Auburn Reigns As SEC Champion: The BCS Title Awaits Claim

The SEC championship game is finished. Auburn decisively settled the contest in Atlanta with the most dominant win in the history of the SEC championship game, an extraordinary 56-17 performance over eastern conference representative, South Carolina.

The SEC commission has a crowned champion that will represent the conference in the BCS national championship game in Glendale, Arizona, home of the Fiesta Bowl. Since the inception of the BCS championship game in 2007, the SEC has placed a contender in the championship bowl game each year.

In the inaugural BCS championship game, Florida defeated Ohio State 41-14. LSU claimed the title in 2008 with a decisive win over OSU 38-24. Florida then returned to the championship game in 2009, defeating Oklahoma 24-14. And in 2010, Alabama defeated the Texas Longhorns, 37-21.

Since 1998, a BCS national championship has been awarded. The SEC has claimed the crown six times. The Big 12 is second with two champions, while the ACC, Big Ten, Pac-10 and Big East have only one title holder. The Big East holds claim to the 2001 national title won by The University Miami, now a member of the ACC.

In 2011, Auburn University will take on the Oregon Ducks for the chance to continue a string of consecutive BCS Championships from what is considered the most dominant conference in college football, the SEC. It is the first opportunity for a PAC-10 team to claim the national title since a dominant USC team defeated Oklahoma 55-14 in 2004.

In that same year, the Auburn Tigers at 12-0 were shunned from national title contention and ended their season with a 16-13 victory over Virginia Tech in the Sugar Bowl. Since that day, the Auburn football program has dealt with internal conflict, general adversity, cross-state and across-state lines wrath, and finally an unhealthy administration-head coach marriage that ended in an ugly divorce with the ousting of Tommy Tuberville.

The new bride, Gene Chizik, was not altogether welcome when he got off the plane and walked down the isle with Athletic Director Jay Jacobs.

Jacobs entered as AD of the Auburn football program in 2004. He has presided over the program during the dysfunction that was Auburn Football despite on the field success with coach Tuberville. His decision to accept the resignation of Tuberville certainly came with a cost, but it now seems the price was worth it after all.

In 2009, Chizik's first year as head coach of the Plainsmen, Auburn finished the regular season at 7-5 and suffered a heart-breaking loss to in-state rival Alabama in the last two minutes of the game. This end to the season came after the Tigers began the season at 5-0. Losing five of the last seven games in the regular season added credibility to the naysayers that judged Jacobs as an inept athletic director.

In the Outback Bowl, Auburn defeated the Northwestern Wildcats 38-35. They nearly lost the game in a fourth quarter meltdown that included two fumbles recovered by Northwestern, which allowed for scores to tie the game and send the contest into overtime.

Overtime was ugly, and Auburn only scored a field-goal in their first possession. A series of bad plays on the part of Northwestern and undisciplined play by the Auburn defense nearly spelled doom for Chizik and his team. In the end, Auburn walked off the field as victor.

In the off-season, the coaching staff went to work finishing on a promising class of recruits. On 12/31/09, the eve of the Outback Bowl, Chizik learned that Cameron Newton would give his pledge to the Auburn Tigers on National Signing Day.

It was the first in a chain of successes that would give them the fourth best signing class in the nation. One place higher than in-state rival, Alabama. Late signees included four star Eric Mack and Jeffery Whitaker, both players recruited from outside of the state.

And on National Signing Day, Gene Chizik, along with his talented staff, finished the deal by grabbing in-state players Ladarious Phillips (RB) and Ryan Smith (ATH) along with signing out-of-staters Tunde Fairyike (OL) (Thomaston, GA) and Corey Lemonier (DE) (Hialeah, Fl).

It was an impressive finish for Chizik and his young Auburn coaching staff, particularly when an undefeated Alabama had just claimed a national championship to start the year and had successive No. 1 recruiting classes in 2008 and 2009. It was a statement from the cross-state rival that said, "You might be No. 1 for now but were not backing down, and we'll be here next year and the year after."

Well, it only took one more year to catch up with the Tide and ride the wave to their own undefeated season and a shot at the BCS National Championship. While much of the success for the Tigers can be directly attributed to the success of Cameron Newton, their glory did not come without attention to every detail that contributes to success on the field.

Maturity on the part of the offensive line, growth and development of playmakers on offense to provide balance for to Newton's playmaking ability, and a nastiness on the defensive line that yields dividends in the fourth quarter are a few of the factors that led to Auburn's rise. If you don't think Auburn has a defense, you haven't been watching the same team this writer has been all year.

An undefeated season does not come without hard work, a little luck, and overcoming adversity in many ways. The Auburn staff and players have clearly overcome the hardships thrown their way, and the personal attacks on their quarterback have been a rally point for the players, coaches and fan base.

The Auburn Family is All Auburn, and they are All In. It's time to get on board, SEC football fan. There is plenty of room on the bus in the post-season. Move over Auburn fans, not only do you need our support, you have it. But it's only for the post-season, only for a short while. All allegiance will return to the rightful team following the bowl series. Rivalries will resume after the national title game.

Nothing can stop Auburn but a lack of faith in themselves. That shouldn't happen and it won't happen. Hats off to Chizik and the Auburn football program. The crown that rests on their head is adorned with 12 jewels that represents the entire southeastern conference. Wear it well and win the BCS title.

While there are some individual fans from rival programs that just won't be able to put the hatred aside and unite as one fan base, pulling for Auburn in the national title game is a now officially a southerner's responsibility. It's no longer just about Auburn; it's all about the SEC.

Let all the other issues that have plagued this team be put aside for a short time. Put the in-season rivalry aside for the greater good of the post-season victory. A victory for Auburn is a victory for the SEC, for pride and for bragging rights across the great college football landscape. 

SEC! SEC! SEC!

It's time for a full-fledged commitment to support this Auburn team on January 10th, 2011.

Go Tigers, War Damn Eagle.