Inside fourth-and-31: How Alabama football buried Auburn with 'Grave Digger'

AUBURN − Magic doesn't leave much of a mark.

About 50 minutes after the game ended Saturday, the Jordan-Hare Stadium seats had been cleared. Few people remained on the field, and the end zone stood empty.

Minimal evidence existed that a play which cemented itself in Iron Bowl lore had just occurred not even an hour earlier. Nothing except a small spot where grass had been moved. In the left back corner of the end zone, there appeared to be the mark of a cleat.

The final step on the most improbable of touchdowns that resulted in Alabama football shocking Auburn.

The shoes of Crimson Tide receiver Isaiah Bond touched the grass with 32 seconds left in the fourth quarter after quarterback Jalen Milroe found him in the back of the end zone on fourth-and-31.

"I knew I had a foot down," Bond said. "It was a great feeling."

For once, Jordan-Hare magic struck in favor of Alabama. On the 10th anniversary of the Kick Six, the Crimson Tide returned the favor and stunned Auburn in the final minute, winning 27-24.

"If you’re in this long enough, sometimes it goes against you in the last play of the game," Alabama coach Nick Saban said. "Sometimes you’re fortunate, and it goes for you."

Here's an inside look at how Alabama (11-1, 8-0 SEC) snatched the win away from Auburn (6-6, 3-5) in the Iron Bowl with the play Bond said was called "Grave Digger."

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Jihaad Campbell to the rescue

Alabama's chances of winning the game appeared to be slipping away. The Crimson Tide was struggling to find ways to score touchdowns in the second half, and when it badly needed points with about six minutes to go, Alabama went three-and-out. Time for James Burnip to punt. Auburn was getting the ball back with a chance to add to its lead.

Or so it thought.

Koy Moore couldn't corral the punt, and Alabama linebacker Jihaad Campbell recovered the muff on the fair-catch attempt. If he could have advanced it, Campbell would have scored a touchdown.

“It was a good punt," Saban said. "Had good hang time. (Campbell) did a great job of covering him. Was right in front of the guy. The guy misjudged the ball a little bit. The guy was off balance and Jihaad was right there to take advantage of the fumble and muffed kick."

All of a sudden, Alabama had the ball on the Auburn 30 with 4:48 left, needing a touchdown.

"It was hard," Bond said, "but you’ve got to go out there and make a play."

Converting fourth-and-1

Lost in the aftermath of fourth-and-31 is that Alabama had to convert another fourth down on the drive.

Auburn sacked Milroe on second down, setting up third-and-20. Then Milroe scrambled for 19 yards, setting up fourth-and-1.

Here was Alabama's strategy: First it tried to get Auburn to jump offside, Saban said. The Tigers didn't, though. So, the staff wanted to see how Auburn lined up. Milroe was under center then looked to the sideline.

"They had so many guys packed in," Saban said.

So, the Crimson Tide made the decision to skip the quarterback sneak. Instead, Alabama pitched the ball outside to running back Roydell Williams. He ran for three yards and a first down.

"It was really good design and good situational football," Saban said.

The setback

If Milroe didn't find a way to corral the ball, the game would have been over.

On second down, Milroe didn't look ready for the shotgun snap from center Seth McLaughlin when it arrived at the quarterback. As a result, it went past Milroe and rolled backward. Milroe found a way to gather it, but the play resulted in an 18-yard loss.

That set up third-and-26, and Milroe couldn't convert. Scrambling for time to find an open receiver, he stepped over the line of scrimmage and picked up a flag for an illegal forward pass that fell incomplete.

That moved Alabama back five more yards with an automatic loss of down. That meant the Crimson Tide needed 31 yards to score and had only one play to do it.

What went through Milroe's mind?

"We still had time," Milroe said. "We still had time. ... Never give up."

The 'Grave Digger'

Every Friday, before Alabama goes through walk-throughs, the Crimson Tide prepares for different situations it could encounter in games. Fourth downs are part of that.

"We know what our receivers are going to do," offensive lineman JC Latham said. "They’re going to be able to make the play. As an O-line, we’ve just got to protect. Make sure everybody stays inside out, give the quarterback a chance. See what happens."

What happened was as remarkable as it was improbable. Facing a three-man rush, Milroe scanned the field for six seconds before he let the pass go. Meanwhile, five receivers ran toward the end zone.

"It was all about reading what they gave," Milroe said. "The biggest thing was, the line gave protection. I just tried to take time as much as possible, read what they gave then just execute.”

Boy did he execute. Milroe fired a pass to the back left corner. Then it was up to Bond to make the play. He wasn't wide open, though. Bond had to get himself open with a defensive back nearby.

"I seen the ball, he was trailing, I leaned into him then faded late," Bond said.

The ball hit his hands, he secured it and got one foot down, then another. Touchdown Alabama.

The cleat mark might still be there to prove it. Check the grass. Or it could have faded by now. Either way, it doesn't matter much. The magic of Bond's feet planting inbound with the ball in his hands left a sizable imprint in Iron Bowl folklore.

Nick Kelly covers Alabama football and men's basketball for The Tuscaloosa News, part of the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at nkelly@gannett.com or follow him @_NickKelly on X, the social media app formerly known as Twitter.

This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: Alabama football buried Auburn on fourth-and-31 with 'Grave Digger' play