In 1983, they should have said more. In 2004 they should have said more. Now they’re saying more.
Auburn wants to play for the national championship regardless of whether Ohio State, who is currently one spot ahead of Auburn at No. 2 in the BCS rankings, wins Saturday night or not.
“We play in the best league in college football, I think we’ve won the last seven,” Gus Malzahn told CBS’s Tracy Wolfson after beating No. 5 Missouri to win the SEC Championship, “and if you go through our schedule you deserve it.”
In addition to Malzahn’s post-game comments, Auburn Athletic Director Jay Jacobs sent a flurry of tweets following the game. An example: “Nine words why Auburn should go: strength of schedule, strength of schedule, strength of schedule.”
And with Missouri’s body’s still warm, Auburn sent media members an “Auburn Football Resume”: Six stats touting the Tigers not as just a Cinderella story written with miracles, but as a pigskin powerhouse that, uh, maybe deserves to go to Pasadena more than any other team in the country.
Here they are:
AUBURN FOOTBALL (2013 SEC CHAMPIONS)
** Auburn has five wins versus ranked teams, the most of any team in the top six of the BCS standings.
** Auburn has won nine consecutive games, with five of those wins coming against ranked opponents, including three against the top 10.
** Auburn has three wins against Top 10 teams, including consecutive wins against the No. 1 and No. 5 teams in the country.
** Auburn has the highest strength of schedule (Sagarin) of any of the teams in the top six of the BCS standings.
** No other team in college football this season has defeated two top-five teams.
** 10 of Auburn’s 13 opponents are bowl eligible, the most of any team in the top 10 of the BCS standings.
Go baby, go baby, go baby, go…
Related: Auburn ties NCAA improvement record from one year to the next.
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* Cam Newton ‘War Eagles’ throughout his post-game press conference Sunday after Iron Bowl
* New York Post: Iron Bowl ending ‘greatest in the history of sports’
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* Highlights, Iron Bowl, Highlights
* Watch Rod Bramblett, Stan White and the Auburn radio broadcast booth react to the final play
* Hear Rod and Eli back to back
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Wow. The shelf-life for this article sure was short.
The argument was quickly settled by reality and AU was right all along! The media would have really enjoyed this debate. I can hear Lou Holtz now… Alas the talking heads have to move on to Pasadena! Whether they like it or not.
Hee hee.