“Claiming Titles.” As someone who doesn’t follow the red tape involved with college athletics, the phrase “claiming titles” just doesn’t sit well with me. It doesn’t sound like a real action that a sports team can make, based on the fact that you have to well……actually PLAY THE GAME to win the title.

But apparently…..I’m wrong. Apparently, a college football program is allowed to just magically pull titles out of thin air. Just ask the Auburn Tigers, who recently claimed FOUR MORE National Championships, bringing their school’s total to “nine.” (Insert asterisk here).

NEWS: Auburn has officially claimed 4 more College Football national championships, @_JHokanson reports🏆

Adding 1910, 1914, 1958, and 2004, the Tigers’ total reaches nine. https://t.co/78ieQfEtjr pic.twitter.com/Lm15vDGWYn

— On3 (@On3sports) August 19, 2025

I….I may have lost a few brain cells just thinking about this idea. Auburn, who has won two legitimate championships (1957 and 2010), is now staking claim to a total of SEVEN trophies that are currently held by other programs. Those championships, which span all the way back to 1910, include;

1910: Auburn finished 6-1, but the title belongs to 9-0 Pitt and 8-0-1 Harvard

1913: Auburn finished 8-0, but the title belongs to 9-0 Harvard

1914: Auburn finished 8-0-1, but the title belongs to 9-0 Army

1958: Auburn finished 9-0-1, but the title belongs to 11-0 LSU

1983: Auburn finished 3rd in the country at 11-1. Miami won the title after beating Nebraska in the title game.

1993: Auburn finished 11-0, but was BANNED from the postseason due to NCAA rule violations.

2004: Auburn finished 13-0, but USC won the title after destroying Oklahoma in the Orange Bowl. (Title was later vacated after the Reggie Bush fiasco).

Now, for the record; i get that back in the day, there was no official “national title game” to see who should be crowned the rightful champion. Prior to the NCAA having the top teams battle it out at the end of the year, teams would be crowned champion based on polls by various coaches and sportswriters in the country. So because of this….we never really had a “definitive” winner to end the season.

This “loophole” has allowed teams, like Auburn, to swoop in and snatch up any championships that they please. Just like that annoying kid who made up rules during recess, teams like Auburn are calling themselves “champions” out of nowhere…..even when they didn’t play for a title (i.e. 2010).

To me…..that just sounds like a broken system. That sounds like the biggest “clown show” in the history of “clown shows.” For a major Power 5 school to just MAGICALLY call themselves champions because they “feel like it,” EVEN THOUGH they didn’t earn it? It’s just fundamentally absurd. It’s a ridiculous motion that creates a gigantic “black eye” for the entire sport.

If anything, this just begs the question; “what’s the point of keeping records of past seasons?” With the implementation of the ‘College Football Playoff,’ shouldn’t we just start from scratch? Erase all of the record books, and focus on the now? It would make sense, wouldn’t it? If we’re just going to muddy the waters with “tainted titles,” then we might as well just forget about the history of the game.

I know that sounds crazy to some people. But to ME, calling yourself a “champion” when you’re not sounds even crazier. But in the end, as always…..what do I know? I’m just a guy from the Midwest, with a beer and a laptop, trying to make sense of this world.