Strange but true NFL Draft facts:

Auburn's Reese Dismukes, who won the Rimington Award as the best center in college football last season, didn't get drafted.

Alabama guard Arie Kouandjio and tackle Austin Shepherd did.

There may be tangible and intangible ways to explain that interesting development, but the fact remains. In the eyes of the NFL, there's been a massive talent gap between the Tide and the Tigers.

Auburn actually narrowed the gap last weekend. The Tigers had five draftees to Alabama's seven, the closest Auburn has come since the 2011 Cam Newton-Nick Fairley draft when Alabama's edge in draft picks was only 5-4, but overall the numbers are eye-popping.

The last time Auburn had more players drafted than Alabama was 2008, Tommy Tuberville's last year as the Auburn coach and Nick Saban's second at Alabama. Since 2009, in the last seven NFL drafts combined:

Alabama has had 48 players drafted. Auburn has had 20. That's an advantage of almost 2 1/2-to-1.

Alabama has had 17 first-round draft picks. Auburn has had four. That's an advantage of more than 4-to-1.

Alabama has had at least one first-round draft pick for seven straight years, the longest current streak in the country, which is tied for the second-longest streak in SEC history.

Auburn hasn't had a single first-round draft pick in six of the last eight years. The Tigers doubled up on first-rounders with Newton and Fairley in 2011 and Greg Robinson and Dee Ford in 2014.

Is it any wonder that Alabama has won five of the last seven Iron Bowls? Is it any surprise that Alabama has dominated for the most part in its Iron Bowl victories while Auburn needed the greatest comeback in series history in 2010 and the Kick Six in 2013?

You can argue that college football and the NFL are different games, and they are. You can say Dismukes not getting drafted isn't a reflection of how good a college player he was, and it isn't.

You also can make the point that Alabama has outrecruited the world, not just Auburn, during Saban's tenure, and it has, but recruiting alone doesn't explain the draft gap. All five-star prospects don't become first-round draft picks.

You have to keep your recruits on campus and develop them while they're there. Gene Chizik and his Auburn staff came up well short in those areas.



That's the biggest challenge facing Gus Malzahn and his Auburn staff moving forward. Malzahn is 1-1 against Saban in Iron Bowls and SEC championships. Saban leads Malzahn 15-9 in draft picks and 3-2 in first-rounders.

The closer those draft numbers get, the more they'll reflect a much more balanced Iron Bowl rivalry.