They’re rebuilding, dumping hundreds of millions into rennovations and new facilities. And they have one of the biggest budgets in the nation. Tennessee will be back to title contenders within the next decade.

Auburn though? Hrm. Well, they will get better, but “back?”

I lived in Tuscaloosa during the worst times, including at one point having three football coaches in less than a year. Plenty of fans are committed to their teams even when they are losing.

But most of them have never won a title. Even fewer have been alive to see any of those titles (or thier lone title). Many people like to complain about the titles Alabama “claims,” but the truth is I’ve seen five titles in my lifetime. Five. 2012 would be the sixth.

Alabama didn’t just come back. They came back the right way and playing the kind of fundamental football that Alabama has always been defined by. And now some of the guys on the 2009 and 2011 title-winning teams are seniors, like Barrett Jones, a clinical example of what Alabama’s football program is capable of doing with young men committed to being the best they can be.

But Auburn?

My brother always reminds me to enjoy football success because it simply never lasts. But this weekend is the Iron Bowl. Success in the Iron Bowl is easy to enjoy, but I’m afraid some people will be reluctant to celebrate.

Don’t be. Revel in it. Enjoy every single win Alabama gets, always. It’s absolutely the best time ever to be an Alabama fan. But don’t look back on it later wishing you had enjoyed it more. Live it. It’s our time. Roll Tide.

Sure, I have rubbed it in and dished out a lot of prideful gloating over what Bama has accomplished under Saban. But even when there was probation, inept coaching and recruiting, I never believed that it would never get better.
When we were down, Auburn and Tennessee fans were the worst of the worst. The hate, and jealousy of Bama was still there, even when Bama wasn’t winning and their teams were. I took it all in stride, and nothing ever shook my loyalties to Bama. If anything, the way those fans were made my loyalty even stronger.

So, I have no pity for these guys right now. I hope Bama runs the score up on Auburn this Saturday. One day I am sure Auburn and Tennessee will be better. But that day is not today, and I will kick them while they are down. These are the days to be proud to be a Bama fan, but it is also days of redemption, and what goes around comes around. We have a right to be proud of what Bama has done, considering on where they were before they got to this point.

Now, the question is, can Tennessee accomplish what Bama has done? Can Auburn do it? I think we all really know the answer to that. They may get better, but it really isn’t hard to do that when you are so bad, for so long. But can either school make a 4-5 year run like Bama has?