Auburn head football coach Gene Chizik talked about preparing for Friday’s game against rival Alabama in his press conference Monday.

“This is the kind of game that you love to play in,” Chizik said. “This is what college football is all about. It’s a great rivalry against obviously a great opponent, and it’s going to be a good football game.”

Chizik said the Iron Bowl is important regardless of how the season ends.

“Whenever you talk to anybody that has a rivalry of any sort, certainly an in-state one, it’s huge for everybody involved,” Chizik said. “It’s huge for the players and the coaches. Obviously, it’s huge for the fan base. It’s what makes college football great, these types of rivalries, and certainly this is one of the greatest in college football.”

Alabama currently has the best scoring defense in the SEC, which Chizik said is not easy to accomplish in this league.

“There are a lot of explosive players right now in these skilled positions, certainly at quarterback and wideout,” Chizik said. “That being said, that just kind of magnifies how good they really are on defense.”

Looking back, the Georgia game marked the 49th consecutive start for senior offensive lineman Lee Ziemba. Chizik said Ziemba’s number of starts is unbelievable considering his physically demanding position.

“That’s probably one guy you don’t speak of really enough who has really been a great centerpiece for our offense as an anchor on our offensive line, and he has been a rock,” Chizik said. “He has been great.”

After 11 games without a break, Chizik said he is grateful for a bye week before Alabama, but is careful not to overcoach his team.

“You have to balance how much you’re going to practice, how much you’re going to meet and how long you are going to be on the field,” Chizik said. “There is nothing more important in my opinion right now in a game like this than that your guys are mentally and physically fresh.”