The Alabama Crimson Tide, currently ranked fourth in the country, is playing the Georgia Bulldogs, which are ranked second. This Saturday's big game has us at Tide100.9 thinking about the last time these two teams faced off without former head coach Nick Saban, who is regarded as one of, if not the greatest coaches of all time after winning six national titles with the Crimson Tide in his 16-year tenure with the Tide.

October 4th, 2003

Alabama suffered a 37-23 road defeat against the eleventh-ranked Georgia Bulldogs. At that time, Mike Shula was the head coach of the Crimson Tide, who endured a disappointing season with a 4-9 record, losing their third consecutive game. This raised concerns among Alabama fans about whether the team would be able to reclaim their former success. However, their redemption was just a few seasons away.

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During this time, Nick Saban led the LSU Tigers to a 13-1 season, which concluded in Saban's first National Championship victory over the Heisman Trophy winner Jason White's Oklahoma Sooners, 21-14.

Despite LSU's victory against the Sooners in the National Championship, the Tigers weren't the only champions for the 2003 season. AP voters elected to ignore the BCS voting machine and named the Pete Carol-coached USC Trojans as the 2003 National Championships.

Let's explore what was happening in the world in 2003.

Both Starting Quarterbacks for Georgia and Alabama Were in Diapers

Alabama Crimson Tide starting quarterback Jalen Milroe was born on December 13th, while Carson Beck turned one on November 19th.

Twitter and Facebook Were not Created yet

There was no Twitter (established in 2006, now known as X) or Facebook (created in 2004), as the most popular social media site was Myspace, which was founded on August 1st, 2003.

Jaromír Jàgr Scores His 1,200th NHL Goal

For any hockey enthusiast out there on January 11th, 2003, in the Washington Right Wing In a 12-2 win over Florida, Jaromír Jágr not only scored his 10th career hat-trick but also added 4 assists for 7 points and his 1,200th NHL point. According to onthisday.com, Jágr had scored 20 or more goals in each of his 13 NHL seasons.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers win SB XXXVII

On January 26th, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, led by head coach Jon Gruden, defeated the Oakland Raiders 41-28 to win Superbowl XXXVII, with Bucs safety Dexter Jackson winning SB XXXVII MVP.

'Jimmy Kimmel Live' Debuts

On the same day as SB XXXVII, the American late-night talk show 'Jimmy Kimmel Live' Hosted by Jimmy Kimmel premiered on ABC.

Invasion of Iraq Begins

On March 19th, the United States and British coalitions launched a war in Iraq with air strikes and calls for the famous dictator Saddam Hussein to evacuate the nation. This sparked a 10-year-long war in Iraq, which ended when America called for an end to the war in December 2011.

Micheal Jordan Plays Last NBA Game

Michael Jordan played his final NBA game on April 16th, when the Washington Wizards faced the Philadelphia 76ers on the road. Jordan received a three-minute standing ovation and finished with 15 points, four rebounds, and four assists.

Finding Nemo Premieres in the United States and Canada

On May 30th, Disney released the blockbuster success "Finding Nemo," directed by Andrew Stanton and starring Ellen DeGeneres as Dory. The successful film grossed $936 million globally according to the-numbers.com.

Barry Bonds Becomes First Player to Record 500 Career steals and 500 Career Home Runs

On June 23rd, San Francisco Giants outfielder Barry Bonds achieved his 500th career steal by swiping second base against the Los Angeles Dodgers, making him the first player in history to reach both 500 steals and 500 home runs in a career.

Lebron James Drafted No.1 Overall to the Cleveland Cavaliers

On June 26th, St. Vincent-Mary's High School (Akon, OH) Small-Foward Lebron James is drafted with the first pick in the 2003 NBA Draft.

These are just a handful of the events that occurred during the last meeting between the Alabama Crimson Tide and the Georgia Bulldogs when Nick Saban was not the head coach. This Saturday marks the beginning of a new era for the Crimson Tide, as Kalen Deboer, in his first year as head coach, looks to defeat the top-ranked Georgia Bulldogs and make a statement for Alabama football.

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