If
you like sequels, the BCS has a championship game for you:
Alabama-LSU II.
The
Crimson Tide edged Oklahoma State in the final round of voting Sunday
and will play the top-ranked Tigers in the BCS national championship
game on Jan. 9 in New Orleans.
Undefeated
LSU is the only team to beat Alabama this season, and the head BCS
official sees a rematch as a perfectly good title game.
"Absolutely,
if they're 1 and 2, and they are in all the polls released today,"
executive director Bill Hancock said.
Still,
it's not exactly a game the public was clamoring for — at least
outside of Southeastern Conference territory. And it will do nothing
to quiet critics of the Bowl Championship Series or calls for a
college football playoff.
Like
it or not, the system has ensured that the SEC — home to both
schools — will run its streak of BCS championships to six in a row.
Alabama
has one of those and will be making its second BCS title game
appearance in the last three seasons. The Crimson Tide claims 13
national championships overall and is one of the most decorated
programs in the land. It's won seven AP titles since the wire service
started its poll in 1936.
LSU
will be seeking its third BCS championship since 2003 at the
Superdome — the site of its first two.
Tide
coach Nick Saban won that title for LSU in '03. Current Tigers coach
Les Miles matched his predecessor in 2007, winning a championship
with a team that lost two games.
These
talented Tigers, led by dynamic defensive back Tyrann Mathieu, have
rarely even trailed against a schedule that included Oregon and West
Virginia.
"This
team loves the big stage," Miles said.
Alabama,
with its top-rated defense and Heisman Trophy contender Trent
Richardson, was the only team to stay within 13 points of the Tigers
this season.
The
Cowboys made a late surge by beating Oklahoma 44-10 on Saturday
night, and closed the gap on Alabama in the polls. But it was not
enough to avoid the first title game rematch in the 14-year history
of the BCS.
The
Tigers (13-0) beat the Tide 9-6 in overtime on Nov. 5 in Tuscaloosa.
"This
could be a totally different type of game," Saban said. "There's
so many good players on both sides of the ball for both teams.
"There's
so much opportunity for this game to play out completely different
and have a completely different flavor than the first game."
Alabama
(11-1) finished second in both the Harris and coaches' polls by a
wide enough margin to overcome Oklahoma State's lead in the computer
ratings.
The
Cowboys (11-1), champions of the Big 12, will play in the Fiesta Bowl
against Stanford from the Pac-12.
"We
can't control it," Oklahoma State quarterback Brandon Weeden
said. "But I know we had a heck of a year and we beat really
good football teams in this conference and we're conference
champions, so we did everything that we could."
