Auburn University

football auburn

Football is a sport in which a team plays against other teams, usually from the same school. It is played in a variety of formats, such as American college football and Australian rules football.

Auburn University is a public four-year coeducational university located in Auburn, Alabama, United States. It is a member of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). The university sponsors 19 varsity teams in 13 sports.

History

The earliest football program at Auburn was founded in 1892, and it has a long tradition of recruiting black players. This tradition paved the way for several notable African Americans to be enshrined in the Auburn Athletic Hall of Fame, including halfback James Owens, who became Auburn’s first black scholarship player and is currently the university’s all-time leader in rushing yards.

Early Years

In the early decades of the program, Auburn had success against many top-ranked teams, such as Oklahoma, Florida, and Texas. However, the Tigers’ most notable wins came against cross-state rivals Alabama.

After the departure of the legendary coach Earl Brown, the program fell into disarray and had to be revived by Ralph “Shug” Jordan. He led Auburn to its most successful season in 1957, a 10-0 record that included an Associated Press national championship. That year, the Tigers also were unable to participate in a bowl game due to NCAA probation resulting from violations of football rules.

Despite this, Jordan was widely considered one of the best coaches in the country. His teams were well-rounded and possessed a deep sense of teamwork. He coached all-time Auburn greats such as Zeke Smith and versatile running back Tucker Frederickson, and Auburn’s first Heisman Trophy winner, Pat Sullivan.

Jordan coached at Auburn until 1975, when he retired after a 176-83-6 record that included an AP national championship in 1957. He was regarded as a man of integrity and honor, a reputation that is still in place today.

He also coached some of Auburn’s greatest offensive and defensive stars. For example, Jordan coached all-time Auburn greats such the lineman Zeke Smith and versatile running back Tucker Frederickson.

As a result, his legacy is well-respected and he remains the winningest coach in school history. He also remains the only coach in school history to win a national championship without participating in a bowl game.

During his tenure, Jordan also led the Auburn baseball program to its highest-ever national ranking. His Tigers were also the winningest program in baseball in all of SEC history, with a 98-34 record.

In 2004, the Tigers finished with a 13-0 record, winning their first SEC championship and finishing second in the final AP Poll behind Southern California. Unfortunately for the Tigers, they were left out of the BCS championship game because of their lack of a ranked opponent.

Hugh Freeze has a lot of work ahead of him to rebuild a struggling Tigers’ team that saw its most recent coach leave after only two seasons. While the team is far from perfect under center, there are plenty of pieces in place to build a strong foundation. Ultimately, though, the biggest challenge may be to find quarterbacks who can compete with the likes of Robby Ashford and TJ Finley for Auburn’s starting job.