Top 50 stories of 2014: No. 5

As we approach the end of the 2014 calendar year, we’re looking back at the top 50 stories in college football for the year. Today, we continue on with the top 10 with our No. 5 story of 2014.

PREVIOUS ARTICLES

• No. 50-46: McCarron, Saturday morning, Phyllis, Lattimore & Dillon Day
• No. 45-41: Penn St, Alabama flag at Kyle Field, SEC Network, DGB, Fournette
• No. 40-36: Kentucky’s collapse, Oregon, UNC academics, Michigan burns, Lutzenkirchen
• No. 35-31: Ohio State, Mizzou, Clowney/Manziel, Rushing Records, SEC Bias
• No. 30-26: Spurrier, Bielema, Reveille, SEC East, Coaches dancing
• No. 25-21: Garcia & Spurrier, Florida’s coaching search, Nick Chubb, and the Big 12 teams
• No. 20-16: Kiffin, UAB, Rushing the field, Treadwell’s injury & a viral letter about Athens
  
• No. 15-11: Bucking tradition, Treon Harris, Josh Shaw, Mike Slive, Kenny Trill
• No. 10: Dak Prescott
• No. 9: Will Muschamp
• No. 8: Katy Perry GameDay
• No. 7: Amari Cooper
• No. 6: Michael Sam

No. 5 — The SEC’s title streak ends

A lot can change in seven years. Presidents, technology, fad diets, you name it. Anything that was new back when the calendar flipped to 2007 was old hat by the time it became 2014.

That includes the SEC’s run of dominance. When Auburn met Florida State in the final BCS title game on Jan. 6, 2014, everyone outside of the Southeast was downright sick of the SEC’s outright dominance of the college football landscape. Seven years, four different programs, seven national titles.

The nation was so tired of the SEC that they were rooting for Florida State to put a halt to it. A year later, that’s hard to fathom. The Seminoles have turned into national villains thanks to their string of comeback wins against inferior teams, the constant off-field issues surrounding the team and their coach’s persistent bashing of any FSU critics.

That was the landscape a year ago, though. Despite Auburn looking like a team of destiny, they got no love from a nation of football fans that was tired of hearing “SEC” chants every January. A miracle deflected Hail Mary touchdown to win a late-season rivalry game on the road? The patently absurd Kick Six to win the SEC West? Not enough to have the public rooting for the Tigers.

The SEC’s championship run ended along with the BCS, as Florida State took home the final title of the 16-year era. The Seminoles did it in a fashion that Auburn fans got familiar with in 2013. FSU scored 21 points in the fourth quarter, including taking a kick back 100 yards for a score and driving down the field for a last-second, go-ahead touchdown. With Kelvin Benjamin’s leaping grab with 13 seconds on the clock, the SEC’s run came to an end, 34-31 Seminoles.

The BCS era was still a very successful run for the conference. Out of 16 championships, the SEC took home nine of them, including the seven straight from 2006-2012. Alabama, LSU and Florida teamed with Auburn for the conference’s impressive streak, with Tennessee taking the first BCS crown and LSU winning one under Nick Saban in 2003.

Will the College Football Playoff be just as fruitful for the SEC? Alabama heads into the inaugural four-team field as the No. 1 seed, and a date with the Seminoles in the championship game next month feels almost destined to happen, with the Crimson Tide looking to reclaim the crown.

Like they say, everything old will one day be new again.