ESPN College GameDay 2014: Week 14 Schedule, Location, Predictions and More

The Game, Egg Bowl and any other host of epic season-ending showdowns were candidates for the Week 14 edition of ESPN's College GameDay.

In the end, all pale in comparison to the Iron Bowl.

The broadcast took to Twitter to announce the decision:

This time it is personal between the Alabama Crimson Tide and Auburn Tigers. One year removed from Chris Davis turning the world of college football on its head, Nick Saban's team is back on top and in the driver's seat to the College Football Playoff.

Auburn appears down going into Saturday but is quite dangerous and more than capable of an upset two years in a row.

Get ready, as the game of the year may reside at the Iron Bowl yet again.

ESPN College GameDay: Week 14 Info

Date: Saturday, November 29, 7:45 p.m. ET

Location: Bryant-Denny Stadium, Tuscaloosa, Alabama

Watch: ESPN 

Live Stream: WatchESPN

Preview and Prediction

At face value this one does not have the usual flair that comes along with the Iron Bowl.

Thank the Tigers for that, as Gus Malzahn's team has crumpled as of late, losing two of its last three. The lone win came over Samford. Defense has been a season-long issue for Auburn, as the numbers clearly illustrate:

In fact, the problem is most apparent against SEC opposition.

Over the course of their last five SEC games, the Tigers have allowed a minimum of 31 points, which has predictably produced three losses in that span. Perhaps the most important loss to key in on is a 34-7 shellacking at the hands of Georgia in which the Auburn defense surrendered 289 yards and three scores on the ground.

That is music to the ears of Saban's run-first Crimson Tide. Alabama averages 204.9 rushing yards per game. T.J. Yeldon has 758 yards and six scores on the ground, while complement Derrick Henry has 682 and seven trips into the end zone.

Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images

Try not to forget about quarterback Blake Sims, though.

This year marks Sims' first rodeo in the Iron Bowl as the starter, but his 279 rushing yards and five touchdowns on the ground suggest he will look to exploit the Tigers on the ground as well—never mind the fact he completes 62.1 percent of his passes and has 2,676 yards and 20 touchdowns to four interceptions.

For his part, though, Sims is expecting a major game from his lead back, as captured by Charlie Potter of alabama.247sports.com:

It stands to reason, then, that the Auburn offense will once again be tasked with picking up the slack. Quarterback Nick Marshall certainly has the talent to do just that—and just so happens to tout the exact skill set that gives Alabama defenses problems.

Marshall is a threat through the air and on the ground. His 1,859 passing yards and 15 scores that complement another 731 yards and 11 scores on the ground can attest to that.

It also helps to explain why Auburn has a quality clutch gene:

The problem is, Marshall and lead back Cameron Artis-Payne (1,405 yards, 11 touchdowns) need to keep the game close for those quality late-game numbers to actually matter.

Saban's team is uncannily explosive in comparison to prior years. It averages a healthy 35.0 points per game, although it did muster just 20 in Death Valley and 25 against Mississippi State.

Auburn is set to give Alabama its best shot, so a close final score makes plenty of sense. But Yeldon is a lock to go for more than 100 yards and control the tempo of the game. Alabama's sheer desire to exorcise the demon that is last year's heartbreaking loss will propel the team at home, as safety Landon Collins suggested in the week leading up to the showdown.

"It shows up on the TV every now and again, and it breaks our heart every time," Collins said, per The Associated Press, via ESPN.com. "In one second they took our whole chance away of winning anything, and definitely it rewinds in my head. Definitely it will rewind in my head constantly throughout this week."

So long as Sims takes care of the football, the Crimson Tide will be able to hold off the Tigers. Alabama is on a hot streak right now that no team can halt, especially not in Tuscaloosa.

Prediction: Crimson Tide 28, Tigers 24

Statistics and info courtesy of ESPN unless otherwise specified.