So, here's where I think Auburn is going off the rails a bit with their four newest championship claims. They are using obscure selection systems that aren't even recognized in the NCAA's college football records books. This is sad, because all the NCAA appears to require is the ranking system be national in scope.
Maybe some other schools do that, too, but not many.
For decades the NCAA has published an annual Football Records book that media members rely on as gospel (although I have found a few mistakes in it over the years). The NCAA denies ever having recognized an FBS champion, but devotes a whole section to results published by polls and other selection systems.
Here is what the NCAA recognizes:
None of those selection systems named Auburn as champions in 1910, 1914, 1958, or 2004.
By contrast, all of Alabama's claimed championships are included, because the Houlgate mathematical ranking system that inexplicably calculated Alabama as the #1 team in 1941 is recognized as a major selection source by the NCAA.
While I agree with some of the argumrnts here that schools are basically free to claim any championship season they want, it seems you should at least be able to point to some type of third party recognition. Maybe we can get the Clarion-Ledger to award State the 1941 championship? Or I would be happy to publish the results of the Dawgzilla Ranking system...