Seminoles Stun Auburn, Win BCS Title

Florida State Seminoles quarterback  Jameis Winston celebrates at the end of the BCS Championship game against the Auburn Tigers at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif., on Monday, Jan. 6, 2014.  FSU won, 34-31.

(Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel/MCT)

Florida State Seminoles quarterback Jameis Winston celebrates at the end of the BCS Championship game against the Auburn Tigers at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif., on Monday, Jan. 6, 2014. FSU won, 34-31.

In the final BCS National Championship game ever, Jameis Winston and the No. 1 ranked Florida State Seminoles won in dramatic fashion, much like a fairytale ending against the self- proclaimed “team of destiny”, No. 2 Auburn Tigers.

Auburn turned their destructive previous season into a miracle, losing only one game and winning the SEC over a heavily favored Alabama team, which propelled Auburn into the championship game. And they didn’t look as if they were out of miracles yet, when they led the undefeated Seminoles 21-3 late in the second quarter. According to ESPN, at this point, the Seminoles had only a 8.9% chance of winning this game. But thanks to a fake punt and a miraculous drive by Heismann quarterback Jameis Winston, the Seminoles brought it to a 21-10 deficit at halftime.

During a halftime pep talk, Winston reminded his team that, “We didn’t come here for no reason,” according to ESPN. They then turned it around, chipping away at Auburn’s lead with a field goal, then intercepting Auburn quarterback Nick Marshall’s pass, which led to another passing touchdown by Winston, making it a 21-20 game.

But what followed that play is what made this game arguably the best in BCS history: after a field goal by Auburn, making the score 24-20, FSU’s Kick Returner Levonte Whitfield brought a 100-yard kickoff for a touchdown, giving the Seminoles their first lead since the first quarter. Then, with 1:19 left in the game, Auburn halfback Tre Mason, who had a monstrous running game so far, broke three tackles on his way to an Auburn touchdown, giving them the lead 31-27. Mason had 195 yards on the ground.

Then came out FSU’s Winston, with around a minute to go, trailing by four. They needed a touchdown, and the Heismann winner gave them just that. Driving down the field in 1:06, with the help of a Pass-Interference call in the endzone, Winston threw it up to 6 foot 5 Kelvin Benjamin (Winston’s favorite target this year), for a Florida State touchdown and win, 34-31.

“Once the ball is in the air on that post route, I’ve got to go get it, and I did,” said Benjamin after the game, according to AP College Football Writer Ralph D. Russo. Winston ended up with 237 yards and two touchdowns on the day, a cap to a near perfect season by the freshman. “Only thing is we’re victorious and glad to say Florida State is the national champion again, and I guarantee you we’re bringing that swag back,” Winston said. “You’d better believe it.”