The SEC Championship game is set, and both No. 1 Alabama and No. 4 Florida have BCS National Championship aspirations.But for their hopes to become reality, both teams have to beat hated rivals this weekend before next weekend’s title game. Alabama will host Auburn in the 73rd Iron Bowl at 2:30 p.m. Saturday.The Tigers have beaten the Crimson Tide six straight times, including a 17-10 win last year.But Auburn has struggled all season and with a loss to Alabama, the Tigers would not be bowl eligible for the first time since 1999.A win against the Tigers and a win next weekend against Florida will put Alabama in its first ever BCS national championship game, and the Crimson Tide will have a chance for their first national championship since 1992.The Crimson Tide had an open date last weekend, giving Alabama two weeks to prepare for Auburn.Alabama coach Nick Saban said he was glad the team had an open date this late in the season so they could heal for their most important games in the next two weeks.”It allows you to get your players healthy and get them some rest,” Saban said. “We know we have two games left and both are against really good opponents, so we want to really focus on what we need to do to improve.” SUNSHINE STATE SHOWDOWNThe Gators’ fate is less clear than Alabama’s, as Florida is on the outside of the BCS picture looking in heading toward its matchup with in-state rival Florida State.Florida is No. 4 in the BCS Standings, but with a meeting with No. 1 Alabama coming next weekend and either No. 2 Texas or No. 3 Oklahoma being left out of the Big 12 Championship game, the Gators could earn enough of a jump to move into one of the top two spots if they win their last two games.The Gators have never lost to the Seminoles in Urban Meyer’s four seasons at Florida, including a 45-12 win last season.Both teams are coming off dominant performances, as Florida beat The Citadel, 70-19, in The Swamp last weekend, and Florida State earned a 37-3 win at Maryland.Since the Gators’ 31-30 loss to Ole Miss on Sept. 27, Florida has won seven games in a row and outscored their opponents, 369-82, in that span.Things have gone so smoothly for the Gators that Meyer was able to give fifth-year senior defensive tackle Javier Estopinan a touchdown on Saturday.Estopinan has gone through three knee operations in his career, and Meyer said he gave the carry to his defensive lineman as a gesture of appreciation in the senior’s final home game.”Nowadays, to sustain four years of college football, man, that’s hard,” Meyer said. “Guys don’t make it for one reason or another.”END OF THE ROAD FOR FULMNERAfter 17 years, 151 wins and the first ever BCS National Championship, Tennessee coach Phil Fulmer will wrap up his tenure in Knoxville this weekend against Kentucky.Tennessee used a 20-point second quarter to beat in-state rival Vanderbilt, 20-10, last weekend.The Volunteers’ defense forced three turnovers in the win, including cornerback Eric Berry’s interception return for a touchdown.The defensive points helped an anemic Volunteers offense that gained just 243 yards.Offense has been at the head of Tennessee’s struggles this season, and the Volunteers are No. 116 out of 119 Division-I teams in total offense.The Volunteers can avoid their first eight-loss season in school history with a win against Kentucky.Fulmer said he’s proud of the effort his team is playing with as they try to send their coach away a winner.”Even though you don’t see those things in the statistics, as a coach you get great satisfaction from that,” he said.
 
 
 
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