Alabama Football vs. Auburn Postgame Notes
11/28/2015 12:00:00 AM | Football
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GAME CAPTAINS: Alabama's captains for the 80th installment of the annual Iron Bowl against Auburn were seniors Ryan Kelly, Reggie Ragland and Jarran Reed. The Crimson Tide won the opening toss and elected to defer to the second half with Auburn receiving the opening kick.
IRON BOWL HISTORY: With the 29-13 win over Auburn, the Crimson Tide holds a 44-35-1 advantage in a series that dates back to the 1893 season.
TIDE COLLECTS FOR 11th WIN: With the 29-13 win over Auburn, Alabama earned its 11th victory of the 2015 season. With the win, the Crimson Tide have won 11 games in a season 19 times in program history. Under head coach Nick Saban, Alabama has had seven 11-win seasons (2008-09, 2011-15).
UNRANKED, NO PROBLEM UNDER SABAN: With the win over Auburn, Alabama has now defeated 60 consecutive unranked teams under ninth-year head coach Nick Saban. The last loss to an unranked team came against Auburn to close out the 2007 season. The current streak began with a win over Colorado on Dec. 30, 2007, in the Independence Bowl. Under Saban, Alabama holds a 64-3 (60-3 after vacated wins) mark against unranked opponents, including a perfect mark in unranked matchups since 2008.
92-6 UNDER SABAN WHEN LEADING AT THE HALF: Alabama led Auburn, 12-6, at halftime on the way to a 29-13 victory. Under head coach Nick Saban, the Crimson Tide is 93-6 (.939) when leading at the half. Alabama has led at the half in nine of its 12 games this year, trailing Ole Miss and Arkansas, and tied at 7-7 versus Tennessee at the midway point. The four wins in the Saban era when trailing at the half: 34-24 over No. 7 Virginia Tech in 2009 (in Atlanta); a 24-15 over No. 9 LSU in 2009; 24-20 at Arkansas in 2010; 27-14 vs. Arkansas in 2015. His Tide teams are 4-3 when tied at halftime, and Alabama's four wins under Saban when tied at halftime: at LSU in 2008, (27-21), at Auburn in 2009 (26-21), against Tennessee in 2011 (37-6) and against Tennessee this season (19-14).
2015 DEFENSE MOVING UP IN SACK RANKINGS: The Crimson Tide defense has recorded 41 sacks so far this season, the most sacks by a Nick Saban coached team. The 41 sacks also ranks sixth all-time for team sack totals in a season. Next on the season total list is the 1995 team with 42. Alabama's all-time leader was the 1988 teams that recorded 60 sacks.
HOLDING OPPONENTS UNDER 300: Alabama limited Auburn to 260 yards of total offense, the eighth time the Tide has kept a team under 300 in 2015. UA held LSU to 182, Arkansas to 220 yards, Georgia to 299 yards, ULM to 92 yards and Middle Tennessee to 275 yards, one week after holding Wisconsin to 268 yards of total offense in the season opener. In head coach Nick Saban's 120-game tenure at Alabama, the Crimson Tide has limited opponents to under 300 yards of total offense 74 times, or 61.7 percent of the time. UA held six of its 14 opponents below 300 yards in 2014.
HENRY REACHING THE END ZONE CONSISTENTLY: Derrick Henry's 25-yard touchdown run on the Crimson Tide's final drive of the day against Auburn moved his consecutive games with a touchdown streak to 17. The 17-game streak is currently the longest active streak in the nation, and the longest by an SEC player in the past 20 years eclipsing Tim Tebow's streak of 14 games that he set from 2006-07. The streak is also the longest in Alabama history, with the previous high being 10 by Terry Davis across the 1971 and 1972 seasons from Nov. 6, 1971-Oct. 21, 1972. The last time Henry failed to notch a score was in the LSU game on Nov. 8, 2014.
HENRY SETS SINGLE-SEASON RUSHING MARK: Derrick Henry's 271 yards in today's game made him Alabama's all-time leader for yards in a season with 1,797, passing Trent Richardson's total of 1,679 that he put together in 2011.
HENRY MOVES INTO TOP 10 FOR CARRIES: Derrick Henry has amassed 502 carries for his career at Alabama. That total ranks ninth all-time in Crimson Tide history. In eighth place is Sherman Williams from 1991-94 with 535 totes. The all-time mark for a career is Shaun Alexander from 1996-99 with 727 carries. His 295 rushes this year rank as the second most in a season by a Tide back.
HENRY ON PACE FOR ALABAMA HIGH FOR YARDS PER GAME IN A SEASON: Junior tailback Derrick Henry is on pace for the most yards per game in a single season in Alabama history. The current mark for yards per game in a season 133.7 by Bobby Humphrey in 1986. Henry is averaging 149.8 through 12 games thus far.
HENRY MOVING UP IN THE CAREER RANKS: With his touchdown run to seal the victory over Auburn, Derrick Henry has collected 36 rushing touchdowns for his career. The 36 scores moves him past Trent Richardson to fourth place all-time in Alabama history. Next on the list is T.J. Yeldon with 37 from 2012-14. In front of Yeldon is Shaun Alexander (1996-99) with 41 and the all-time leader, Mark Ingram (2008-10), with 42. He has also put together 3,169 yards for his career, a total that ranks him sixth in the Crimson Tide ranks. Next on the career rushing list is Mark Ingram with 3,261 from 2008-10.
HENRY PASSING THE CENTURY MARK: Derrick Henry finished tonight's game with 271 total yards and had accumulated 102 yards in the first half against Auburn to push him past the century mark for the 14th time in his career, and marks his eighth 100-plus game this season. The 14 career 100-yard games moves him into sole possession of third place in the Alabama annals. His eight 100-yard performances this season also moves him into third place after being tied with Shaun Alexander (1999) and Sherman Williams (1994) before today's game. Henry, who rushed for 210 yards against LSU on Nov. 4, notched 143 yards against Tennessee a week after going for a career-high 236 yards at Texas A&M. Prior to A&M, Henry rushed for 148 at Georgia on Oct. 3. He went for 127 against Ole Miss and 147 yards with three touchdowns against Wisconsin to open the 2015 campaign. Henry had a 141-yard performance against Missouri in the 2014 SEC Championship Game. He also went for 111 on 20 carries with a score against Florida in 2014 and 113 on 17 carries with a touchdown against West Virginia in that same year. As a freshman in 2013, Henry produced a Sugar Bowl game against Oklahoma that saw the first-year back go for 100 yards on eight attempts with a touchdown, while also collecting 111 yards on six carries with a score against Arkansas in 2013.
HENRY STANDING OUT AS A STARTER: Junior Derrick Henry earned the starting nod at tailback in the 2015 season opener and has filled that role in every game since. With 271 yards in tonight's contest against Auburn, in 14 games as a starter he has rushed for 1,999 yards on 320 carries (6.3 yards per carry) with 24 touchdowns. Prior to 2015, Henry started only twice - vs. Western Carolina and Ohio State in 2014. He has collected at least one rushing touchdown in each start, and has notched double-digit scoring days eight times. Through the air, he has hauled in 13 passes for 160 yards (12.3 yards per catch) with one receiving score.
HENRY SETS ALABAMA RECORD FOR CARRIES IN A GAME: Derrick Henry's 46 carries in tonight's game set the Alabama single-game record for totes in a contest. The previous mark was 42 by Johnny Musso against Auburn in 1970.
HENRY PASSING 200 YARDS: With tonight's 271 yards on the ground, junior tailback Derrick Henry has rushed for 200-plus yards in four games this season. He is now one of only three backs in Southeastern Conference history with four games of 200 yards or more in a season, joining Herschel Walker (Georgia) and Bo Jackson (Auburn). Henry also went for 200-plus at Texas A&M on Oct. 17 (236 yards on 32 carries), against LSU on Nov. 7 (210 yards on 38 carries) and at Mississippi State on Nov. 14 (204 yards on 22 carries).
HENRY GOING FOR MORE THAN 250: Derrick Henry's 271 yards on the night made him the first Alabama running back to go for 250 yards or more since Shaun Alexander accomplished the feat in 1996. Alexander went for 291 at LSU on Nov. 9. The 271 by Henry is the third-most yards in a single game, behind only Alexander's game and Bobby Humphrey's 284 at Mississippi State Nov. 1, 1986.
Jake Coker IMPROVING EVERY WEEK: Senior quarterback Jake Coker's toughness has been on display several times in recent weeks and his efforts running the ball have converted several first downs for the Crimson Tide. While his feet and toughness have gotten him attention, his quiet command of the Tide offense has helped win games. Over the past eight games, Coker is completing 72.0 percent (136-for-189) of his passes for 1,499 yards and seven touchdowns.
FIRST HALF POINTS: With Adam Griffith's 26-yard field goal on the Crimson Tide's opening drive on offense in today's contest against Auburn, the Crimson Tide has scored in the first half of its last 115 games, the longest streak in the nation. The last time UA failed to score in the first half was on Sept. 29, 2007, when Alabama and Florida State headed into halftime in a scoreless tie. The Seminoles won that game, 21-14.
SCORING STREAK CONTINUES: With a 26-yard field goal by Adam Griffith on Alabama's first offensive drive of the day against Auburn, the Crimson Tide has now scored in 195 consecutive games - the longest streak in program history.
RUSHING TO SUCCESS: Alabama is 77-4 since the start of the 2008 season when rushing for at least 140 yards. The only losses were at Auburn in 2013, Ole Miss and Ohio State in 2014, and Ole Miss in 2015.
GRIFFITH'S FIVE FIELD GOALS: Adam Griffith's five field goals made is the second-most in a single game by an Alabama kicker, tied with Leigh Tiffin at Ole Miss (Oct. 10, 2009) and Jeremy Shelley against LSU (Jan. 9, 2012). It sets the record for the most field goals in a game against Auburn, passing the four Van Tiffin collected in the 1985 Iron Bowl.
GRIFFITH BACK ON TRACK: Junior placekicker Adam Griffith has made 19 of his last 22 field goal attempts. He missed his first four attempts of the season, but has made eight straight before a blocked at Mississippi State (Nov. 14). Griffith not missed an extra point in 48 attempts this season. He also has a career-best 42 touchbacks on kickoffs this season, notching seven on eight kicks in tonight's game.
