The Auburn Tigers made a wild move earlier this week by deciding to claim seven additional national championships, bringing the program's total to nine. The school now claims additional titles from 1910, 1913, 1914, 1958, 1983, 1993, and 2004, adding to their titles from 1957 and 2010, which are already recognized.
The move of claiming national championships in bulk several decades later has the college football world talking. Not only are fans across the country mocking Auburn's desperate plea to hang more banners, but discussions about the best college football teams to never win a national title are making waves online.
SEC Network's Matt Stinchcomb discussed his list of the best SEC teams that didn't win a national title. The 2011 LSU Tigers are at the top, and it's hard to argue.
1) 2011 LSU
— SEC Network (@SECNetwork) August 20, 2025
2) 2016 Alabama
3) 2009 Florida
4) 2017 Georgia
5) 2002 Georgia@mstinch79 ranks the best SEC football teams to not win a national title 👀 pic.twitter.com/otjzGqAbLl
The 2011 LSU Tiger defense was on another level
The 2011 LSU Tigers put together an incredible season that saw them defeat eight top-25 opponents en route to an SEC title. They ended the regular season with a perfect 12-0 record, and an average margin of victory of 26.75 points. They won all but one game by double-digits, and won seven regular season games by 28 points or more. For good measure, the Tigers defeated Georgia by 32 points in the SEC Championship Game.
Not only did LSU win the SEC championship, but they defeated two other conference champions in No. 3 Oregon and No. 16 West Virginia. They also beat the eventual national champion Alabama Crimson Tide in a 9-6 overtime slugfest in Tuscaloosa. All three of those wins came away from Baton Rouge, which makes them even more impressive. LSU defeated Oregon in the season opener at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, then beat West Virginia in Morgantown and Alabama in Tuscaloosa. It just so happens that the rematch against Alabama didn't go LSU's way.
LSU's defense was on another level in 2011. Running the ball against the Tigers was simply not going to happen. LSU held its opponents to 2.7 yards per game and just 90.1 rushing yards per game. Both ranked fifth nationally. The Tigers also had elite playmakers in the secondary including Tyrann Mathieu, Eric Reid, Brandon Taylor, and Morris Claiborne, who led the team with six interceptions.
The passing game wasn't other-wordly, but it didn't need to be. In fact, Jarrett Lee and Jordan Jefferson combined for just 2,043 passing yards and 20 touchdowns. The switch from Lee to Jefferson halfway through the season created controversy, but with the defense taking care of business the way it was, it didn't matter who was at QB. The defense was that dominant.
LSU's leading rusher was Michael Ford with 756 yards, but Spencer Ware (707 yards), and Alfred Blue (539 yards) were also steady contributors. The Tigers were second in the SEC with 202 rushing yards per game.
Looking back, Tiger fans remember the vaunted defense of that 2011 team the most. It was a spectacle to watch, and it led to more than a handful of dominating wins. Nothing came easy for Tiger opponents, and the LSU faithful are hoping Brian Kelly's squad can recapture some of that defensive tenacity in 2025 as the program aims for another SEC title and an appearance in the College Football Playoff.