Offensive line coach Jeff Grimes’ typical laid-back demeanor was challenged Monday when a question bristled him enough to sit up straight, tilt in his chair and deliver a stern message that forcefully echoed his players’ attitude about No. 2 Alabama.

“We’re not ever going to talk about anybody intimidating us,” Grimes said in response to the notion that some teams have clocked out before the opening kickoff against an Alabama team that has physically bullied its way to 11 consecutive wins this season.

“Obviously, nobody’s beaten them and nobody’s put a lot of yards on them, so they’re pretty good at what they do, so I’m giving them a ton of credit. But we’re not going to be intimidated by anybody.”

Players haven’t gone as far to say that last year’s 36-0 dismantling in Tuscaloosa was over before the Auburn team buses crossed through Montgomery County, but the standard pregame optimism appears to be a bit more genuine.

“We really didn’t give ourselves a chance, you know, running different offenses every game and everything being in total disarray,” said wide receiver Kodi Burns, the quarterback in last year’s loss. “You went into the game with the mindset that you’re going to win, but as far as our season went, as good as Alabama was and all the ups and downs we had, once we reached that point in the game, everybody kind of had that look on the sideline that we had all year.”

And just like last year, the deck is certainly stacked against the host Tigers, even without all the internal struggles that bogged them down in 2008.

Alabama is an even better favorite to win this season than it was in 2008. The gambling lines have wavered anywhere from a 12- to 14-point Crimson Tide victory.

Auburn is two wins better on paper and worlds better in terms of confidence, offensive efficiency and unity, sure. But so is Alabama, now three years into Nick Saban’s tenure with three years’ worth of the nation’s top talent dotting its roster.

That’s what makes the possibility of pulling one of the biggest upsets in Iron Bowl history — on the 20th anniversary of the first Iron Bowl ever played at Jordan-Hare Stadium — all the sweeter to the Tigers.

“I believe more than half of the people around the state won’t give us a chance to pull it out,” defensive end Michael Goggans said. “But only the people involved with us know, the coaches, the players. It’s all we’ve got.”

The history in this now 116-year-old series doesn’t do Auburn any favors, either.

Terry Bowden won his first Iron Bowl in 1993, capping a perfect 11-0 season tainted by probationary sanctions. Tommy Tuberville didn’t win his first Iron Bowl until Year 2, a 9-0 shutout in the first-ever Iron Bowl at Bryant-Denny Stadium, and no other Auburn coach has won his first Iron Bowl since the renewal of the rivalry in 1948.

All told, first-year coaches on both sides are 3-12 since 1948.

It was a little easier in the latter part of the 19th century and early 1900s, when five first-year Auburn coaches picked up Iron Bowl victories, but that’s beyond ancient history for Gene Chizik.

Heck, he wouldn’t even touch last season’s game, even after showing clips of it to his team as motivation this week.

“We don’t dwell or constantly live in the past and motivate through what happened here and there,” Chizik said. “This is a new time and a new year. This game won’t be any different in terms of the fact that we have got to do what we do better than they do what they do. It’s all about execution and physicality of the game.”

The circumstances surrounding this game are still the same, though. The only thing preventing Alabama from a second consecutive perfect regular season is Auburn.

“Those guys are undefeated,” tailback Ben Tate said. “I don’t think we’ll probably keep them out of the national championship if they win the SEC Championship, but we could definitely say we beat that team and we just won the Iron Bowl.

“It would mean a lot to the program. It would help us turn the program around a lot.”

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