Of the thousands of students attending The University of Alabama, 83 of them sometimes experience reactions of shock when asked where they are from.

This fall semester, 83 students from the city of Auburn attend The University of Alabama, and some find it difficult to decide where their loyalties lie as the Iron Bowl approaches.

“My parents were always really big Auburn fans, but now they’ve really come around,” said Candace Wilson, a senior majoring in psychology and biology. “If Alabama is playing Auburn, they’ll actually root for Alabama, but if Auburn plays Georgia or anyone else, they want Auburn to win.”

While Wilson said she is dedicated to the Tide, she said she still finds herself cheering on the Tigers when she is at home with friends. Wilson said she chose to come to the University because she wanted a new experience after living in Auburn for so long.

While some UA students from Auburn grew up there, some found themselves in the town after growing up as established Alabama fans.

According to AL.com, the statewide split between Alabama and Auburn football fans is 61 percent for Alabama and 39 percent for Auburn. Sorting of fans were based on personalized license plates sold in each county featuring designs supporting Alabama and Auburn.

Out of all 67 counties in Alabama, 58 counties had a majority of Alabama fans, seven counties had a majority of Auburn fans and two counties were split almost evenly, with Bullock County at 51 percent for Auburn and Houston County at 51 percent for Alabama.

Tuscaloosa County is categorized as 94 percent Alabama fans and 6 percent Auburn fans.

Elizabeth Gordon, a freshman with an undecided major, moved from Birmingham to Auburn before high school and said she and her family learned to love the town despite the teasing.

“It’s all in good fun and always all about the rivalry,” Gordon said. “I was always unafraid to wear my crimson and white, so the teasing was to be expected. There were actually some Alabama fans there to sympathize with, but for the most part everyone seemed to be Auburn fans.”

For other students like Lucas Glisson, a senior majoring in biology, the rivalry is more intense. Glisson said he has even more reason to dislike Auburn because his parents both graduated from the University of Georgia, and supporting UGA and The University of Alabama in Auburn was never supported by Auburn fans, especially leading up to the Iron Bowl.

“I’ve been getting the most amount of grief from [friends back home], just because of last year’s game,” Glisson said. “I let them know pretty early on that you may want to get all of your trash talking out now, because it’s not going to last much longer. I’m pretty confident this year I won’t be as heartbroken as before.”

Like Wilson, Glisson said he chose to attend The University of Alabama because he wanted to branch out after living in Auburn.

“Growing up in Auburn, it’s really accepted to just stay either at Auburn or the community college right down the road,” Glisson said. “For me, it was about becoming more self-sufficient after college, because I definitely don’t think I would have done that if I would have stayed at Auburn.”

Despite being a lifelong Alabama fan, the long-standing rivalry and constant teasing, Gordon said she she still feels torn when trying to decide where to call home.

“I still really like Auburn as a community and a town,” Gordon said. “It was a nice place to grow up. I also really like UA and Tuscaloosa, so I am a bit torn in [that] aspect, but in the end, roll tide all the way.”

Info from Al.com:

• Rankings of fans based on personalized license plates sold featuring designs supporting Alabama and Auburn.
  • The statewide split between Alabama and Auburn football fans is 61 percent Alabama; 39 percent Auburn.
  • Tuscaloosa County – 94 percent Alabama; 6 percent Auburn
  • Lee County – 84 percent Auburn; 16 percent Alabama
  • Out of all counties in Alabama:
    • 58 counties had a majority of Alabama fans
    • Seven counties had a majority of Auburn fans
    • Two counties were split almost evenly
      • Bullock County – 51 percent Auburn; 49 percent Alabama
      • Houston County – 51 percent Alabama; 49 percent Auburn