Alabama Crimson Tide Isaiah Bond touchdown
AUBURN, Ala. — Jalen Milroe stood in the pocket for what felt like an eternity before spotting Isaiah Bond and launching the pass that kept Alabama’s playoff hopes alive.
And etched “fourth-and-31” in Iron Bowl lore in the process.
Milroe and Bond rescued No. 8 Alabama’s chances of making the College Football Playoff, connecting for a last-minute touchdown on fourth-and-goal from the 31 to beat Auburn 27-24 on Saturday.
“I’ll never forget this game, ever in my life,” Milroe said. Neither will fans who witnessed Alabama’s fourth straight victory in the bitter rivalry.
Milroe found Bond in the left corner of the end zone with 32 seconds left, and the Crimson Tide (11-1, 8-0 Southeastern Conference, No. 8 CFP) came out on top in the latest improbable finish at Jordan-Hare Stadium.
Milroe — who was given all the time he needed to throw by Auburn — insisted he never had doubts: “One hundred percent. I saw IB one-on-one and I knew we were going to score.”
Alabama has won 10 straight since losing at home to Texas on Sept. 9, but still needs to beat No. 1 Georgia in next week’s SEC Championship game to make the playoff.
Trailing by four with 1:43 left, Alabama had first-and-goal at the Auburn 7 before moving backward. The Tide lost 18 yards on a bad snap and were pushed back 5 more yards with an illegal downfield pass on third down after Milroe crossed the line of scrimmage.
Then came a play that Bond called “The Gravedigger,” the latest example of what Alabama coach Nick Saban called the “weird stuff” his teams have experienced at Jordan-Hare.
“We’ve been on both sides of the good fortune and the misfortune, and I’ve gotta admit, we had good fortune,” Saban said. “But it still comes down to ability to execute.”
Bond said he was just thinking…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/milroe-td-pass-bond-fourth-024004304.html
Author : NBC Sports
Publish date : 2023-11-26 02:40:04
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