Newton, No. 1 Auburn romp in SEC title game
Quarterback Cam Newton of the Auburn Tigers celebrates after their 56-17 win over the South Carolina Gamecocks during the 2010 SEC Championship at Georgia Dome. (Dec. 4, 2010) Credit: Getty Images
ATLANTA - Cam Newton left nothing to chance. He ran and passed the Auburn Tigers to a shot at the national championship, and he might as well start working on that Heisman pose, too.
Newton passed for a career-high 335 yards and four touchdowns, plus ran for a pair of TDs in an MVP performance that led No. 1 Auburn to the Southeastern Conference championship with a 56-17 rout of Steve Spurrier and No. 19 South Carolina yesterday.
The Tigers, who came into the day sitting atop the BCS standings, must wait 24 hours before getting the official word, but it's nothing more than a formality: They'll be playing Oregon for the national title on Jan. 10 in Glendale, Ariz.
Before the national title is decided, Newton will likely be picking up the Heisman Trophy next weekend in Manhattan. Auburn coach Gene Chizik said Newton is the best college player he's ever seen. That includes Vince Young, who was at Texas when Chizik was the Longhorns' defensive coordinator.
"When you look at the 13-game span, I've never seen anything like it," Chizik said. "It's running the ball. It's throwing the ball. Usually great quarterbacks do one or the other better. What God has blessed Cameron with is the ability to be really, really good at both."
The 6-6, 250-pound junior followed Tim Tebow as only the second player in the history of football's top division to run and pass for 20 touchdowns in a season.
"You can't tackle him," said Spurrier, who was denied his seventh SEC title. "He's almost a one-man show but those guys really help and their receivers are really good. With that offensive line and him, it's hard to stop him."
Newton guided the Tigers (13-0) to touchdowns on their first three possessions, though South Carolina (9-4) was in the game as halftime approached. Ahead 21-14 on the last play of the half, Newton launched one up and the ball was tipped to Darvin Adams for an improbable 51-yard touchdown that changed the complexion of the game. After South Carolina missed a field goal on the first possession of the second half, it was all Tigers.- AP
