Auburn Will Win the National Title: The Duck Stops Here

As an Alabama fan, it's a hard thing to admit. The Auburn University football team is the best in the nation. But when you are sitting in the end zone of your alma mater with a 24-3 lead in the Iron Bowl, and you see that lead vanish over the next 30 minutes, it's time to take off the crimson glasses and give credit to the champion of the west for winning one the hard way.

In one of the most bitter rivalries in the landscape of college football, Cameron Newton led his team to victory. With the guidance of offensive coordinator, Gus Malzahn, Mr. Newton not only won the Iron Bowl in glorious fashion, he captained the Auburn Tigers to an undefeated season.

Gene Chizik and his defensive staff made the necessary adjustments in the halftime of every game that gave his defense the keys to victory. The victory over arch rival Alabama was the most impressive turnaround in the storied history of the Iron Bowl, both offensively and defensively.

And then in the SEC championship, Auburn dismantled a South Carolina team that fought the Tigers to the bitter end during the regular season. A season that hardened the Auburn Tigers into a highly productive offensive unit and a defensive unit that bends just enough to break the opposition in the end.

The rematch was highly anticipated but anti-climactic. South Carolina never had a chance. The Gamecocks were never in the game. The 56-17 final score was the most lopsided in the history of the SEC championship game.

Time and time again, teams from the east and west of the SEC gave what they thought was all that Auburn could handle. Yet time and time again, the Tigers would be in every game after three quarters of play, and the fourth quarter was all Auburn. 

Are they a dominating team? Not in the pure sense of the idea of domination. But at the end of every contest in 2010, the opposition was spent and the Auburn Tigers were victors.

I see no chance of a deviation from this same scenario in the national championship game. In fact, considering the domination that Oregon showed over the Pac-10 last year and the end result of the Rose Bowl against the Ohio State Buckeyes, I believe the Ducks are in for another rude awakening.

Once again the Ducks sliced through the Pac-10 with very little real opposition. Now, they will have to face a team with strength and speed they have not seen, defensively. They will face an offense that is unmatched in execution with regard to strength on the offensive line, use of multiple playmakers and point production over a 60-minute interval.

The combination was effective for 12 regular season games, eight of those games played against opposition from the toughest conference in college football.

Cameron Newton has accounted for 28 touchdowns passing, 20 touchdowns rushing and one touchdown receiving. He has passed for 2,589 yards and has a completion percentage of 67.1, while rushing for 1,409 yards on 242 carries, averaging 5.8 yards per carry.

Oregon quarterback Darron Thomas has been just as impressive passing the ball, scoring 28 touchdowns on 195-of-321 attempts for 2,518 yards. But his rushing production is abysmal compared to the Auburn first-year starter. Thomas has carried the ball 85 times for only 492 yards and scored only five rushing touchdowns. He is not the same caliber, dual-threat as Cameron Newton.

Half-pint LaMichael James ran for better than 1,600 yards, averaging 6.0 yards per carry and scored 21 touchdowns over the 12 game season. But at 5'9" and 180 pounds, the sophomore from Texarkana does not have the strength or frame to withstand the punishment of the Auburn defensive front seven.

If he lasts the entire game, he will wish he hadn't. He will not be able to carry the ball 25 times against the Auburn Tigers. While the Oregon offensive line is big and strong, they have not faced an opposition line with the size, strength and quickness that the Auburn defensive line possesses.

Nick Fairley is a punishing defensive tackle, standing 6'5" with the wing span of a bald eagle. He knows how to apply every ounce of his 298-pound frame into each and every tackle. Call him a death eater, it fits him well. He will suck the life out of LaMichael James or any other ball carrier he engulfs.

If there is a weakness in the Auburn defense, it is the secondary. Alabama exploited them for 30 minutes in the 2010 Iron Bowl. Unfortunately, the game is played for 60 minutes, and the halftime adjustments made by the coaches and players were exceptional. The Alabama quarterback did not find the same opportunities in the third and fourth quarters. They just weren't there anymore.

Beyond WR Jeff Maehl, Oregon hasn't proven they have another truly productive receiver. Maehl has 12 touchdowns on the season, but no one else is close. It will be too easy for the Auburn defense to shut down Maehl and too difficult for another player to step up in a game of this magnitude.

With over a month to prepare, a healthy Auburn team will be too much for the Oregon Ducks to face head on. Count on a lot of misdirection by Chip Kelly and his offense. It just won't be enough. Gus Malzahn is well versed in misdirection, and his scout team offense will have the first team Auburn defense well prepared.

And for those Oregon fans who look back and think the 48-13 victory over the Tennessee Volunteers was a barometer of some kind to use for measurement. Alabama defeated that same Volunteer team 41-10 and took the pedal off the gas in the fourth quarter. Auburn would have done the same if given the chance.

Michael Dyer is the most productive freshman running back in the history of the Auburn program. He is backed by one of the toughest runners in the conference—Mario Fannin. The Auburn receiving corp is one of the best in the country.

The trio of Darvin Adams, Terrell Zachery and Emory Blake have scored 18 of the 29 receiving touchdowns. Tight end Philip Lutzenkirchen has five touchdowns on the season. It's just too much to handle for 60 minutes.

The Auburn Tigers are a team of destiny. They have faced their fears and have overcome them with grace and courage. The distractions brought on by the media during the season have bonded this team into solid unit. Oregon is a worthy opponent. They just don't have the ability to beat the Auburn Tigers.