Auburn had to fight to get in

When Gus Malzahn guided Auburn to the national championship game in his first season as coach, it was all such a whirlwind.

If not for two stunningly fluky wins, it never would’ve happened. This season, it feels like Malzahn and the Tigers really earned it.

With two huge victories in November, No. 2 Auburn (10-2, 7-1) claimed a spot in today’s Southeastern Conference title game against No. 6 Georgia (11-1, 7-1), with a berth in the College Football Playoff surely going to the winner.

“This is a different journey,” Malzahn said before putting his team through a walk-through at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, the new $1.5 billion facility that is hosting the SEC Championship game for the first time.

In 2013, Malzahn’s first Auburn team pulled off an improbable win against Georgia when, on fourthand-18, Nick Marshall threw a 73-yard touchdown pass with 25 seconds remaining. The ball was actually overthrown, but a Georgia defender tipped it right into Ricardo Louis’ hands to complete the “Prayer at Jordan-Hare.”

Of course, that wasn’t even the Tigers’ most memorable play of the season. In the Iron Bowl, Alabama came up short on a potential winning field goal and Chris Davis returned it for a TD from the very back of the end zone —- a 109-yard play forever to be known as “Kick-Six.”

The Tigers endured an ugly 14-6 loss at Clemson, giving up 11 sacks and managing just 117 yards. And all hope of reaching the playoff seemed lost after Auburn squandered a 20-point lead at LSU.

Auburn got back into the mix with a 40-17 rout of Georgia, which was No. 1 in the CFP standings at the time. Last weekend, the Tigers knocked off another top-ranked team, wearing down Alabama for a 26-14 victory that clinched the SEC West title.