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LIGHT ‘EM UP
Receiver Amari Cooper turns in record performance, Crimson Tide earns eighth straight win against Vols By Cecil Hurt
Alabama receiver Amari Cooper streaks down the field for an 80-yard touchdown on the Crimson Tide’s first offensive play of the game. Cooper caught nine passes for 224 yards, which broke a record for most receiving yards in a game. Julio Jones held the record with 221 yards, which also came against Tennessee in 2010. The Crimson Tide raced out to a 27-0 lead and held off a late charge by Tennessee for the 34-20 win.
Sports Editor
KNOXVILLE, T ENN. | Lane Kiffi n came back to Knoxville — but he didn’t come alone. He brought Amari Cooper with him. And it was a good thing for Alabama that he did. Cooper, the Crimson Tide’s junior All-America receiver, sparked a lightning start for No. 4 Alabama as the Crimson Tide roared in, then ebbed, then rose again to take a 34-20 victory over the Tennessee Volunteers, UA’s eighth consecutive win in the series. Along the way, Cooper set a new Alabama single-game record with 224 yards on nine catches. The game ended with the Alabama band and remaining fans chanting “Kiffi n, Kiffi n.” The start of the contest could not have been better for Alabama and Kiffi n, the former UT head coach who returned to Knoxville as Alabama’s offensive coordinator. On the fi rst play from scrimmage, Alabama quarterback Blake Sims hit Cooper on a short pass that Cooper turned into an 80-yard game-opening touchdown. The dynamic Sims-to-Cooper connection teamed up again for a 41-yard score on Alabama’s second touchdown of the fi rst quarter. UA then tacked on touchdown runs by T. J. Yeldon and Sims to push the lead to 27-0, making a blowout seem imminent. SEE T IDE | 6C
Winning in the SEC is all about survival
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. o one will win the SEC football championship this year. There will only be a survivor. Alabama managed to make it through another SEC road game on Saturday, jumping to a quick lead, then hanging on through a series of injuries and some gritty Tennessee play, just the sort of struggle you would expect in this rivalry, in this conference. The Crimson Tide did some things that looked great, especially early on, and Tennessee did some things that made Alabama look less than great. More often than not, any deviation from domination provokes despair in Alabama fans, but CECIL there seems to be a growing realization HURT that road life in the SEC is, with a few rare exceptions, going to be a struggle — no matter who you are. Perhaps the best news for Alabama is that it has just one more road game left, although it will, perhaps, be the toughest of all, given the recent LSU Renaissance capped by the improbable Tiger win (at home, naturally) over Ole Miss. SEE HURT | 4C
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STAFF PHOTO | ROBERT SUTTON
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TRIUMPHANT RETURN:
ROAD SHOW:
BUCKLE DOWN:
QUARTER GLANCE:
FOUR DOWNS:
NOTEBOOK:
ANALYSIS:
Kiffin’s critics silenced with Crimson Tide’s big offensive night.
Blake Sims puts up big numbers in front of hostile UT crowd
Tide defense recovers after second-half slip to shut down Vols.
Breakdown of each quarter
How the Crimson Tide answered questions against Tennessee
Injury to Vols’ starter gives backup QBs a chance to shine
Amari Cooper storms out of the gate to get Tide going early.
For video and a photo gallery of Alabama’s game against Tennessee, go to www.tidesports.com
FOOTBALL | NO. 5 AUBURN 42, SOUTH CAROLINA 35
Tigers win shootout with Gamecocks By John Zenor The Associated Press
AUBURN | Nick Marshall ran for three touchdowns and passed for a score and No. 5 Auburn beat South Carolina 42-35 on Saturday night, surviving a scare from the Gamecocks after Steve Spurrier made a succession of gambles that paid off. The Tigers (6-1, 3-1 SEC) fi nally stopped the onslaught of Spurrier, Dylan Thompson and fourth-down magic late in the game. Auburn burned off four-plus minutes from the clock after the fi rst unsuccessful
INSIDE SEC ROUNDUP: No. 3 Ole Miss falls to LSU | 3C
gamble before the Gamecocks (4-4, 2-4) made a stop at midfield for one more shot. Thompson, who threw five touchdown passes and helped convert five straight fourth-down tries, took over at his own 15 with no timeouts and 1:08 left. Jonathan Jones made his second interception in the end zone of the fourth quarter on Thompson’s last-play heave to preserve the Ti-
gers’ SEC and national title hopes. The Gamecocks, 18-point underdogs, converted an onside kick and four fourth-down plays in their own territory. Spurrier fi nally busted on his last gamble. Thompson threw an incompletion on fourth and 14 from Auburn’s 19 that gave the Tigers the ball back with 5:28 left. T he Gamecocks got another chance, and moved into Auburn territory with a completion and personal foul against Jonathon Mincy. THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Then Thompson threw one final Auburn defensive back Robenson Therezie, left, tackles South pass into a crowd of players from Carolina wide receiver Pharoh Cooper in the first half Saturday. The SEE T IGERS | 3C No. 5 Tigers defeated the Gamecocks, 42-35.