnight, the photo was circulated through message boards and e-mail boxes, and an unlikely catch phrase was born.

Today, you can get "Fear the Thumb" T-shirts, hats and sunglasses, most featuring an Aubie-like character menacingly holding up a paw with four raised digits. The phrase is a staple of daily banter between fans on message boards and talk radio.

But as Saturday's Iron Bowl approaches, Auburn players are almost unanimous in their lack of interest in talking about thumb-related topics.

Even Tuberville, not known for his shyness, wasn't eager to rehash his Orlando fashion choice. He said he didn't think the four-fingered salute or the T-shirt would provide motivation for Alabama players.

"You really don't need any motivation to play this game," Tuberville said. "I wouldn't imagine that's going to mean a whole lot. It comes down to blocking and tackling and all that. It's going to be good talk in the newspapers, I'm sure."

The Iron Bowl has a history filled with streaks and slumps, starting in 1895, when Auburn rattled off four consecutive wins by a combined score of 141-5. Beginning in 1950, Alabama won four, Auburn won five and then Alabama won four again.

Alabama dominated most of the 1960s and 1970s, owning a nine-game streak from 1973 to 1981. Auburn finished the decade by winning four in a row, but lost its "thumb" game at Legion Field in 1990.

The streaks can end as suddenly as they started.

"Those four years are in the past," said Auburn quarterback Brandon Cox. "It's a new day, a new team. We're worried about this year -- just getting that one win."

Senior Courtney Taylor said the "thumb" was a "fan deal," but he could see how it would rile up players and fans on the other side of the rivalry.

"Those guys are going to be fired up anyway," he said. "The 'Fear the Thumb' deal, that's just adding to the fire.

"We know that every year, we're in for a war with these guys."

Senior Will Herring was unamused when asked by a reported whether he owned a T-shirt.

"I don't. Sure don't," he said. "I think it's a fun thing for the fans and media to get caught up in. We've been fortunate we've won four in a row. We've been underdog a couple times, and we've been picked to win a couple times."

Senior Kenny Irons said he'd be glad to wear a thumb T-shirt if only it came with a designer imprint.

"My style of dressing is so cool, that would just mess up everything," he said. "I don't think Ralph Lauren would allow me to wear a 'Fear the Thumb' T-shirt. I don't think he'd like me to wear it unless it had a little horse on it, too. It could say 'Fear the Thumb' on the back, and have a little style to it. I could throw my Polo hat on, get my Polo shirt, and I'd wear it."

If Auburn wins its fifth in a row, perhaps Irons could convince his favorite designer to create a new theme for No. 6.

If Auburn loses, however, the T-shirts will be packed away -- a quirky, kitschy piece of memorabilia that quickly lost its bite.

[aucanucktiger 1,798]

I'm glad to see Mr. Irons hasn't lost his swagger after last weeks thumb-ping by UGA (I guess knowing you'll be a millionaire in the next 6 months would do that to me too). Tre will be attending Grad school next Fall, probably on student loans. Wouldn't it be cool of Tre scored one more TD in an Ironbowl before he leaves?

[WarEagle_57 0]

I'm glad to see Mr. Irons hasn't lost his swagger after last weeks thumb-ping by UGA (I guess knowing you'll be a millionaire in the next 6 months would do that to me too). Tre will be attending Grad school next Fall, probably on student loans. Wouldn't it be cool of Tre scored one more TD in an Ironbowl before he leaves?

He actually has't scored a TD in an IB. We won 17-7 that year, and both TDs came from Robert Johnson.

[autigeremt 6,663]

Correct you are!!!!! The big TE made the catches, but Tre helped set them up.

But it would be cool if Tre could make a play for a TD and be labeled the "Tide Killer"