Why is Alabama vs. Auburn called the Iron Bowl? How a Tigers coach coined rivalry name
When it comes to Alabama vs. Auburn, throw out the records and expect some weirdness because anything can happen.
A rivalry forged in 1893, the intrastate schools may not have met as often as Alabama has seen Tennessee or Auburn has played Georgia, but the vitriol runs as deep as any matchup in the country.
Dubbed "The Iron Bowl," the name goes back to someone who was intimately familiar with the rivalry: Late former Auburn coach Ralph "Shug" Jordan, who coached the Tigers from 1951 to 1975 and is the namesake of Auburn's Jordan-Hare Stadium. Jordan was asked about the disappointment of not making a bowl game in 1964 and responded in kind: "We've got our bowl game. We have it every year. It's the Iron Bowl in Birmingham."
The Iron Bowl name is thought to come from Birmingham — the former neutral site of the game — and its proximity to iron ore deposits. Though the series now alternates home fields between Bryant-Denny and Jordan-Hare, the name has remained.
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Why is Alabama vs. Auburn called the Iron Bowl?
As far as naming conventions go, the Iron Bowl's origin is pretty straightforward.
Auburn coaching legend Ralph Jordan told reporters Auburn played an annual bowl game against Alabama when he was asked about how disappointing it was to not make a bowl in 1964. He is quoted as saying: "We've got our bowl game. We have it every year. It's the Iron Bowl in Birmingham."
That has become the official name of Alabama vs. Auburn, so called because the game was played in neutral Legion Field in Birmingham from 1904 to 1988. It didn't become a true alternating home-and-home rivalry until 1999.
Birmingham was a leading industrial city for a time in the 20th century, and iron was a core element of that thanks to ample deposits of the ore. Thus, the name Iron Bowl was coined and has outlasted the game's residence in Birmingham.
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Iron Bowl: Alabama vs. Auburn record
Alabama lead the Iron Bowl rivalry 49-37-1 in the 87 times these teams have played each other.
The Tigers have fared better than any other SEC team in the Nick Saban era against the legendary coach, sitting at 11-5.
Saban said it best leading into the game:
"People talk about all the crazy stuff that happens in this game," he told media Monday. "But since I've been here, the team that should have won the game won the game based on who played the best. So I think the focus needs to be on how are we going to play and how are we going to execute and do what we do and what kind of consistency are we going to be able to maintain in a difficult environment?"
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Saban has been on the receiving end of some of the crazy stuff to happen, including the Kick Six, one of the wildest plays in college football history. He was also the winner of the four-overtime marathon in 2021, so he knows just how whacky the rivalry can get.
Does the Iron Bowl have a trophy?
While trophies are more closely-associated with the Big Ten, the Iron Bowl does have one.
The James E. Foy, V-Omicron Delta Kappa Sportsmanship Trophy, mercifully referred to as the Foy-ODK Trophy, is presented to the winner of Alabama vs. Auburn at halftime of the teams' basketball game.
It is named for Dean James E. Foy, who has roots with both schools, and the Omicron Delta Kappa honor society, which is present at both schools.
The trophy was first awarded in 1948.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Why is Alabama vs. Auburn called the Iron Bowl? Start with Shug Jordan
