Alabama shifts focus to Florida

Alabama’s clutch game-winning drive was memorable, but Friday’s Iron Bowl was great more for what Auburn did than the Crimson Tide.

Without question, it was a great result for the Tide. But Nick Saban always scoffs at being too result-oriented. He and several players are well aware they will have to play better against top-ranked Florida in the SEC Championship Game next Saturday.

“It wasn’t a great game for us,” Saban said. “We didn’t play our best football. We need to learn from that.

“But at the same time, the character that we showed to overcome the adversity ... on the road, getting behind — I don’t think you can say enough about the competitive character that this team showed today. And that’s what I’m most proud of.”

Saban said while the short week hurt his team preparation for Auburn — which was coming off an open date — he liked having an extra day to set the schedule for the Florida showdown. But the extra day will be spent doing ... nothing.

“I actually think the players need a little emotional break,” he said. “It was hard to get our players back last year after a very emotional game at the end of the season and then go into the SEC Championship Game for another big, emotional game.

“We’re going to give them (Saturday) off, and then we’ll stretch and stride on Sunday. ... We’ll try to give them some time to recover.”

However, the players almost immediately turned their attention to the Gators.

“This is a big win, but we’re going to go back and regroup on Sunday and start watching Florida film,” defensive end Brandon Deaderick said.

“I think we’re very confident. We had a chance to beat them last year and kind of fell short,” linebacker Eryk Anders said. “Everybody’s really hungry this year. We’ll come out guns blazin’. We’ll be ready to play.”

Right tackle Drew Davis said the team will have to play better.

“It was a great win, It’s always great to beat Auburn,” Davis said. “But it wasn’t a great game because we didn’t execute the way we wanted to.”

Still, there was little fault to find with the Tide’s final drive. Alabama took 15 plays to go 79 yards in 7:03 in the face of hostile crowd with the game on the line.

“That had to be one of the greatest drives that I’ve ever been associated with in the fourth quarter to win the game,” Saban said.

Junior quarterback Greg McElroy threw an incompletion to start the march, then completed seven straight passes, including the game-winner to Roy Upchurch on a 4-yard play in the right flat with 1:24 left.

“He did a good job in that situation, and that was a great drive,” Saban said of his quarterback. “I think when you make those plays on third down you have to make it’s important, but I think everybody gave him an opportunity to do that.

“We didn’t protect him real well at times, we didn’t get open like we need to and there was a couple of times when he could have made a little better decision. But he made all the right decisions in the critical time in the game. I think that’s what great competitors do, and Greg’s been a great competitor for us all year long.”

Alabama has played several close games this season but hadn’t faced a come-from-behind, last-minute situation. Saban liked what he saw. He said Tide coaches always tell the players to play the next play.

“I think that that sort of resonates with our players,” the coach said. “That’s how you compete, that’s how you play....

“Great competitors can play in that moment and that time. And great teams can play in that moment and that time. I’m not saying we have a great team, I’m just saying that our team was able to do that tonight.”

Still, Alabama took a step toward being great by finding a way to stay undefeated.

The Tide will take another step on Saturday in the Georgia Dome. Because, almost certainly, it will take a great team to beat Florida.