The Alabama Crimson Tide will take on the Auburn Tigers this Saturday for the classic Iron Bowl game. Fans at Bryant-Denny Stadium can expect to hear lots of “Roll Tide” and “War Eagle” from each team’s fan bases.
“Roll Tide” has been said by Alabama fans for generations and can easily be tied to the Crimson Tide. The Auburn Tigers say “War Eagle” for their battle cry.
Roll Tide
Alabama fans use “Roll Tide” for everything, and there is not one concise meaning. It is used to say hello, goodbye, “good job” and a variety of other things.
Sophomore psychology major Jimmie Thompson IV talked about what “Roll Tide” means as an Alabama student and lifelong Auburn fan.
“‘Roll Tide’ has become a second sort of language to me too, especially being at Alabama. Hearing ‘Roll Tide’ up here means that there’s about to be a good time, no matter what,” Thompson said.
There is no real answer as to where “Roll Tide” came from; it just sort of appeared over time. It is said that it could have been used to depict the Alabama football team running onto the field, according to a Crimson White article.
The Alabama football team was nicknamed the Crimson Tide by former Birmingham Age-Herald sports editor Hugh Roberts. Roberts used the term “Crimson Tide” when describing an Alabama-Auburn game in 1907.
It is said that eventually the term “Roll Tide” was used to allude to the Crimson Tide going onto the football field, but the actual origin is unclear.
Eventually, “Roll Tide” was used to describe the Crimson Tide, whether in between lines of the song “Sweet Home Alabama” or added onto “Yea Alabama.”
War Eagle
“War Eagle” is Auburn’s battle cry, although it does not refer to the school’s mascot or nickname of the Tigers. The saying has the same effect as “Roll Tide” does, and fans can expect to hear it from other fans as a greeting, goodbye, “good job” or other similar parts of conversation.
“‘War Eagle’ has been my kind of hello since I was smaller,” Thompson said. “‘War Eagle’ is unique because the Auburn culture is so unique. Loyal fans scream ‘War Eagle’ for that reason.”
Auburn has a live golden eagle, named War Eagle, who flies around Jordan-Hare Stadium before every home kickoff.
There are several different legends about how the “War Eagle” battle cry actually started. The most famous story is in regards to the first time Auburn football played against Georgia in 1892.
It is said that there was a Civil War veteran in the crowd, and he had an eagle he found on a battlefield during the war. He then kept the eagle for 30 years.
At the Auburn-Georgia game, it is said that the eagle broke free and began flying around the football field. As the eagle flew around the field, the Auburn offense moved towards the Georgia end zone en route to a victory, and the fans started crying out “War Eagle.”
At the end of the game, the eagle suddenly dove and crashed into the ground, resulting in the eagle’s death.
Fans started yelling “War Eagle” because the eagle was then seen as a good omen. The battle cry has lasted ever since that game.
