It came to my attention on Monday night that Mizzou fans evidently aren’t understanding this unwritten SEC allegiance pact that comes with joining the conference.I watched the BCS National Championship with Alabama fans, who were finding it difficult to swallow their own school pride and support their in-state rival as a means of supporting the conference. I can understand the struggle facing Crimson Tide fans in that circumstance, but I was a little baffled by Mizzou fans who seemed to have already turned their back on the conference. Or perhaps they simply aren’t buying into how this whole SEC brotherhood works yet.According to social networks, Missouri fans a plenty were rooting for ACC representative Florida State, not the SEC’s Auburn, to win the title game.And in response to that I say, be better, not bitter.It urked me as well that Auburn was the conference’s representative, perhaps second-worse only to LSU filling that role on my scale of disliked teams. But I will admit that even more of that frustration came from knowing just how close both Alabama and Missouri, my two favorite teams in the SEC, were to being in Pasadena instead of Auburn.So with that, I tell myself, sorry, your teams had a shot and blew it.Auburn beat Alabama, albeit on a miracle field goal return that will probably never be duplicated. They needed additional heroics to escape Georgia and narrowly won the majority of their conference games.A month ago I criticized Auburn for barely sliding by instead of winning convincingly, but what has been revealed since is that Gus Malzahn’s team, while also lucky, was a perfect example of steady improvement from start to finish.By the time it faced Missouri, Auburn had discovered its strengths and was playing with an immense chip on its shoulder.The navy and gold Tigers carried that confidence into Monday night, where they came painstakingly close to winning their second title in four seasons.So, I encourage you, no matter how painful it may be, to acknowledge Auburn’s role as a worthy representative of the SEC instead of loathing them for defeating your own team.Furthermore, I watched the Cotton Bowl while trying to fend off a general disinterest that came from letdown. To go from being one win away from playing in the final BCS Title Game to competing in an irrelevant non-BCS bowl game was less than thrilling for me.I will confess that some of that attitude spawns from being spoiled, having been to the BCS Championship the past two seasons and three other BCS bowls over a four-year span.Not until I convinced myself to step back and put Mizzou’s entire season and even preseason circumstance into perspective could I appreciate what the Tigers accomplished. It’s more fair to judge them on their body of work — not their humiliating defensive performance in the SEC Championship.Ultimately, though, recognize the value of supporting your fellow SEC programs. Missouri has accepted its role in a new conference, and now it’s time for the fans to do the same. After all, wouldn’t it reflect well on the Tigers if the team that ended their destiny went on to win the championship.Let’s not be sore losers, but rather, supportive colleagues.

Derrick Forsythe is the sports editor and features editor for The Warren County Record.

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