EDITOR’S NOTE: Every day until Aug. 29, Creg Stephenson is counting down significant numbers in Alabama football history, both in the lead-up to the 2025 football season and in commemoration of the Crimson Tide’s first national championship 100 years ago. The number could be attached to a year, a uniform number or even a football-specific statistic. We hope you enjoy.

Alabama spent the entire 2008 season serving notice that a new era was afoot in college football in this state and in the SEC at-large. And in case that message wasn’t received, it was punctuated with authority on Nov. 29 at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa.

That was the day the Crimson Tide throttled Auburn 36-0 in the Iron Bowl, completing an undefeated regular season for the first time in 12 years. More importantly, Nick Saban’s team snapped a six-game losing streak to Tommy Tuberville and the Tigers, beating them for the first time ever in Tuscaloosa.

Alabama senior quarterback John Parker Wilson, who had been on the receiving end of three losses to Auburn — two of them as a starter — put it succinctly.

“To be able to beat them like we did after so many years, it’s special,” he said.

Was it ever.

Alabama dominated in every way possible, outgaining Auburn 412 yards to 170 and limiting the Tigers to a mere eight first downs. Auburn turned the ball over three times, gained just 57 yards rushing (to 234 for the Crimson Tide) and was shut out for the first time since 2003 — the first time in the Iron Bowl since 1992.

“It would have felt good just to get a win,” Alabama senior safety Rashad Johnson said, “but to dominate the way we did and beat them without giving up any points, I definitely think we made a statement by coming out and letting them know that we were focused and not looking past this game.”

The victory was enough to lead the normally buttoned-up and seemingly humorless Saban to cut a rug with his victorious players.

“I’m happy,” Saban said. “I really am happy. I was happy and dancing in the locker room. There’s a time and a place for everything.”

Said linebacker Cory Reamer, “He was enjoying every single bit of it, too.”

Alabama managed just a field goal in the first quarter, a 37-yarder by Leigh Tiffin. The offense finally broke through with a big play in the second quarter, with Glen Coffee dashing 41 yards for a touchdown to make it 10-0 at halftime.

Auburn’s best scoring opportunity came on the final play of the first half, when Morgan Hull lined up for a 40-yard field goal. But Alabama defensive end Bobby Greenwood — one of nine seniors on the team — blocked it, and the Tigers never again got closer to the end zone than the Crimson Tide 47-yard line.

“I’m really pleased and happy for our seniors,” Saban said, “and I want everybody to know they should always be recognized as the group that had a tremendous amount to do with changing the culture here in terms of how we play football.

“It’s the way Alabama has always played football.”

Alabama poured it on in with three touchdowns in the third quarter, a 39-yard pass from Wilson to Nikita Stover and two Mark Ingram scoring runs. Ingram and Coffee combined for 208 yards and three touchdowns on 35 carries, 144 of those yards by Coffee.

The exclamation point came with 2:49 left in the game, after Alabama’s starters had long left the field in favor of backups. Second-string quarterback Greg McElroy fired a 34-yard touchdown pass to Marquis Maze, perhaps a bit of rubbing it in by a Crimson Tide team that had endured six years of frustration in the Iron Bowl.

“We beat them good,” Wilson said, “and left no doubt.”

Those in attendance remember that the post-game “Rammer Jammer” cheer by Alabama’s fans was the loudest on record. However, an event that happened before the game helped whip the sold-out crowd of 92,138 at Bryant-Denny into a frenzy.

Former Alabama star running back Siran Stacy — who had lost his wife and four of his five children in a car accident the previous year — served as the Crimson Tide’s honorary captain for the game. After Stacy delivered the ceremonial game ball to the pre-game coin toss at midfield along with-then five-year-old daughter Shelly, he shook hands with Saban and then ran down the sideline, waving his arms several times to pump up the crowd, and then threw the ball into the stands.

“People say the reason why it was so loud was because the Auburn fans were cheering just as much as the Alabama fans were,” Stacy told AL.com in 2022.

Here’s video:

It was the last joyful moment of the day for Auburn fans, whose team finished with a losing record for the first time since 1999 at 5-7. It would also be the final game for Tigers coach Tommy Tuberville, who resigned under pressure four days later.

Alabama also didn’t win again that year, losing a closely fought SEC championship game vs. eventual national champion Florida 31-20 a week later. The Crimson Tide came out flat in the Sugar Bowl on New Year’s Day vs. Utah — losing 31-17 after falling behind 21-0 early — and finished 12-2.

Despite the disappointment of the final two games, the 2008 season made it clear — emphatically — that Alabama was back. And no one learned that better first-hand than the Auburn Tigers on Iron Bowl Saturday.

Coming Saturday: Our countdown to kickoff continues with No. 35, a legendary moment of toughness by a man legendary for his toughness.