Auburn's Zach Gilbert (38) gives his opinion on who's No. 1. Chris Graythen/Getty Images

The final whistle didn't cap the NCAA football season, and the Sears trophy was nowhere to be seen. But from the scene that unfolded at the conclusion of the Sugar Bowl, you'd never know that the national championship had rotated to Miami this year. Flashbulbs glittered, fans waved deliriously to television cameras, and blue-and-orange clad players skipped around the Superdome, hugging one another and flashing No. 1 signs.

Can you blame 'em? On paper, at least, Auburn had the type of season that's deserving of a hunk of crystal hardware and decades of ESPN Classic reruns. The Tigers rolled over Georgia, and whipped Tennessee -- the team that routed Texas A&M in the Cotton Bowl -- twice. And then, the topper: In a defensive showdown against Virginia Tech, a team that outsprinted and outclassed Miami on the road to win the ACC, Auburn pulled out a 16-13 victory for its school-record 13th win.

Auburn's triumph is only sweetened by its year-long underdog status. The Tigers stumbled badly in 2003, meeting hyperbolic expectations for greatness with a mystifying 7-5 record. When that down year was capped by the bizarre news that Auburn had been secretly shopping coach Tommy Tuberville's job, the preview guides didn't dare make the same mistake twice. Before commencing their conference schedule with a 43-14 trouncing of Mississippi State, the Tigers were ranked a consensus third in the SEC, behind Georgia and LSU.

As recently as New Year's Day, weeks after making their case to the best of their ability in the regular season, the Tigers still were clawing for respect. Unanimously delegated by the AP, coaches and BCS rankings to the No. 3 spot behind USC and Oklahoma, the Auburn folks told every reporter who would listen that they deserved consideration as split national champion via the AP poll -- Orange Bowl bids be damned. "Obviously, we feel like there's one more vote," said Tuberville. "We'll be auditioning."

Given the nature of the college football system, in which style points, not simply Ws, become paramount by season's end, audition is the operative word. And as far as auditions go, Auburn's was ... good. Nothing's wrong with good, of course, except for when you are the No. 3 team with visions of national championship rings dancing in your head. Fair or unfair, for poll voters to remember the Tigers after what has all the makings of a thrilling BCS title game tomorrow, they needed to be dazzling.

Certain members of the Tiger defense might take umbrage with descriptions that were anything short of that one. Starting with Junior Rosegreen's snare of a Bryan Randall pass early in the first quarter, Gene Chizik's swarming, outrageously speedy unit, which allowed fewer points than any other team during the regular season, played a typically solid game. Until just more than two minutes to go in the game, when Hokies quarterback Randall froze Tigers' safety Will Herring to hit a wide-open, end zone-bound Josh Morgan in stride, Auburn held Virginia Tech to just six points, having flustered Randall into an underthrown two-point conversion attempt earlier in the quarter.

The Auburn offense, meanwhile, provided very few of the "wows" it wanted to in this game. On the Tigers' opening play, Jason Campbell hit Cooper Wallace on a 35-yard pass, and on the next, Ronnie Brown pounded out 31 yards, dragging cornerback Eric Green for at least a quarter of the way. But then, the Tigers offense fell ... strangely ... flat. Their opening drive, perhaps the sharpest of the game, resulted in a field goal, as did Auburn's second and third scoring drives. It says something that Campbell, voted Sugar Bowl MVP, had a touchdown-to-interception ratio of 1:1.

For this, credit must go to a Hokies team that has been, if such a thing is possible, the underdog of underdogs this month. Turns out, Tuberville wasn't completely outrageous in saying, before the game, that Virginia Tech was "maybe the best team [they] would play all year." With dangerous playmaking ability, particularly on defense, Beamer's crew improved as the season went on; and with the impending return of young stars like flanker Eddie Royal and several others with enormous potential, could be even stronger next year.

As far as Auburn is concerned, is there a sliver of a chance that the Tigers' prayers for a piece of the national championship pie could come to fruition before then? Well, Oklahoma and USC could fumble and bumble their way around the Pro Player Stadium on Tuesday night, and the Sooners could pull out an even uglier win than was staged in the Superdome on Monday. However, with Heisman winners Jason White and Matt Leinart throwing the ball, and phenoms Adrian Peterson and Reggie Bush running it, that scenario is about as likely as a blizzard in Miami.

Naturally, Auburn players were calling for a co-national-championship after the game. "We deserve to be national champions," Campbell said. "We don't deserve to be No. 2 behind anybody."

In defeat, Frank Beamer provided a clearer-eyed view. "The champion," said the Hokies coach succinctly, "will be decided tomorrow night."

That likely fact didn't dampen the Tigers' spirits on Monday night, and shouldn't tomorrow. Let the campaigning end, and the celebration begin. With 13 straight wins, Auburn has come further than any other team in the land over the past 12 months. They don't need any hardware, in the way of trophies or computers, to confirm that.

Sports Illustrated writer-reporter Kelley King covers college football for the magazine and is a regular contributor to SI.com.