Alabama vs. Auburn Football: 10 Players to Watch in the Iron Bowl

The Iron Bowl is almost here, and one team is looking for revenge while the other will be seeking to re-open an old wound.  Once again, the greatest rivalry in collegiate football will be played with a national championship on the line.

For the third year in a row the Iron Bowl will host a team that looks to be going to the BCS National Championship Game.  In 2009 it was Alabama, 2010 Auburn and 2011 is Alabama again.  

Will this third outing also be a close one, or can Alabama create a repeat of the 2008 36-0 beatdown?  

"Never again," a reference to the historic 2010 meltdown that led to a 28-27 win by the Tigers, is burned into the minds of every Crimson Tide player.

The Auburn Tigers want to prove that even in "rebuilding mode" they are not "Little Brother," and since the year 2000 they have been the Iron Bowl victors eight times.  

Here are 10 players that will play important roles in the nation's most heated rivalry.

Auburn Running Back No. 23 Onterio McCalebb, Junior, 5'10", 170 Lbs

Michael Dyer is Auburn's best running back, and one of the best in the SEC, but he makes his money between the tackles and that just doesn't work against Alabama.

Onterio McCalebb, however, is a serious threat on the outside and catching out of the backfield.  His blazing speed will certainly give the Tide trouble, as the 'Bama linebackers have trouble running sideline to sideline.  

McCalebb has half the yards and half the attempts that Michael Dyer has, with 526 yards on 97 carries, but his average (5.42) is higher than Dyer's (5.21).

As a receiver, McCalebb is the second-most prolific catcher for the Tigers with 28 receptions for 274 yards.  

He is an undersized yet dynamic player, not unlike Florida's Chris Rainey.  Auburn has plenty of film to study from the Florida game and they will take note on what Florida failed to do with Rainey.

Dyer will get the brunt of the work, but Onterio McCalebb will look to strike when the Tide least expects it.  

Alabama Running Back No. 3 Trent Ricahrdson, Junior, 5'11", 225 Lbs

Trent Richardson will be entering the game relatively healthy, which is amazing given the recent overburdening he's had to deal with the past few games, including back-to-back games of 32 carries.  He is eighth in the nation with 236 carries.

He is the best running back prospect in the upcoming 2012 NFL draft, and a hopeful for numerous awards, including the Doak Walker Award (best running back), the Maxwell Award (top collegiate player of the year) and the prestigious Heisman Trophy.  'Bama's workhorse may be more than deserving of all of them.

Trent will look to abuse Auburn's 98th-ranked rush defense and could eclipse the 193-yard rushing average they have given up this year.  

Richardson himself is averaging over 125 yards per game and is one of the most difficult players to tackle in all of college football, many times having his forward progress stopped without touching the ground.  Auburn managed to shut down then-Heisman hopeful Mark Ingram in 2009, but Trent will try to make sure he doesn't fall victim to this as well.

At the very least, Richardson is going to command so much attention from the Auburn defense that the passing game will open up quite nicely for quarterback A.J. McCarron.

Auburn Linebacker No. 25 Daren Bates, Junior, 5'11", 207 Lbs

Auburn's Daren Bates is well below the average size of linebackers, and Trent Richardson has almost 20 lbs on him, but he is a mean tackler.

He leads the Tigers with 86 tackles, including a whopping 48 solo.  He is great at tackling in space and will be looking to decry Richardson's claim that the first guy can't take him down.

What Bates lacks in strength and size he makes up for in agility and has proven this with some of his best performances on big stages.  In losing efforts against Clemson and Georgia he had a combined total 22 tackles, 14 of those solo.  

He has adequate ability to get into the backfield with 2.5 sacks and seven tackles for losses.

Stopping Trent Richardson requires great performances by opposing linebackers, and Bates' speed and intelligence will be critical to Auburn's efforts.

Alabama Linebacker No. 30 Dont'a Hightower, Junior, 6'4", 260 Lbs

Dont'a Hightower is Alabama's best linebacker and one of the best in the nation, and looks nothing like his 2010 version that was still struggling to recover from a torn ACL.  

He is back down to 260 lbs and has speed uncharacteristic of a man his size, though he may get bit by Onterio McCalebb's speed on the outside.  

Dont'a leads the Tide in total tackles with 72, but his 32 solo tackles are second to Mark Barron's 39.

Auburn's offensive line was decimated by graduation, and Hightower should excel at exploiting this.  He has good penetration ability is shown by his three sacks and 8.5 tackles for losses, but his secret weapon is his ability to blow up opposing linemen already engaged in blocks with Alabama defensive linemen, perfectly displayed in this video.

Hightower has been all over the place for Alabama, and has earned national recognition for his performance as the primary cog in Alabama's No. 1-ranked rush defense.  He is one of six Butkus finalists, and one of four Rotary Lombardi finalists.

Auburn Defensive End No. 55 Corey Lemonier, Sophomore, 6'4", 235 Lbs

Corey Lemonier was a highly touted recruit coming out of high school, and has turned into anything but a lemon.  He has my vote as Auburn's best player, ahead of even Michael Dyer.  

Corey may be smaller than Alabama's linebackers, but his pure athleticism is going to pose a serious threat for young quarterback A.J. McCarron.

Lemonier has become one of the premier pass-rushers in the nation and has a knack for finding carriers in the backfield, ranking ninth in the nation with 8.5 sacks and 40th with 12.5 tackles for losses.

Lemonier has lived up to all his hype, so Tide fans that breathed a sigh of relief when Auburn's Nick Fairley left for the NFL will be sorely disappointed.  

Corey may be shuffled around the line a bit, as right tackle D.J. Fluker has problems with smaller, athletic pass-rushers, and left tackle Barrett Jones may not be fully recovered from the ankle injury he suffered against LSU. 

Hopefully, every player will retain their health during the battle, but second-string Tide quarterback Phillip Sims better be ready if Corey Lemonier clobbers starter A.J. McCarron.  

Alabama Linebacker No. 41 Courtney Upshaw, Senior, 6'2", 270 Lbs

Like fellow linebacker Dont'a Hightower, Courtney Upshaw is a finalist for both the Butkus Award and the Rotary Lombardi Trophy, and has more than earned his place there.

Upshaw has been fairly quiet this year in the Tide's games against less-notable opponents, but when tough games come Nick Saban pulls out his defensive tricks and Upshaw flourishes.

Courtney leads the Tide with 6.5 sacks and 14 tackles for losses, and places 23rd in the nation in tackles for losses and 28th in sacks.

His weight is considered massive for a linebacker and really limits his speed, but when it comes to rushing the passer and stopping the run, Courtney Upshaw cannot be stopped.

Along with Hightower, Courtney will be looking to exploit Auburn's offensive line that has four first-year starters.  

Auburn's floundering quarterbacks likely won't sense Upshaw, and we may see a repeat of the 2011 Capital One Bowl, where several Michigan State quarterbacks were benched after being ruthlessly attacked.  

Expect Upshaw to force a fumble or hit a quarterback as he's throwing, causing an interception.

Auburn Punter No. 30 Steven Clark, Sophomore, 6'6", 230 Lbs

If you just thought to yourself, "Wow, that is a big punter," then rest assured that you are not alone.

If you also thought to yourself, "Why is a punter a player to watch?" here's your answer:  Punters all year have been a critical piece to teams' efforts to stop the Tide.

Ever since 'Bama's Marquis Maze returned a punt for a touchdown (video here) against Arkansas this year, teams have been doing whatever they can to stop him.  

This wasn't just a normal return for a touchdown.  Much of the time you just see the return man get some good blocks and go downhill towards the end zone.  Maze, however, had to read blocks, cut and break tackles to make this 83-yard touchdown run.  Good coverage isn't enough to stop him.

Opposing teams just don't want to give Marquis the chance to return a kick.  They have employed everything under the sun to stop this, including "rugby-style punts" and sky-high punts with massive hang time to force a fair catch.  

Auburn's punter will do the same, and he's a good one.  He wasn't a highly touted punter coming out of high school, but this year he's managed to land almost half his punts past the 20-yard line.  He averages over 40 yards per punt and has a lot of practice, with 5.8 punts per game.  

He is one of three finalists for the Ray Guy Award, which goes to the nation's top punter.

Alabama's offense is potent and often underrated, and field position after punts will be critical.  This will make Auburn punter Steven Clark a very important player on Saturday.  

Alabama Wide Receiver No. 4 Marquis Maze, Senior, 5'10", 180 Lbs

The Crimson Tide lost Julio Jones to the 2011 NFL draft and has looked to Marquis Maze to fill in.  He's not as nearly capable as Jones but he has done his part.  

He leads the Tide in receiving, with 52 catches for 609 yards.  Those aren't eye-popping numbers, but what makes him such a threat is the fact that Alabama quarterback A.J. McCarron has been more diverse with his passes than any other quarterback at Alabama since Nick Saban arrived.

By now Auburn knows that Maze isn't the only threat, as McCarron has found nine receivers this year for 10 or more catches.  Auburn's defensive backs wont be able to cover Maze with two or three guys, and he's dangerous in man-to-man situations.

In addition, fellow senior Darius Hanks has been his wingman since the 2009 championship season and commands attention himself.  Hanks is third on the team with 270 receiving yards, and many of his passes come on short-yardage gains where he gets popped by a safety or linebacker as soon as he touches the ball, but he rarely drops it.

Auburn's pass defense could be weak against Maze and has been about average, ranking 48th in the nation, giving up 213.5 yards per game.  They will be without injured starting cornerback T'Sharvin Bell, who knocked Tide quarterback Greg McElroy out of the game in the 2010 Iron Bowl on a corner blitz with a vicious body slam.  

Maze is the Tide's primary return man, but as said before, teams have gone to great lengths to shut down Maze's return game.  Look for Marquis to break this dry streak and come up with a big return. 

Auburn Quarterback No. 10 Kiehl Frazier, Freshman, 6'3", 210 Lbs

Kiehl Frazier may be the inexperienced third-string quarterback for the Auburn Tigers, but he very likely will play a key role in the 2011 Iron Bowl.

The Auburn Tigers have been ineffective at best when it comes to the passing attack, ranking 106th in the nation with 161.7 yards per game and will be facing the top-ranked passing defense in the nation.  

Auburn's two quarterbacks, Barrett Trotter and Clint Moseley, will likely have great difficulty trying to pass against the Tide and it's quite possible that Gene Chizik and Gus Malzahn will turn to Frazier for a more dynamic, change-of-pace situation.  

Auburn has not run the option this year, but the two teams that have used it against the Tide (LSU and FCS school Georgia Southern) have been wildly effective with it.  That's not to say Auburn will attempt the option, but some sort of rushing attack involving a mobile quarterback is almost a guarantee if the Auburn passing attack gets shut down.

While it may be a bit of an exaggeration some Auburn fan's have come to call Frazier a "little Cam Newton," in reference to his rushing ability.

Frazier is third on his team in rushing with 244 yards on 52 attempts and 4.69 yards per attempt.  

If the best secondary in the nation embarrasses Auburn's quarterbacks then Kiehl Frazier will be called upon, and he poses a valid threat to the Tide.  

Alabama Left Tackle No. 75 Barrett Jones, Junior, 6'5", 310 Lbs

Trent Richardson and others have come to call Barrett Jones the Tide's "MVP," but while that is debatable, none can argue the importance of Jones on Alabama's front five.  When he's not in the game both the passing and running games struggle.  

Barrett Jones has high NFL draft stock, and very well may go in the first round.  He is a finalist for the Outland Trophy, awarded to the nation's best interior lineman, and is well-deserving of the award.

Jones suffered an ankle injury in the game against LSU, but continued to play, likely aggravating the injury.  He did not play in Alabama's past two games against Mississippi State and Georgia Southern.

If he is healthy, expect another solid performance paving the way for Trent Richardson and protecting A.J. McCarron's blind side.  If the effects of the injury continue to linger, however, Auburn's defense may try to exploit his weakness.