Malachi Moore didn't follow 24-hour rule ahead of his fourth Iron Bowl

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Alabama has a 24-hour rule after each win where it celebrates a victory before turning its attention to the next opponent. But Malachi Moore admitted he cut that short by several hours this week and tuned into Auburn’s 31-10 loss to New Mexico State.

“I’m not going to lie, I watched their game this past Saturday as soon as I got home, and then after that, later that night, I started watching their offense on Saturday night,” Moore said. “So nah, I ain’t listened to the 24-hour rule.”

Moore is one of 24 scholarship players on the Crimson Tide’s 2023 roster who calls the state of Alabama home. Growing up in nearby Trussville, Ala., he said someday being part of the annual Iron Bowl rivalry game was “definitely a little kid’s dream, being from Alabama.”

“Growing up, playing football, watching football, I was watching the Iron Bowl,” Moore said on Monday. “It’s definitely a blessing to be able to play in this game. A lot of people look at this game in the state, like you said, it’s a big one in the state. It just means a lot to suit up for the Crimson Tide to go out there and play in this great rivalry.”

Of the 24 Alabama natives on this year’s team, less than half of them consistently play roles on the first-team offense or defense – or are special teams contributors. The Crimson Tide’s roster is predominantly made up of players from outside of the Yellowhammer State, as Alabama has recruited at a national level since head coach Nick Saban arrived in 2007.

With so many players not growing up with the Iron Bowl being discussed at school or around the Thanksgiving table, does a local kid like Moore have to teach his out-of-state teammates?

“I really feel like our team understands the rivalry,” Moore said. “I feel like when you come here and you put that Alabama A on your chest, like we say ‘B Psi Phi. Bama Psi Phi for life.’ That’s something that everybody’s all into. It’s basically like they’re from Alabama at this point, I would say. Everybody understands the rivalry and what we need to do to be successful.”

What is well-known at this point is how difficult it is to play at Jordan-Hare Stadium as the road team in this annual rivalry. Alabama is 4-4 in games played at Auburn since Saban took over the storied program and is looking to claim its second consecutive win in Lee County.

“It’s always a difficult task going into their stadium,” Moore said. “Their fans do a great job of being into the game and we’ve just got to go down there and execute and make sure we have a great week of practice and preparation and make sure that everybody’s locked in.”

Moore and the other members of the Tide’s 2020 signing class that are still on campus have not lost to Auburn, posting a perfect 3-0 record over the last three seasons. A win on Saturday, Nov. 25, would give the Tide four straight victories against the Tigers for the first time since 1981, and that is a streak that Moore and his fellow seniors are hoping to keep alive.

“It would definitely be big just to go 4-0 against them,” Moore said. “It’s something that we take pride in here just because we never want to lose a game, first of all, but second of all, it’s a rivalry and we’re just going to go out there and compete and do our best to have fun out there.”

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