Tip of the hat to Penn State and Bill O'Brien.  What an incredible firestorm of negativity he has overcome at Penn State. Had his star RB and several others get a free transfer out of the program his first yaer. Lost his PK which really hurt him his first season.  Had a true freshman QB this season who had played remarkebly well, who chose Penn State over UF. Think about that for a minute and consider the perception of the Penn State program he signed on to over UF.  Anyway, no excuses for O'Brien, who motivated his thin roster and they responded, despite no chance of a bowl game. They just played for pride and love of the game.  Some coaches are great leaders and inspire their players. Some aren't and their players just don't seem to respond to adversity.

Mark Richt at UGA had an amazing string of injuries starting in their first game against Clemson.  They were gutty and scrappy and found a way to 8-4 while their chief rival bumbled and stumbled to 4-8. What a big win over their in-state rival, coming back from down 20-0 with a backup QB.  Wait, they won, on the road, with a backup QB?  Who knew it was possible? And with all those injuries? Not an excuse for Mark Richt.  Long considered an average coach, he showed that he is a better than average coach.

What an amazing win for Auburn and former high school coach Gus Malzahn. To go from 3-9 and 0-8 in the SEC to 11-1 and beating Alabama to go to Atlanta and possibly play for the BCS Championship.  And pretty much with a Tyler Murphy clone at QB.  What a great job of adapting his offense to the personnel at hand. Who says coaching doesn't matter? And who could argue that Auburn is as talented as Bama?  RB Tre Mason wanted to go to UF but our coaches didn't want him. What a great turning point in his life that now he actually has an opportunity to play for championships.  Auburn is fun to watch and they find a way to win instead of snatching defeat from the jaws of victory.  Good luck to Auburn the rest of the way.

As the Ol' Ball Coach used to say: Winning is a habit, and so is losing.  I guess when you lose seven straight then maybe it is becoming a habit.  Congrats to the winners and those that found a way to win despite great adversity. Those are the kiind of men you want leading your football program.