Folks in turquoise polo shirts made their way onto the sidelines of Jordan-Hare Stadium with around four minutes to play in the fourth quarter of Saturday’s game against No. 8 Alabama.

It was like déjà vu as the same thing happened in the final minutes of Auburn’s game against the top-ranked Georgia Bulldogs on Sept. 30.

Those folks in the turquoise polo shirts make up the stadium security staff at Auburn.

And with the prospect of a field rush continuing to mount as the Tigers led the Crimson Tide with under a minute to play, the reserves of turquoise-polo wearing staff members were called on.

Had Auburn won the football game, the plan wasn’t to prevent fans from storming the field. Everyone knew that wasn’t an option. But Auburn wanted to be sure it had its turquoise-clad troops ready to help make the chaos as safe and organized as possible.

However, just like on Sept. 30 when the Bulldogs were in town, Auburn fans had the opportunity snatched out from under their feet as Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe heaved a 31-yard game-winning touchdown to Isaiah Bond.

“We have the best fans in the country, and that atmosphere tonight is off the charts, best I’ve ever been a part of,” Auburn head coach Hugh Freeze said following the narrow loss. “Just wish we were out there celebrating right now together.”

Instead, for the second time this season, Freeze was left with the task of consoling his team after losing another one-possession ball game to a top-10 opponent – something that’s easier said than done, Freeze admits.

“I don’t think any coach has the words,” Freeze said. “You tell them you love them, that we’ll learn from it and get through it, but it’s going to hurt. There’s no way around it and you’re going to have to walk through the hurt.”

Meanwhile, the Auburn fans who had made their way inside Jordan-Hare Stadium for this year’s rendition of the Iron Bowl were left heading towards the exits instead of the turf of Pat Dye Field.

And as similar as the endings of Auburn’s games against Georgia and Alabama appeared from the outside, they were much different on the inside.

The Deep South’s Oldest Rivalry against the Bulldogs is an important game to the Auburn contingent.

But it’s not the Iron Bowl.

“I don’t feel similar. This is totally different,” said Auburn Jack linebacker Jalen McLeod. “This right here is war. You know? One of the oldest rivalries, best rivalries in the country. Like I said, I’m a transfer. I know that. When you lose, it’s the worst feeling, especially like that. So it’s nothing to compare to them. It’s deeper.”

Saturday’s 27-24 loss to Alabama stung. It stung bad.

Freeze said it.

Some of Auburn’s players said it, too.

Other’s showed it.

And while Freeze and his team don’t suit up to play horseshoes or hand grenades, does it mean there’s nothing to take away from a pair of narrow losses to the two teams who will battle in the SEC Championship – and likely a spot in the College Football Playoff – next weekend?

“If you isolate it to those two games, you feel like you’ve done some good things,” Freeze said.

Pushing the No. 1 team in the country to the brink before the month of October in Year No. 1 of a rebuild is remarkable — especially considering the Tigers lost to the then-second-ranked Bulldogs 42-10 in Athens last fall.

Meanwhile, keeping your in-state rival, which happens to be a potential playoff contender, on the ropes for more than 59 minutes of a 60-minute football game is something to hang your hat on — especially after losing 49-27 in Tuscaloosa in 2022.

All of that points to progress.

But Freeze isn’t new to this profession. He knows he’s not coaching horseshoes or hand grenades. He’s coaching college football in the SEC.

“We get judged in this game on wins and losses,” Freeze said. “We all know that when we get signed up for it.”

By that logic, the opportunity for Freeze and the Tigers to add a win to Year 1 of the rebuild is still on the table after Auburn obtained bowl eligibility three weeks ago with a dominating performance against Arkansas.

And that’s right on par with Freeze’s goals for his first year on The Plains.

“I really didn’t have a vision for this year, other than to try to get us to a bowl game and improve us from week to week,” Freeze said Saturday night.

However, after hanging around with two of the “golden standards” of college football this season — in Year No. 1 of a ground-up rebuild — Freeze and the Tigers are adopting a new vison. And it’s a bit loftier than simply becoming bowl eligible.

“We’re gonna be one of the elite programs in the country,” Freeze said of the vision of Auburn football after Saturday’s loss to Alabama.

For that to be the case, Freeze knows it will have to be a mixed bags of on-field results and success on the recruiting trail.

“It’s a combination,” Freeze said. “You’ve got to coach to a certain standard, and you’ve got to recruit somewhere close to level par to the way those guys and some others in this league are.”

Should those things happen, it’ll only be a matter of time until the folks in the turquoise polo shirts will not only be called upon as a precaution, but expected to spring into action. One can only hope that they’ll be ready.

Whenever that time comes, Auburn’s fans will be ready — just like they were twice this season.