The 2004 USC Trojans are widely regarded as one of the greatest college football teams of all-time. They went undefeated and wire-to-wire as No. 1 in the AP Poll, with few teams even keeping the score particularly close. In the Orange Bowl, they dominated Oklahoma 55-19 to claim the undisputed national championship.
Undisputed until now, at least. On Tuesday, Auburn officially claimed four more football national championships, including the 2004 title.
Like the Trojans, the Tigers finished the 2004 season 13-0. However, Auburn finished the year No. 3 in the BCS standings, behind USC and Oklahoma. As a result, the Tigers did not have an opportunity to play for the national championship, instead going to the Sugar Bowl, where they defeated Virginia Tech 16-13.
That same Virginia Tech team fell to USC 24-13 earlier in the season. In addition, the Trojans went on the road to the heart of SEC country the year prior and dominated Auburn 24-0. Hence, it is extremely difficult for the Tigers to prove that they were the better team.
Ultimately, the widely held consensus is that USC was far and away the best college football team in the country in 2004. Auburn trying to claim otherwise is just another instance of a program trying to make themselves look better than they actually are through revisionist history.
This article originally appeared on Trojans Wire: Auburn claims 2004 college football national championship in subtle shot at USC
Reporting by Adam Bradford, Trojans Wire / Trojans Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
