Sports in Paradise by Dale Jones

So here we go Auburn Fans, a shot at the title. A place that no one, not even the Auburn faithful, expected to be at the end of this season. Now, on the tails of an Alabama National Championship, comes the Auburn Tigers with a chance to bring the trophy back to the state for a second year in a row.

Oregon coach Chip Kelly is the AP Coach of the Year. Gene Chizik finished second.

Auburn’s Cam Newton is the 2010 Heisman Trophy winner. Oregon’s LaMichael James came in third.

Auburn comes in sporting an undefeated 13-0 record, a feat that is tough to pull off for any team that calls the SEC home. The Ducks, champs of the Pac-10, are ranked second in the nation with a 12-0 record.

For the fifth straight year, an SEC team is playing in, and has a shot of winning, the national championship game.

With two very fast-paced offenses, and two defenses that are suspect from time to time, this game could be symbolized by a firecracker. You light the fuse, you step away and watch, and at some point, you know that it is going to explode.

Will the Tigers and Ducks be true to form and run a gazillion plays each and score 200 points? I’m not sure.

But this SEC vs. PAC-10 match-up, something that has never happened in a BSC bowl game, should be plenty exciting.

It is always fun to watch two teams that have never competed against each other, and when that meeting finally happens in the championship game, it makes it even sweeter.

If you look on any PAC-10 related message board, it is obvious that the fans believe that the SEC is overrated. If you look at an SEC blog, the feeling is mutual.

So how do we pick this game? Two teams, both undefeated, that have never played against each other. Two conferences that have never met in a BCS bowl game.

I remember a former high school football coach that I knew who often wore a shirt that said “defense wins.” He believed that on any given Saturday, the team that had the most effective defense, that made the least amount of turnovers, would win the game.

Although I am not completely sold on that philosophy, in this final game of the 2010-2011 season, I would have to agree.

Both teams will move the ball. They will jump up and run plays faster than Brett Favre can send a text message. Cam and LaMichael will both have big games. But ultimately, the SEC will win. Yes, it will be in the form of the Auburn Tigers, but it will be because of the hard-hitting, physical defenses that the Tigers have to face in these parts throughout the season. Oregon has never been hit like they will be hit on January 10.

Call me a homer if you want, but when it comes to tough, blue-collar, hard-nosed defense, the SEC is better than the PAC-10 hands down.

This could be a close match. Expect lots of points to be scored, but at the end of the day, the Tigers, and the SEC, will bring home the trophy.

We can only hope that the officials bring some reserves for this track meet.

Auburn 45 – Oregon 41

Hit ‘em straight
—Dale Jones is a reporter / sports columnist for Gulf Coast Newspapers and a Member of the Alabama Sports Writers Association. You can reach Dale at djones@gulfcoastnewspapers.com

9 thoughts on “Defense will determine BCS winner”

  1. It depends on if Oregon gets a fast start. Auburns defense only decides to play hard in the second half, usually because they are down by double-digits. If Bama jumped to a 30 point lead in the first half against Auburn, Auburn doesn’t come back. Same with Oregon: If they get a big lead in the first half, does Auburn have one more com from behind win left?

  2. Didn’t Oregon play Tennessee this year and have about fifty unanswered points? Isn’t Tennessee part of the SEC? Just wondering.

  3. I don’t think Tennessee is representative of the SEC this year. Yeah, Oregon killed them this year but so did a lot of the teams that played Tennessee. If Auburn’s defense played like they did against South Carolina in the SEC championship game then Auburn might have the edge. But Oregon is a lot better than USC. I don’t think either offense will really be stopped. I think it comes down to turnovers.

  4. IF bama scores 30…..they didnt so doesnt matter now. The Defense only plays in the second half? Thats called Coaching Adjustments. I can see why you wouldnt know what that is considering saban’s record when he goes into halftime down. Its pretty awfull. Shows why he was outcoached by not only Chizik but Les Miles Coached circles around him. Now that is truly sad.

  5. Aubfag334, Bama was well on its way until Ingram fumbled. And it was luck in how the ball went through the endzone. But you are right. IF they score 30, Auburn doesn’t come back. I am sure lucky breaks and timely turnovers are part of ‘coaching adjustments’. And whether you like it or not, Sabans championships and record is better than chizniks. And Bama had injuries to 12 staters at some point during the season, and still managed a 10-3 record, while Auburn is the luckiest team since Les Miles LSU team from last year. Saban has averaged 12 wins a season for 3 years. Thats an SEC record. And all the sudden he is done? Hide and watch as Bama beats a destructive path to Auburn this next season. Look at Sabans record and you will see that nobody has hardly beat him 2 years in a row. And Auburn will be the catalyst for this next Bama team. You can downplay Saban all you want, but his record proves that he is better than a 1 game over .500 coach. So F*ck you, you stupid retard. You have no idea what you are talking about.

  6. This brando bitch needs to go to school. Its obvious hes either never been or dropped out somewhere there. Dam go take a spelling class. Your a dumbarse. Ive tried to tell you Coaches name is spelt Chizik. You misspell alot of words. It looks stupid to keep doing that. BTW my Tigers picked up 2 top recruits last night. 9 more slots. We will finish in the top five again. Go Tigers War Eagle

  7. Bama picked up the highest rated player of the night, and just had a 5 star running back commit the other day. Chiznik needs to get up a little earlier and take his football more seriously, Mandyke. And I have probably had more schooling than you. Want to compare degrees?

  8. But your recruits dont matter. Living proof this yr. We beat your ass. Evidentally our coaching staff out coaches old bald Saban. Same thing will happen this yr. And if you have been to school. Lets see some proof. No more misspellings. Go Tigers Ducks suck

  9. Mandyke: Chiznik Chezdik Shiznik. You won by 1 measly point. You didn’t beat down Bama, it was a very close game, and Auburn was fortunate to win it, as they were the other half of the season. Auburn got the breaks and timely turnovers, but mostly they over achieved and barely done enough to win more times than not. And that is with a player that had the year Cam did. Without him, you are probably 7-5 or so. And you are losing over half the starters so next year you get to start over from scratch. And Auburn won’t be passing Bama in recruiting this year, or next. This is shaping up to possibly be Sabans best class yet. Bama is in excellent shape for the future, Auburn still has some catching up to do. Don’t let this fluke season fool you. Nevermind, I forgot I was talking with an imbecile. But come on back next season ok?

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