2011 BCS National Championship Game

College football bowl game March 2022 2011 Tostitos BCS National Championship Game 13th BCS National Championship Game File:911 -bcs championship game-primary-2011.gif 2010 Oregon Ducks University of Oregon Auburn Tigers Auburn University 12–0 Pac-10 13–0 SEC Chip Kelly Gene Chizik 2 1 2 1 2 1 0 11 0 8 0 16 3 3 January 10 University of Phoenix Stadium Glendale, Arizona Offense: Michael Dyer (RB, Auburn)Defense: Nick Fairley (DT, Auburn) Auburn by 2The Odds, Los Angeles Times, January 10, 2011 Air Force Cadet Chorale Bill LeMonnier (Big Ten) Auburn University Marching BandOregon Marching Band 78,603 21.2 million ESPN List of announcers of major college bowl games Brent Musburger (play-by-play)Kirk Herbstreit (analyst)Erin Andrews and Tom Rinaldi (sideline)http://collegefootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2010/11/12/herbstreit-musburger-to-call-title-game/ Herbstreit, Musburger to call title game 12 November 2010 nbcsports.com 14 April 2018 21 July 2011 https://web.archive.org/web/20110721174759/http://collegefootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2010/11/12/herbstreit-musburger-to-call-title-game/ dead 17.8 (27.3 million viewers)http://www.sportsmediawatch.net/2011/01/bcs-auburnoregon-down-still-sets-cable.html BCS: Auburn/Oregon Down, Still Sets Cable Record - Sports Media Watch 11 January 2011 sportsmediawatch.net 14 April 2018 The 2011 BCS National Championship Game (branded as the 2011 Tostitos BCS National Championship Game for sponsorship reasons) was a college football bowl game to determine the national champion of the 2010 NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) season. The finale of the 2010–2011 Bowl Championship Series was played at the University of Phoenix Stadium, the host facility of the Fiesta Bowl in Glendale, Arizona, on January 10, 2011 (8:30 p.m. ET). The Auburn Tigers from the Southeastern Conference faced the Oregon Ducks of the Pacific-10 Conference for the national championship. The Ducks were seeking to win their first national championship in school history. A 19-yard field goal by Wes Byrum, as time expired, won the game for the Tigers, with the final score 22–19. It was the Tigers' second title recognized by the University (three being unclaimed) and first since 1957. The game was the first BCS National Championship Game not televised on network television, instead being aired on ESPNChris Dufresne http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-rose-bowl-espn13-2009jun13,0,1578680.story Rose Bowl game moving to ESPN in 2011 Los Angeles Times June 13, 2009 and simulcast on ESPN3, and recorded a 16.1 rating, the highest overnight rating on record for a cable television program, topping the previous high of 14.4, set by New England Patriots vs. New Orleans Saints on ESPN in 2009.https://www.espn.com/college-football/bowls10/news/story?id=6011509 BCS draws record cable rating ESPN January 13, 2011 This marked the second time that the national championship under the BCS system was played in Arizona. Judy Hedding http://phoenix.about.com/od/bowlgames/a/bcs2011.htm 2011 BCS Championship Game Will Be In Arizona 2010 January 6, 2010 December 28, 2009 https://web.archive.org/web/20091228094836/http://phoenix.about.com/od/bowlgames/a/bcs2011.htm dead It was also the first time that the BCS National Championship was streamed to a video game console, specifically the Xbox 360. Teams Finishing No. 1 and No. 2 in the final BCS rankings, respectively, the Auburn Tigers from the Southeastern Conference faced the Oregon Ducks of the Pacific-10 Conference for the national championship. Both teams finished the regular season undefeated. The Coaches Poll, which partially factored into the BCS rankings, had Oregon No. 1 and Auburn No. 2, though Auburn's higher rankings in the Harris Interactive Poll and computer polls gave them the edge for No. 1 in the BCS. The Associated Press Poll (AP), which did not factor into the BCS rankings, had Auburn No. 1 and Oregon No. 2. Oregon Ducks 2010 Oregon Ducks football team The Ducks led the Pacific-10 Conference in scoring offense (592 points, 49.3 average), rushing offense (42 touchdowns, 303.8 yards per game), rushing defense (11 touchdowns, 117.6 yards per game), and total offense (71 touchdowns, 537.5 yards per game). The team was led by tailback LaMichael James, who tops the conference with 1,682 yards on 281 carries, 21 touchdowns and averaging 152.9 yards per game. His longest carry was for 76 yards. Jeff Maehl was Oregon's top receiver at 78.58 ypg for 12 touchdowns. Casey Matthews had averaged 6.08 tackles per game for the Ducks, followed by Spencer Paysinger (5.7), Talmadge Jackson III (5.6) and John Boyett (5.6). Oregon was wearing the Nike new Pro Combat uniforms, their 13th uniform combination worn this season. Auburn Tigers 2010 Auburn Tigers football team The Tigers completed the season on top of the Southeastern Conference in scoring offense (42.7 points per game), rushing offense (287.2 yards per game) and total offense (497.7 yards per game). Auburn also led the conference in pass efficiency (174 of 261 passes, 6 interceptions, 66.7%, 29 touchdowns), third-down conversions (77 of 145, 53.1%) and first downs (316 or 24.3 per game). Quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner Cam Newton led the conference in rushing, pass efficiency, total offense, and scoring. On the receiving end, Darvin Adams caught 48 passes for 909 yards (69.92 ypg) and 7 touchdowns. On the defensive side, Auburn was led by Lombardi Award winning, Consensus All-American defensive tackle Nick Fairly, who led the conference in sacks (11.5) and tackles for loss (24). The Tigers secondary was led by Josh Bynes, Zac Etheridge and Neiko Thorpe combined to make 199 tackles for the Tigers during the season. The Tigers were very strong in close games, having a 6–0 record in one-possession games entering the National Championship.https://www.sports-reference.com/cfb/schools/auburn/2010.html 2010 Auburn Tigers Statshttps://www.sports-reference.com/cfb/conferences/sec/2010-leaders.html 2010 Southeastern Conference Leaders Starting lineups thumb|Auburn quarterback Cam Newton was the 2010 Heisman trophy winner. thumb|Oregon running back LaMichael James entered the game as the Doak Walker Award winner. Selected in an NFL Draft #FFCC00 (number corresponds to draft round) † = 2010 All-American Auburn Position Oregon Offense Darvin Adams WR Lavasier Tuinei Terrell Zachary WR D.J. Davis †Lee Ziemba 7 LT Bo Thran Mike Berry LG Carson York Ryan Pugh C Jordan Holmes Byron Isom RG C.E. Kaiser Brandon Mosley 4 RT Mark Asper 6 Philip Lutzenkirchen TE David Paulson 7 Kodi Burns WR Jeff Maehl †Cam Newton 1 QB Darron Thomas Michael Dyer RB †LaMichael James 2 Defense Nosa Eguae DE Terrell Turner Zach Clayton 7 DT Brandon Blair †Nick Fairley 1 DT Zac Clark Antoine Carter DE Kenny Rowe Josh Bynes MLB †Casey Matthews 4 Craig Stevens LOLB Spencer Paysinger Daren Bates ROLB Josh Kaddu 5 Demond Washington CB †Cliff Harris Neiko Thorpe CB Talmadge Jackson III Zac Etheridge FS John Boyett 6 Mike McNeil SS Eddie Pleasant Game summary Prior to the game a moment of silence was held for the victims of the shooting in Tucson, Arizona, two days before the game in which U.S. Representative Gabby Giffords was shot in the head and six others, including Federal Judge John Roll, were killed.The Associated Press (10 January 2011). "BCS game holds moment of silence before start". The Washington Post. March 2011 Despite the two teams having among the nations top offenses, neither team scored in the first quarter, with both teams punting on their opening drive. On Oregon's second drive Thomas threw an interception to Demond Washington. On the second play of the ensuing drive Newton threw an interception to Cliff Harris. On the following drive after moving the ball to the Auburn 27, Thomas threw his second interception, this time to safety Zac Etheridge. Auburn once again failed to capitalize on a Thomas interception and punted. Early in the second quarter, Oregon scored the first points on a 26-yard field goal, to go up 3-0. Auburn then claimed the lead on an 82-yard drive, finishing with a Kodi Burns touchdown reception. Oregon responded quickly with a four-play drive, ending with a touchdown reception by LaMichael James and added a two-point conversion to make the score 11-7. The next drive, Auburn drove to the Oregon one yard line but turned the ball over on downs. Two plays later, however, Auburn tackled James in the endzone for a safety, making the score 11-9. On Auburn's final drive of the first half, Newton found Emory Blake for a 30-yard touchdown pass to make the score 16-11 at the half. On the first drive of the 3rd quarter, Auburn kicker Wes Byrum kicked a 28-yard field goal to give Auburn a 19-11 lead.https://www.espn.com/college-football/boxscore?gameId=310102483 Auburn vs. Oregon - Box Score - January 10, 2011 - ESPN ESPN.com 14 April 2018 Following a pair of punts by both teams, Oregon drove to the Auburn 1 yard line, but was stopped on the goal line and lost possession. The teams traded possession several times in the 4th quarter, until Oregon recovered a fumble on the Auburn 40-yard line with 4:54 left. Oregon then drove down the field and scored a touchdown at the 2:33 minute mark. They added a two-point conversion to even the score, 19-19."LaMichael James #21 RB". ESPN. On the game's final possession, Auburn drove 73 yardshttp://cdn.espn.com/ncf/drivechart?gameId=310102483 https://web.archive.org/web/20180415001334/http://cdn.espn.com/ncf/drivechart?gameId=310102483 dead April 15, 2018 Auburn Tigers vs. Oregon Ducks - Drivechart - January 10, 2011 - ESPN ESPN.com 14 April 2018 to the Oregon 1-yard line. The drive included a run by Michael Dyer, in which he appeared to be tackled after 6-7 yards, but fell on top of defender Eddie Pleasant. Since neither his knees nor the ball touched the ground, the Auburn sideline urged Dyer to continue after getting back up, and the Oregon defense finally tackled him after a 37-yard gain. The play was reviewed and the ruling on the field was upheld. Dyer then rushed for a touchdown, but a subsequent review showed that Dyer's knee went down before crossing the goal line. The touchdown was reversed and the ball placed at the Oregon 1-yard line. From there, Auburn ran the clock down to 2 seconds, and Wes Byrum kicked a game-winning 19-yard field goal as time expired, giving Auburn the national championship.https://www.espn.com/college-football/recap?gameId=310102483 https://web.archive.org/web/20170719195317/http://www.espn.com/college-football/recap?gameId=310102483 dead July 19, 2017 Auburn vs. Oregon - Game Recap - January 10, 2011 - ESPN ESPN.com 14 April 2018https://www.espn.com/college-football/playbyplay/_/gameId/310102483 Auburn vs. Oregon - Play-By-Play January 10, 2011 ESPN.com Scoring summary Oregon Auburn 2 14:13 Oregon 10 62 3:01 FG 26 Rob Beard 0 3 2 12:00 Auburn 8 82 2:13 RecTD Kodi Burns Cam Newton 35 Wes Byrum good 7 3 2 10:58 Oregon 4 93 1:02 RecTD LaMichael James Darron Thomas 8 run good 7 11 2 3:26 Auburn 1 -1 0:18 SafetyTackle LaMichael James Mike Blanc 9 11 2 1:47 Auburn 6 66 1:39 RecTD Emory Blake Cam Newton 30 Wes Byrum good 16 11 3 11:30 Auburn 9 60 3:30 FG 28 Wes Byrum 19 11 4 2:33 Oregon 8 40 2:21 RecTD LaMichael James Darron Thomas 2 pass good 19 19 4 0:00 Auburn 7 73 2:33 FG 19 Wes Byrum 22 19 19 22 Statistics Statistics ORE AUB First downs 23 24 Total yards 449 519 Rushes–yards 32–75 50–274 Passing yards 374 265 Passing: Comp–Att–Int 28–41–2 20–35–1 Time of possession 27:03 32:57 Team Category Player StatisticsAuburn Passing Cam Newton 20/34, 265 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT Rushing Michael Dyer 22 carries, 143 yards Receiving Emory Blake 4 receptions, 54 yards, 1 TDOregon Passing Darron Thomas 27/40, 363 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT Rushing LaMichael James 13 carries, 49 yards Receiving Jeff Maehl 9 receptions, 133 yards Aftermath By winning the game, Auburn was crowned as the BCS National Champion. In addition, Auburn was ranked as the number one team by the Associated Press."Auburn wins first AP title since 1957". ESPN. Rankings 2010 NCAA Division I FBS football rankings For the second time in BCS history, three No. 1 teams (Oklahoma, Auburn, and Oregon) were ranked in the first three standings of the year. In 1998, the first season of the BCS, UCLA debuted at No. 1, followed by Ohio State and Tennessee. Three teams from non-Automatic Qualify conference schools (TCU, Boise State, Utah) were ranked in the top-five at the same time after three weeks of BCS rankings. TCU ended the season as the No. 2 team and won the 2011 Rose Bowl game. TCU was picked by a postseason poll as having won a share of the national championship, due to their 13-0 perfect record and win over #4 ranked Wisconsin in the Rose Bowl.September 2013 Notes This was the first meeting between the two schools in football. Auburn had played one school from the state of Oregon (Oregon State at Birmingham in 1973) and Oregon had not previously played a team from the state of Alabama. Auburn had a 5–3 record against Pac-10 teams while Oregon was 4–4 against the SEC.http://cfbdatawarehouse.com/data/div_ia/pac10/oregon/vs_conf.php?start=1894&end=2011 Oregon vs Conferences https://archive.today/20120710155121/http://cfbdatawarehouse.com/data/div_ia/pac10/oregon/vs_conf.php?start=1894&end=2011 10 July 2012 deadhttp://cfbdatawarehouse.com/data/div_ia/sec/auburn/vs_conf.php Auburn vs Conferences 2011-10-15 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20111023104814/http://cfbdatawarehouse.com/data/div_ia/sec/auburn/vs_conf.php 2011-10-23 As the Pac-10 and SEC never had a common bowl game tie-in during the entirety of the BCS era, the only ways for two teams from those conferences to meet in the postseason would be either for a team from each conference to qualify for the BCS National Championship Game, with this particular game being the only time that that happened during those 16 years, or for a team from either or both conferences to receive an at-large bid to a BCS bowl, something that never occurred (in 2002, the Sugar Bowl wanted USC to play Georgia, but the Orange Bowl, which had higher priority that year in terms of picks due to having a higher payout, beat them out and in 2013 the Sugar Bowl was considering picking Oregon to play Alabama, but ultimately passed them over in favor of Oklahoma). The most recent bowl game which featured a Pac-10 team vs an SEC team was the 1989 Freedom Bowl when the Washington Huskies defeated the Florida Gators 34-7. The Pac-10 and SEC both expanded in subsequent years (with the Pac-10 being renamed the Pac-12) and teams from those two conferences met again in the 2016 Peach Bowl with the Alabama Crimson Tide facing the Washington Huskies in a semifinal game of the College Football Playoff which replaced the Bowl Championship Series after the 2013 season, the Pac-12 and SEC would also eventually get a bowl game tie-in in the form of the Las Vegas Bowl in 2020, albeit it also has a rotating tie-in with the Big Ten Conference. Two Auburn teams were undefeated in 1993 and 2004, but did not play for the national championship. Seven BCS Championship game records were broken or tied, including the longest pass play when Darron Thomas passed to Jeff Maehl for 81 yards, the most team passing yards (374, Oregon), and most 2-point conversions (2).January 2011 The combined passing yardage of the two teams (639 yards) were also the most in the games. Auburn's 85 total plays were a new record, exceeding the record set at the January 4, 2006 game between Texas and USC with 82 plays.January 2011 The game was played two days after the 2011 Tucson shooting, an attempted assassination attempt on Rep. Gabby Giffords of Arizona, that took the lives of several others, including a federal judge and a 9-year-old girl. A moment of silence was held in honor of those lost before the game. Tucson is in Pima County in Arizona, and the adjacent county is Maricopa County, where Glendale is located. Cam Newton's performance was somewhat limited due a back injury, evident at the game's conclusion when he was lying in pain waiting on the trophy presentation.https://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-football/2011/1/11/1928820/cam-newton-injury-x-rays-auburn-tigers-bcs-championship-nfl-draft Cam Newton X-Rayed Following BCS Championship, May Have 'Significant Back Injury' SBNation.com 11 January 2011 14 April 2018 References BCS National Championship Game Category:BCS National Championship Game Category:Auburn Tigers football bowl games Category:Oregon Ducks football bowl games Category:January 2011 sports events in the United States Category:2011 in sports in Arizona Category:American football competitions in Glendale, Arizona