This is the second of a two-part column about Auburn’s 31-30 victory over the Georgia Bulldogs in a classic football game played on November 12, 2005 in Athens, Georgia. It is Auburn’s last victory over its oldest rival on the Bulldog’s home soil. Junior wide receiver Courtney Taylor figured prominently in the outcome of the contest, and he sat down with Auburn Undercover this week and shared his thoughts.
SUBSCRIBE TO AUBURN UNDERCOVER AND WE WILL MATCH WHAT YOU ARE PAYING FOR OTHER SERVICES
Regarding the rivalry, itself, Taylor said, "[O]ne thing about playing in the SEC, it's kinda hard to take weeks off or be lackadaisical about the task at hand. Georgia week is one of the oldest college rivalries. Every time I've played in that game it's been a nail biter. It's been line that thing up and may the best man win. It is one of the most heated, competitive rivalries there are in my opinion.”
The Tigers entered the game having won 14 of their last 15 SEC games and 22 of their previous 24 games overall. Only an exasperating night in Baton Rouge would keep Auburn from defending its 2004 SEC Championship in Atlanta. Auburn kicker John Vaughn would miss five field goals in the howling crosswinds of south Louisiana that night, as the Tigers fell 20-17 in overtime. Vaughn made 78% of his field goal attempts as a Tiger outside of Death Valley.
Auburn had every reason to be confident entering the Georgia game. Tommy Tuberville’s teams were often at their best on the road in hostile territory. According to Taylor, this night was no different. “Just going into a hostile environment. That's what Coach Tuberville and the entire staff did during my time there. They always had us prepared and ready to go and just understanding the magnitude of the game. Nothing really got too big for us because we were even keel throughout the year. It was no different that week. A lock in type week. We understood we were going down to their place. It was going to be a nail biter to the end."
Trailing by 2 with just minutes to play and facing a 4th and 10 in their own territory, offensive coordinator Al Borges called a play that is still talked about by Auburn faithful two decades later. Legendary Auburn play-by-play announcer Rod Bramblett called it this way:
““Four wideouts, 2 left, 2 right. 4th down and 10 and a half. Mix in motion from left to right. Georgia showing blitz. Low snap, Cox picks it up. Looks, fires downfield, wide open Aromashodu at the 35, 30, 25, 20. There goes Devin. There goes Devin…”
Taylor remembers the call and how it unfolded from his view on the field. "It was a simple play we had run throughout the year, especially in big moments. Big 3rd downs or big 4th downs. We were very comfortable with the play. I remember being in the huddle and recalling the play. I was licking my chops to get the ball in that situation as were the rest of my receivers. Everything played out really well. Devin came open and Brandon made a marvelous throw. Pitch and catch and Devin caught that thing in stride. I mean he was off to the races."
Of course, Aromashodu did not score on the play. A Georgia defender punched the ball out inside the five yard line, and the football went into the end zone and approached the out of bounds line. Then came Courtney Taylor flying through the air to jump on the ball and maintain possession for the Tigers. By rule, the ball was returned to Auburn at the point of the fumble, and Vaughn kicked the game-winner a few plays later, giving Auburn one-point win.
Taylor’s remarkable hustle and skill in recovering the fumble without knocking it out of the end zone, which is frankly what usually happens in that situation, is an underappreciated part of the play. It saved a big game against a rival that otherwise would have been lost if not for his heroics.
Taylor was humble in his description of his role on the play. "I'm going to celebrate. In that moment, you never give up on the play. You are always running behind the play. That's one thing we preach and repped on in practice. It was nothing new to me. I was so darn excited for Devin. I was going to try and beat him to the end zone. That was my mindset; try to beat him to the end zone so I can jump on him. Low and behold, me doing my job, me doing what we are taught to do, trail the play. That ball came out, just doing what we do every day, repetition; I was able to cover that ball. It was a big moment for that game."
I asked him about covering the ball without knocking it out of the back of the end zone, which would have been a touchback in favor of Georgia and ended Auburn’s hopes for victory. Taylor again credited his preparation. "It just goes back to practicing reps, covering up a loose ball or a fumbled ball; it's something that we worked. We repped the successful times and we even repped the times we were unsuccessful. That's a proven thing for football. Anything could happen so you practice for everything."
It would have been remiss not to ask Taylor about the current team wearing the orange and blue and about first year head coach Alex Golesh. He had this to say in closing, "I believe we have the right coach in place. I think he is the right guy for the job. As far as seeing us getting back to where we need to be I think that he would bring in the recruits. That's what it comes to. You have to have players that can play. It'll be interesting to see finishing this year and going into next year to see his recruits starting to pay off. Starting to see some of those guys develop. I'm excited about that. I'm always thinking the best for us. Next year we will be better. It has to be. That's the tradition there at Auburn. We are one of those teams that will be in the mix. I'm most interested in seeing us get on the recruiting trail and to get those players in there. That will change some of our outcome.”
Auburn Undercover is an independent Auburn sports media company covering Auburn athletics, recruiting and insider news.
