, and the Auburn University Board of Trustees, have decided to recognize seven additional national championships in the program’s history.
auburn, Alabama – Auburn University announced Tuesday that it will recognize seven additional national championships, bringing its total to nine. The decision includes recognizing the 2004 team,which finished undefeated but was not selected for the BCS National Championship Game.
The additional championships are from the following years: 1910, 1913, 1914, 1958, 1983, and 1993. Auburn previously recognized national championships from 1957 and 2010.
The move comes as collage football programs increasingly look to celebrate their full history of success. Auburn Athletic Director John Cohen stated, “For too long, Auburn has chosen a humble approach to our program’s storied history – choosing to only recognize Associated Press National Championships.” He added, “Starting this fall, we have made the decision to honour the accomplishments of our deserving student-athletes, coaches, and teams from Auburn’s proud history.”
The 2004 Auburn team, lead by quarterback Jason Campbell, running backs Ronnie Brown and Cadillac Williams, went 13-0, defeating four teams ranked in the top 15. However,the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) selected USC and Oklahoma to play for the national title.
The decision to recognize championships from the early 20th century relies on retroactive rankings. The 1910 team was named champion by the maxwell Ratings and College Football Rankings, while the 1914 team was recognized by the howell Ratings System.
Auburn’s decision follows a trend of schools claiming championships based on various polls and selectors. In 2017, UCF claimed a national championship after defeating Auburn in the peach Bowl, despite not being selected for the College Football Playoff.
