SEC/TOP 25 FOOTBALL

Tide throttle ‘sad’ Tigers

Alabama running back Eddie Lacy (42) scores a touchdown ahead of Auburn defensive end Dee Ford (left) during the first half of the No. 2 Crimson Tide’s 49-0 victory Saturday in Tuscaloosa, Ala.
Alabama running back Eddie Lacy (42) scores a touchdown ahead of Auburn defensive end Dee Ford (left) during the first half of the No. 2 Crimson Tide’s 49-0 victory Saturday in Tuscaloosa, Ala.

— Alabama left no doubt it’s tops in the state.

Proving it’s the best team in the SEC and perhaps the nation won’t be nearly so easy.

AJ McCarron passed for four touchdowns and Eddie Lacy rushed for 131 yards and two scores to lead the second-ranked Crimson Tide to a 49-0 blowout of rival Auburn on Saturday, the most lopsided Iron Bowl in 64 years.

The Tide (10-1, 7-1 SEC) clinched the Western Division title outright and a spot in the conference title game against No. 3 Georgia with the winner likely getting a BCS national championship shot.

“To me, in all those games that I’ve been a part of, they are about as good as any game in the country other than the national championship game,” Alabama Coach Nick Saban said of the SEC title matchup.

Georgia will certainly present a tougher challenge the Tide faced Saturday.

Auburn (3-9, 0-8) completed the worst season for any team within two years of winning an Associated Press national title in what might have been the last game for embattled Coach Gene Chizik.

University President Jay Gogue has only said he’ll evaluate the program at season’s end.

Chizik met Saban briefly at midfield, hugged McCarron, and walked off the field with cameras following his every move. He declined to discuss his future afterward.

“I’m not going to go into all of the job situation with any questions,” he said. “This isn’t about me. I’ve got a locker room of guys that are here that are very disappointed. That’s my focus, I’m not going to entertain any of those questions. My focus is to be back in there with them.”

Chizak said the Tigers’ performance was “sad.”

“Obviously that was a very disappointing loss, embarrassing loss to our state rivals,” he said. “It was obvious to everybody.

“The Auburn fans, the Auburn alumni, don’t deserve that.”

And most haven’t seen a game like this one. The biggest Iron Bowl margin was Alabama’s 55-0 victory in 1948, the most lopsided in a rivalry that captivates a state.

This one could have topped that but Saban played subs for much of the second half. The Tide lost a fumble inside Auburn’s 10 and then ran out the final seconds after getting to the 5.

Alabama outgained the Tigers 483 yards to 163 and had 25 first downs to Auburn’s seven.

“We didn’t take our foot off the gas,” Lacy said. “We kept playing in the fourth quarter.”

Auburn hasn’t scored an offensive touchdown since Auburn, behind quarterback Cam Newton, completed the rivalry’s largest comeback in the Tigers’ last visit to Bryant-Denny Stadium two years ago. This one supplied another milestone of sorts.

It’s the first time Alabama has scored 40-plus points in two consecutive Iron Bowls, following last season’s 42-14 victory when Auburn managed to score on a kick return and fumble recovery.

The 42-0 halftime score was the same as the Tide had last week against FCS team Western Carolina, which finished 1-10. The previous largest halftime margin in the Iron Bowl was 34-0 by Auburn in 1957 in a 40-0 victory during its only national title run before 2010.

“We had that sick feeling in our mouth,” Tigers offensive lineman Chad Slade said. “You know, you hate to feel that way. I lost it last year, and I lose it this year. It’s hard, it’s real hard just to speak on it. Next year has to be a different story.”

McCarron completed 15 of 21 passes for 216 yards in 21/2 quarters, including two touchdowns passes apiece to Amari Cooper and Kevin Norwood.

Lacy carried 18 times, pinballing off defenders from a defense that ranks last in the SEC against the run.

Auburn freshman Jonathan Wallace completed 5 of 14 passes and threw two interceptions against the nation’s top scoring defense. He’s only the third freshman quarterback to start an Iron Bowl for the Tigers and first since Gabe Gross in 1998.

Sports, Pages 25 on 11/25/2012

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