Mount Rushmore is a landmark here in America that honors four great men who have shaped the face of our nation. It honors their presence and celebrates their achievements. In other words, if all of America were a football team, those four men would be our all-time MVPs.

We’re continuing our Mount Rushmore series at Saturday Down South with the Auburn Tigers. Who deserves a chiseled spot on the figurative War Eagle mountain?

WHO’S IN?

Bo Jackson
There’s no question that legendary Bo Jackson should be the first face carved into the granite. The litany of his athletic accomplishments is much too long to list here, but here are some of the highlights: He still holds the record for most career rushing yards at Auburn, and for the second-most rushing touchdowns. Bo also played baseball for Auburn, scoring 28 home runs. He won the Heisman Trophy in 1985. He then went on to play professional baseball and football, and was named an All-Star in both sports. ESPN named Bo the greatest athlete of all time.

His feats of athleticism caused him to be not only adored by Auburn, but by the entire country. Nike ran a popular “Bo Knows” commercial series that featured Bo trying his hand at all different sports (and presumably being good at all of them). Bo even was a guest star on “The Fresh Prince of Bel Air.” Auburn fans are just happy to recall his fourth down, 1-yard diving touchdown on against Alabama in 1982, and are proud to call him a Tiger.

Career numbers: 4,303 rushing yards, 43 rushing touchdowns, 272 receiving yards
Individual superlatives: All-American (1983, 1985), Heisman Trophy winner (1985), SEC Player of the Year (1985), Walter Camp Player of the Year Award (1985), College Football Hall of Fame (1998)

Pat Sullivan
Speaking of record holders, Auburn’s first-ever Heisman winner Pat Sullivan still sits atop many school records for his time spent as one of the best Auburn quarterbacks of all time. Together with wide receiver Terry Beasley, Sullivan led Auburn to many a notable win. In fact, “Sullivan-to-Beasley” became a well-known phrase that, when uttered by commentators, let everyone knew Auburn was playing.

After graduating from Auburn, Sullivan went on to play in the NFL. He established a commendable coaching career, which he also started at Auburn in 1986 as the quarterbacks coach. Sullivan most recently was the head coach at Samford University.

Career numbers: 6,534 passing yards, 71 total touchdowns, 41 INTs, 54.7 percent completion rate
Individual superlatives: SEC Player of the Year (1970), All-American (1971), Heisman Trophy winner (1971), Walter Camp Player of the Year Award (1971), College Football Hall of Fame (1991)

Pat Dye
Many other Auburn players can make cases for a spot on Rushmore. You’ll find many of them have something in common — Pat Dye, head coach of the Tigers from 1981-1992. Dye coached Bo Jackson and defensive star Tracy Rocker (who narrowly missed making this list). Along with developing great players, he developed great teams. Under him, Auburn won four SEC championships, three of them consecutively. In 1983, Auburn went 11-1 against six ranked teams and one of the toughest schedules in SEC history.

While he was the football program’s head coach, Dye also served as Auburn’s athletic director from 1981-1991. Dye was responsible for officially making the Iron Bowl a true “home-and-home” series, ensuring that the game would take place at Jordan-Hare Stadium whenever Auburn was the home team. In 2005, the field at the stadium was named in Pat Dye’s honor.

Cam Newton
Whether or not to include Cam Newton as part of this list was a bit of a debate. On the one hand, Newton only played for one season at Auburn. On the other hand, in that one year Newton became a college football sensation not only for the program but nationwide. Because he was so successful and has played such a huge part in solidifying Auburn’s image as a national power, Newton has made it onto the mountain.

Newton’s prowess at quarterback was based mostly physical potential before he transferred to Auburn and got the playing time he deserved. Once on the field, he exploded, becoming the first player in the SEC to ever rush for 1,000 yards and pass for 2,000 yards in the same season. Newton led the Tigers to an undefeated regular season and their first appearance in the BCS National Championship game, which they won against the Oregon Ducks. Essentially, Auburn’s 2010 season was perfect and Newton was the reason why.

Career numbers (at Auburn): 2,854 passing yards, 30 passing touchdowns, 1,473 rushing yards, 20 rushing touchdowns, 7 INTs, 66.1 percent completion rate
Individual superlatives: All-SEC (2010), All-American (2010), SEC Offensive Player of the Year (2010), Heisman Trophy winner (2010), AP Player of the Year (2010), Davey O’Brien Award (2010), Manning Award (2010), Walter Camp Player of the Year Award (2010), Maxwell Award (2010)