INSIDE SLANT

Leading up to last Saturday’s game against lower-division UT-Chattanooga, Alabama coach Nick Saban had everyone around the team under strict orders not to talk about Auburn.

Once No. 3 Alabama (11-0) had effectively put away the Mocs 45-0, the conversation went almost immediately to the annual state obsession that is the Iron Bowl, the regular-season-ending clash against cross-state rival Auburn (7-4).

“It will be a challenging game for us in every way,” Saban said.

“It’s an important game for everybody that’s involved, in terms of our program here, that we do a good job of getting our players ready to play their best football. Our coaches will do whatever they need to do to get that done.”

Alabama travels to Auburn, where the Crimson Tide has not won in eight years. On the other hand, last year’s 36-0 victory in Tuscaloosa was one of the most lopsided in the series’ recent history.

“There’s not going to be any pressure,” said quarterback Greg McElroy, who will be making his first Iron Bowl start. “It’s just going to be the same old team that we played last year. It’s just another team. It can’t be made out to be anything more than that.

“Obviously, they’re a team that we face on a yearly basis, and it’s a team that we take a lot of pride in playing. They’re a very, very good football team. They really are.”

While Alabama was playing Saturday—albeit against a completely overmatched foe—Auburn was off, giving the Tigers a jump on preparing for the Tide.

And playing the game on Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, shortens the Tide’s prep time even more.

“It wasn’t my idea (to move the game to Friday),” Saban said. “But that’s when it’s scheduled, so that’s when we’ll play.”

NOTES, QUOTES

• Senior NT Terrence Cody, occasionally used as a blocking fullback on goal line situations, continues to lobby coach Nick Saban to let him carry the football. Fans thought maybe Saturday’s game against Chattanooga would be it when Cody entered on a first-quarter offensive play at the 2-yard line. Instead, tailback Trent Richardson got the call, scoring the game’s first touchdown.

“I wanted to score and stuff,” Cody said. “But I didn’t have the chance. I tried to talk (Saban) into giving me the ball.”

Saban has joked that he would allow Cody to carry the ball if the big defensive lineman could beat him in a footrace at practice. Cody insists he has done that on multiple occasions.

“He hasn’t beat me yet,” Saban said during his weekly radio show. “Now he will argue the point, but I’m the commissioner. I determine who wins every race.”

• PR Javier Arenas returned a second-quarter punt 66 yards for a touchdown, the seventh of his Alabama career, breaking the SEC record held by former Kentucky return man Derek Abney. Arenas is just 103 yards shy of the NCAA’s all-time punt-return yardage record. “Yeah, I’m satisfied,” Arenas said. “Even if I didn’t have a touchdown, I’d still be satisfied. We won. We came out with the victory.”

• TB Mark Ingram is only 72 yards shy of Bobby Humphrey’s 1986 single-season rushing record. Humphrey had 1,471 yards, while Ingram’s 102 yards Saturday gave him 1,399 for the season.

• Senior PK Leigh Tiffin’s 41-yard field goal tied his own mark for most field goals in a season. Tiffin has made 25 field goals in 28 attempts this season; he was 25 of 34 in 2007.

Game Ball Goes To:   CB Javier Arenas—He set an SEC record with his seventh career punt return for a touchdown, and he added an interception in his final home game for the Tide.

Keep An Eye On:   LB Cory Reamer—The senior recorded his first career interception Saturday.

Quote To Note:   “I grew up hating Auburn. That’s just the way it is in this state. You like one team and you hate the other.”—Alabama PK Leigh Tiffin, whose father, Van, also kicked for the Tide.

STRATEGY AND PERSONNEL

Looking Good:   Nobody got hurt. Let’s be honest, next to winning the game against Chattanooga, that was the biggest accomplishment Saturday. With a quick 35-0 lead, the starters that Alabama so desperately needed to protect were safely off the field for much of the game.

Still Needs Work:   Nothing looked bad against UT-Chattanooga. But if there is a weakness, it remains kick coverage. Alabama will continue to try to find ways to keep opposing teams from getting better-than-average field position on kickoff returns.

Roster Report:  

• Reserve TB Terry Grant remained out of Saturday’s action, marking the third consecutive week he has not participated. Grant has been dealing with an abdominal strain, according to coach Nick Saban. The injury has also not allowed Grant to practice recently, and he has not logged a carry since the Arkansas game in late September.

• CB Robert Lester, who has played sparingly in his two seasons at Alabama, appeared on the punt return team two games ago and has been added to the struggling kickoff coverage team. Lester repaid coaches’ faith with a tackle on Alabama’s second kickoff.

• Coach Nick Saban subbed out Alabama’s entire offensive line to start the second half. The second-string line consisted of Tyler Love (left tackle), John Michael Boswell (left guard), David Ross (center), Chance Warmack (right guard) and Alfred McCullough (right tackle).

• LB Dont’a Hightower is out for the season after undergoing knee surgery following an injury in the Arkansas game on Sept. 26.

• DE Damion Square is out for the season with a knee injury.