Was the Peach Bowl the real national championship game? Since the University of Central Florida took down Auburn 34-27 on January 1, the school’s athletic director has been making that case. Ignore for a second the fact that UCF’s weak schedule killed their chance of making it to the College Football Playoff.
It’s not just that the Knights are the only undefeated team in major college football. Auburn beat both Alabama and Georgia, the teams that made the title game, and the Knights then knocked off the Tigers in a game that wasn’t as close as the final score. UCF is for real, and Alabama and Georgia are lucky that they didn’t have to play them.
The primary concern going into the Peach Bowl was whether or not UCF’s defense was up to the challenge of an SEC offense. After all, the Knights had allowed a combined 97 points in their last two games. Surely Auburn is better than either Memphis and South Florida, so conventional wisdom held that Auburn would be able to manhandle the Knights.
But what really happened was that Auburn was overwhelmed by a well-rested UCF defense, to the tune of six sacks and 10 tackles for loss. In comparison, Alabama managed only one sack and five tackles for loss against Auburn in their Iron Bowl matchup, In the SEC title game (where Georgia avenged its November loss to the Tigers), Georgia won despite getting only three sacks and seven tackles for loss. Alabama also allowed 416 total yards of offense in the Iron Bowl, while Georgia allowed Auburn 488 yards in the regular-season loss and a much better 260 yards in their win. UCF, by comparison, allowed 421 yards against Auburn in the Peach Bowl, putting them on par with the two teams facing off for the “real” national title. UCF was also the only team of the three to intercept Auburn quarterback Jarrett Stidham, and they did it twice.
Before the Peach Bowl matchup, UCF running back Adrian Killins Jr. told reporters that “SEC football doesn’t have a lot of speed, honestly, so Auburn hasn’t seen any speed the way we have here.” He also said that Auburn was in for “a rude awakening,” something that many SEC fans and college football fans around the country laughed at. But Killins was right. Led by sophomore quarterback McKenzie Milton (16 of 35 passing for 242 yards and two touchdowns, 13 carries for 116 yards and one touchdown), the Knights gained 411 yards of total offense against the Auburn defense.This again puts UCF right on par with both Alabama and Georgia.
Neither Nick Saban or Kirby Smart will admit it, but they both have to be glad they don’t have to play UCF. And while UCF and the American Athletic Conference might not get the respect they deserve from the College Football Playoff Committee, the Knights’ effort against one of the best teams in college football shows they have every right to the Disney parade, national title banner, and whatever other spoils they want.
Kyle Foley is a freelance journalist from Orlando, Florida, who has spent the past three years covering politics, sports, and technology.
