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This is an opinion column.
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Shocking to no one, former Mississippi State coach Dan Mullen did not want to be interviewed for this column about Cam Newton’s college years.
Mullen is the current football coach at UNLV. If he’s still bitter about the way Auburn stole Newton (and a national title) from under his nose, well, I guess that’s completely understandable. I’m not suggesting Mullen and Mississippi State would have won a natty with Newton, but that’s exactly what he delivered for the Tigers in the magically controversial college football season of 2010.
Auburn is retiring Newton’s jersey on Saturday to go along with the Tigers’ home game against Georgia. Newton already has a statue outside Jordan-Hare Stadium, so this latest honor feels more like a good reason for a party than anything.
Newton is an Auburn legend, but he’s bigger than that, too. He’s one of the most significant and influential figures in the history of college football. Not only was Newton arguably the greatest college football player of all time, but he fought the NCAA and won. He changed the game. Pay-for-play? Revenue sharing? Newton did nothing wrong. History will always punish the innovators. That’s nothing new. Newton was just ahead of his time.
Look, it’s not my job to pretend that Newton played for Auburn simply out of the goodness of his heart. Newton has never admitted to taking money to play college football. Instead, he claims that Mullen made it all up. We’re no fools, though. Players took cash back then just like everyone earns a legitimate paycheck in this modern era.
That doesn’t mean Newton loves Auburn any less. In fact, it means Newton probably loves Auburn even more.
Mississippi State tried to give Newton’s father a bag of money. That much we know. Then how did Newton end up at Auburn? Well, it doesn’t take Sherlock Holmes to figure it out.
Auburn clearly had more respect for Newton’s transcendent abilities.
Think about it this way. Newton is proof that money doesn’t ruin the college game, but makes it better.
Some fans might not agree, but would those same fans trade Auburn’s 2011 BCS National Championship against the Oregon Ducks? Would those same fans ignore Newton’s all-time comeback in the Iron Bowl?
Yeah, not a chance.
If anything, Newton proved what’s possible in this modern era of college football. Teams buy their way into the College Football Playoff. That’s the deal. Just look at Oregon. The Ducks certainly learned their lesson.
And it kinda makes me wonder about Hugh Freeze, too. Why isn’t Auburn paying top dollar every season for the best quarterback in college football? No doubt Newton has an opinion after watching Auburn’s heartbreaking loss at Oklahoma.
Cam-Back it was not.
Oklahoma upgraded at quarterback in the offseason, and look what happened. OU’s new QB1, John Mateer, led the rally against Auburn. Oklahoma’s old quarterback? Well, you get what you pay for.
Freeze missed with former Auburn quarterback Payton Thorne and now Auburn’s coach is already blaming new quarterback Arnold for hamstringing Auburn’s offense this season.
If you’re wondering why Arnold can’t complete passes to wide open receivers, then you’re obviously missing the bigger picture. The real question should be why isn’t Mateer at Auburn?
The best team in college football this season looks like the Miami Hurricanes. There’s a reason for that. The Canes reportedly paid between $3-4 million for former Georgia quarterback Carson Beck.
Was Newton a better college quarterback in 2010 than Beck in 2025? No question. And so it makes you wonder, how much would Newton be worth today?
How much would Newton be worth to Auburn this season? $6 million? Nah, probably more like $8-10 million.
Absurd? Not really. The No.1 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, quarterback Cam Ward, is making about $12 million in his first year with the Tennessee Titans.
Let’s be real. In this modern era of college football, Auburn probably would have been outbid for Newton just like Mississippi State circa the BCS era.
Mullen thought he had a quarterback even better than Tim Tebow. Mullen was right, and then he watched from afar as Newton took over college football like nothing the game had ever seen. I’d still be a little angry about that, too.
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