The SEC was the class of College Football for nearly the entirety of the CFP's existence until the Big Ten's recent hostile takeover via the Michigan Wolverines, Ohio State Buckeyes, Oregon Ducks, and Indiana Hoosiers in recent years.
No wonder the conference had six of ESPN Bill Connelly's top eight teams in the history of the CFP: the 2017-2019 Jalen Hurts/Tua Tagovailoa-led Alabama Crimson Tide, the Joe Burrow-led 2019/2020 LSU Tigers, the DeVonta Smith, Jaylen Waddle, and Najee Harris-led 2020/2021 Tide, and the Stetson Bennett-led 2021/2022 and 2022/2023 Georgia Bulldogs.
The Auburn Tigers played all four of those teams in consecutive seasons, beating Alabama in the 2017 Iron Bowl 26-14 on the Plains but losing the 2018 edition 52-21. AU lost 23-20 in Death Valley to the actual greatest CFP team of all time, LSU, in 2019, took a brutal 42-13 Iron Bowl loss to Alabama, Connelly's pick for the CFP G.O.A.T. in front of a half-capacity crowd at Bryant-Denny Stadium in what was the third-to-last game in 2020 during a topsy-turvy Mickey Mouse campaign, were done in by dropped catches in a 34-10 loss to the Dawgs in 2021 at Jordan-Hare Stadium, and then a 42-10 embarrassment Between the Hedges against UGA in 2022.
Gus Malzahn was in charge at AU for the Bayou Bengals and Crimson Tide losses in 2019 and 2020, while Bryan Harsin was the head coach for the pair of beatdowns at the hands of the Bulldogs in 2021 and 2022.
Bo Nix and Jarrett Stidham kept Auburn competitive during the last of the good old days
That Auburn was competitive against some of the greatest teams of all time says a lot about the Denver Broncos' current franchise QB, Bo Nix, who played from 2019 to 2021. It also says a lot about his current backup in the Mile High City, Jarrett Stidham, who preceded him in 2017 and 2018.
The Tigers were once a top program that was expected to be competitive in every big game. By and large, under Malzahn, they delivered. A JHS home-field advantage used to mean something. That was all lost under Bryan Harsin and Hugh Freeze.
Alex Golesh needs to find a QB who can restore Auburn as an NFL factory at the position. Cam Newton, Nick Marshall, Stidham, and Nix all made the pros from the last decade and played actual games; Marshall at other positions.
So far, there hasn't been one QB Harsin or Freeze recruited and developed who went from the Tigers to the league. And there probably won't be, since Deuce Knight is likely to blossom under Golesh or whoever he plays for next.