Cam Newton

Long road ahead Athan Atsales Los Angeles Times Auburn's Cam Newton is said to be a combination of Vince Young, JaMarcus Russell and Tim Tebow. Anyone excited about that combination? Young is about to be let go by the Titans and has yet to improve enough as an NFL passer. Russell is out of football, and the jury is way out on Tebow, another player who excelled in a college spread offense — an offense yet to translate to the pro game. Sure, Newton will be chosen in the first round.

A new year poses an old question: Who is going to stop Auburn quarterback Cam Newton? Kentucky couldn't do it. He rushed for 198 yards. South Carolina, in two losses against Newton, "held" him to 493 passing yards and 249 rushing. Louisiana State, which has a pretty decent defense, watched Newton cut loose for 217 rushing yards in October. A scandal didn't stop Newton, and neither did the Southeastern Conference, nor the NCAA. More than 100 Heisman Trophy voters left Newton off their ballots, yet he still received 82.2% of the first-place votes in a run-away election.

Dear Santa, I realize I'm a little old to be writing to you this Christmas, but I just don't have anywhere else to turn. I'm grateful for the 17 Norelco razors you've left me over the past couple of decades and really couldn't do without that thing on TV that chops up tomatoes so quickly and efficiently, but — even in this recession — I've got enough stuff. That's why I'm writing you to ask for something that will make millions of Americans happy for many holiday seasons to come.

No. 1 Auburn will have an All-American anchoring each side of the ball when the Tigers play for the national championship. Heisman Trophy winner Cam Newton and defensive tackle Nick Fairley were voted to the Associated Press All-America team on Tuesday along with Oregon running back LaMichael James , who will face Auburn in the BCS title game Jan. 10 in Glendale, Ariz. Five teams — Auburn, Wisconsin, Oklahoma State, Nebraska and Oklahoma — had two players on the first team.

Auburn quarterback Cam Newton began his trophy haul Thursday night during the College Football Awards at Lake Buena Vista, Fla. Newton received the Walter Camp Award, which honors the college football player of the year. He also won the Davey O'Brien Award as the nation's best quarterback and the Maxwell Award as the nation's best all-around player. Newton's opponent in the BCS title game, Oregon's LaMichael James , won the Doak Walker Award as the nation's best running back.

Oregon sitting on top never did quite sit right, but we can report order has been fully and faithfully restored. Someone down at the sanity office got wind before it was too late and priority-rushed Auburn to the fore, while simultaneously returning the Southeastern Conference Network to regularly scheduled deprogramming. Whew, that was close. Only days ago, the Ducks were college football's jet-set juggernauts and Auburn was the team trailing Georgia 21-7. The Pacific-10, for weeks, was rated as the nation's top conference.

EUGENE, Ore. — A wild year in college football concluded with a relatively tame finish. The release of the final BCS standings on Sunday only confirmed what everyone already knew. Auburn and Oregon finished first and second, respectively, and will play for the national title Jan. 10 in Glendale, Ariz. Texas Christian held onto the No. 3 spot to earn a berth in the Rose Bowl, while Stanford was No. 4 and Wisconsin was No. 5. Those two spots earn the Cardinal a trip to the Orange Bowl while the Badgers become the Big Ten representative in the Rose Bowl.

Cam Newton, QB, Auburn Buzz: With the Heisman Trophy his to lose, Newton put on a clinic in the SEC championship game, racking up 407 total yards and six touchdowns in Auburn's 56-17 victory over South Carolina. The victory assures the Tigers of a trip to Glendale, Ariz., and a matchup with Oregon for the BCS title. A finalist for the Davey O'Brien, Maxwell, Manning and Walter Camp awards, Newton could continue to add more hardware to his trophy case in the coming month.

It's a game-changer Chris Dufresne Los Angeles Times Yes, the NCAA decision on Cam Newton is a game-changer because it exposed a loophole that is troublesome and dangerous. The NCAA basically established that Newton's father shopped his son to Mississippi State but that Newton can remain eligible because neither he nor Auburn was aware of the violation. This means, apparently, that any dad can shop his kid to any school and it's not a problem if there's no proof the kid or the school knew.

TCU is leaving the Mountain West Conference to join the Big East, effective July 1, 2012. "This decision is great for TCU," athletic director Chris Del Conte said Monday. "This is a great time to be a Frog. Today, we're going to the Big East. " While TCU will become a Big East member in all sports, the move will be extremely beneficial to both the school and conference in football. •Alabama has fired an employee who played songs aimed at Auburn quarterback Cam Newton before the Iron Bowl, including "Take the Money and Run" and "Son of a Preacher Man. " •Michigan athletic director Dave Brandon said he refuses to let speculation about Rich Rodriguez's future change his timetable to evaluate him. Rodriguez helped the Wolverines qualify for a bowl for the first time in his three seasons.