Bama wins Iron Bowl blowout, probably doesn’t even need to win the SEC to make the Playoff

The Iron Bowl, one of college football’s most heated rivalries, was pretty one-sided on Saturday afternoon in Tuscaloosa. No. 1 Alabama rolled over No. 13 Auburn 30-12, putting a bow on an undefeated regular season for the Tide.

Saturday’s game was close throughout the first half — Auburn struck first with a field goal to take a 3-0 lead, but Alabama countered with a field goal and then a touchdown to take a seven-point lead. Auburn managed to stick around by scoring a couple field goals in the second quarter, but the Tide managed to get a 13-9 lead at halftime.

With the victory, next up for Alabama is No. 15 Florida in the SEC Championship in Atlanta, Ga. Alabama, which beat Florida last year 29-15 in the same title game, will be a pretty big favorite over Florida, depending on what the Gators do against Florida State on Saturday night.

Yes, Florida’s defense is good, but it hasn’t faced anything remotely close to what Alabama’s offense can do to you. Not to mention that Florida’s offense, which has been inconsistent all season, will have the toughest of go-arounds facing Alabama’s front seven.

The truth is, even if Alabama somehow gets upset by Florida in Atlanta, this team is still going to the College Football Playoff. There’s no other team in the country that has been able to win in so many dominant ways as Alabama has won this season, and the committee is going to recognize that by giving them a spot in the final four.

Even with a loss, the Tide would still be a division champion with wins over highly ranked Auburn, Tennessee, and USC teams, and it’s not like there are any other undefeated Power 5 teams left anyway.

There are two types of Iron Bowls in recent years: one of which is the wild game with the wild ending we will talk about for decades. The 2010 Cam Newton game, and the Kick Six come to mind there. But there are others in which it just seems like to the neutral observer the rivalry is yet another step toward an Alabama coronation.

And that feeling got accentuated when the news that Auburn starting quarterback Sean White would not be playing came across the wire Saturday afternoon before the game. Back-up Jeremy Johnson took White’s place, and he went for just 4-of-13 for 34 yards. Former “Last Chance U” star John Franklin III got some reps later in the game but he wasn’t much better, making just two completions for 85 yards on the day.

Auburn, at one point in the season, looked to be one of the last possible teams capable of beating Alabama in 2016. But on Saturday, the Tide once again proved that was all just an illusion.