Derrick Henry never broke one of his trademark long touchdown runs on Saturday, the kind where he slices through a defense like a great white shark through salt water, the opposing safeties trailing just behind like pilot fish.
Part of that was due to an inspired Auburn effort to slow him down.
Part of it was a playing surface that seemed more suited for a Stanley Cup Final than an Alabama-Auburn football game. There was one 30-yard burst, then the late 25-yard touchdown where Henry pushed his way through an exhausted defense.
Instead, there was a steady stream of 4-, 5-, 6- and 7-yard runs that wore down the Tigers and provided a mirror to what Henry’s Alabama team has done since mid-September when it lost to Ole Miss.