Alabama vs. Texas A&M in the 1968 Cotton Bowl

Despite the outcome, Coach Paul "Bear" Bryant against his pupil Gene Stallings was a game college football fans will never forget

Somewhat surprisingly, Alabama and Texas A&M will meet for just the 12th time on Saturday. 

The Crimson Tide leads the all-time series, 9-2, and won last year’s meeting, 45-23, on Sept. 22 in Tuscaloosa. 

Alabama has won the last six contests between the two schools, including a 27-19 win in Alabama’s last visit to College Station in 2017. Alabama head coach Nick Saban is 6-1 in his career against the Aggies with all of the matchups occurring during his tenure at Alabama. Texas A&M’s Jimbo Fisher is 0-2 all-time against the Tide.  

Alabama and Texas A&M have many strong connections, including Paul “Bear” Bryant having coached at both schools, and John David Crow, Bryant's only Heisman Trophy winner in 1957, who was an assistant coach at Alabama from 1969-71

Two of Bryant’s protégés also coached at Texas A&M: Gene Stallings and Jackie Sherrill. 

Stallings played for Bryant at A&M before serving as an assistant coach at Alabama from 1958-64. He returned to Tuscaloosa as head coach from 1990-96, and has remained active with both institutions since his retirement from coaching. 

Sherrill played for Bryant at Alabama from 1963-65 and served as head coach at A&M from 1982-88. 

Maybe the most memorable matchup between the schools occurred at the 1968 Cotton Bowl. 

Gene Stallings and the Aggies came out on top in this game, 20-16, with Bryant famously giving Stallings a bear hug at midfield afterward. 

Alabama finished the season ranked in the top 10 with an 8-2-1 record. 

Over 73,000 people attended, the largest crowd of the season for Alabama. 

Of course, since the game was in Dallas, most of the fans were for Texas A & M.

Both teams' roster.  Note Curley Hallman, a future Alabama assistant coach, on the A & M roster

The Texas A & M coaching staff had an Alabama flavor with at least 4 of them with an Alabama connection