1957: Auburn 6 Georgia 0

Turnovers have been known to decimate teams. It is very rare that a team can recover from fumbling twice in its own territory. Against Georgia, Auburn was able to do just that. The Tiger defense found a way to keep the bulldogs scoreless and Auburn held on to win.

The Deep South's Oldest Rivalry was just as heated in the late 50's as it is today. Auburn fans in 1957 knew that to win the national championship, the Tigers would have to face a red and black wall that stood in their way. Luckily for the Tigers, they were able to fend off an aggressive Bulldog team and prevail, 6-0.

That year the game was played at Memorial Stadium in Columbus, GA., before a packed crowd of 27,000 that came to see what they assumed would be a run-first style of game. Auburn came into the game ranked No.3 in the nation, but as Auburn and Georgia fans know, when these teams meet, the rankings don't matter. The 1957 game wasn't any different.

Auburn's offense struggled to move the ball the entire game and if it weren't for its defense, the Tigers might have suffered their first loss of the season. Auburn's defense successfully kept Georgia out end zone even when the Tigers offense gave them the ball well inside Auburn territory. It was defensive stands like those that were the signature of the Auburn football team in 1957.

Back then, defense ruled the day. Fans of smash-mouth football would have loved watching any of the games from 1957. Auburn's team was geared to be defensive-minded. Auburn had one of, if not the best, defenses in the nation. The Tigers only allowed 28 points the entire season and shut out six of their 10 opponents.

"The offenses then were not like offenses today," quarterback Lloyd Nix said. "We only passed the ball 10 or 15 times the whole game. We won a lot of close games 3-0, 6-0, 7-0 and things like that. We just had a job to do, and we had the guys that would go out and get the job done."

Auburn's lone touchdown against Georgia came when Nix found his favorite target, Jimmy "Red" Phillips, on a 4-yard touchdown pass in the second quarter. It was a familiar sight for Auburn fans as they had seen Phillips average 23.8 yards-per-reception in 1957. He scored four touchdowns and led the team in all receiving categories. In fact, he was the only Auburn player to catch a touchdown pass that season. He caught four and was the definition of a go-to receiver.

Auburn came into the game worried about Georgia's passing game which was one of the best in the conference. The Bulldogs were expected to throw the ball all over the field that day, but Auburn's defense had a different idea. The Tigers limited Georgia to 23 yards passing and only two completions.

Auburn's shutout of Georgia marked the fifth shutout that Tiger team pitched in 1957. Auburn opponents seldom found the end zone. Georgia found it tough to even gain yards.

With the win over Georgia, Auburn became the only undefeated and untied team remaining that season. The Michigan State Spartans, however, moved into the No. 1 spot after the game, even though they had lost a game and No. 2 Auburn had not. It would take two more wins before the writers gave Auburn the distinction of being the No. 1 team in America.

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