Stop if you’ve heard this one before.
Team A’s defense is overrated because they play in the SEC, a conference with middle-of-the-road offenses.
Team B’s high-flying offense is the best they’ll face all year and will torch them in the national championship game.
That was the story preached by many in the national media before the past few national title games.
In 2008 it was the Oklahoma Sooners, led by Heisman Trophy winner Sam Bradford, which averaged 51.1 points per game that year. The Gators shut Bradford and the Sooners down, holding them to just 14 points in a Gator win.
In 2009 the Texas Longhorns, led by Colt McCoy, averaged just under 40 points per game, but the Crimson Tide’s defense only allowed 21 en route to another SEC win.
And of course everyone remembers last year’s Oregon Ducks. The apple of ESPN’s eye, the flashy, up-tempo Ducks averaged 47 points per game, but were held to just 19 against an Auburn defense that was considered average by SEC standards.
And so when it came time to decide who would face LSU in the national title game – defensive-minded Alabama or offensive juggernaut Oklahoma State – the answer was clear, and the powers that be gave the nation the best game they possibly could.
The reality of the college football world is simple – there’s the SEC, and there’s everyone else. It’s no secret which teams people want to see. The three top-rated games in college football this year were CBS games that featured two SEC teams.
“I know a lot of people were hoping for a different outcome,” said Rowan Kavner, sports editor at the Daily Reveille, Louisiana State’s student newspaper. “But you’re going to see the top two teams in the nation play on January 9.”
Alabama and LSU have already played this season, and many were hoping that Nov. 5 would show who the better team was.
But while LSU did win the game, it raised more questions than it answered. The two teams proved that they were the only ones who could beat the other.
“It’s going to be a really close game. Alabama is probably the toughest team LSU could have faced in the national championship,” said Katherine Terrell, deputy sports editor at the Daily Reveille. “A lot of LSU fans wanted to play Oklahoma State instead of Alabama, actually.”
And for good reason. Odds maker Danny Sheridan said on the Paul Finebaum radio show this week that Oklahoma State would be a 13-point underdog to LSU had the Cowboys been selected for the national championship game. Sheridan also said that Alabama would be an 11-point favorite over Oklahoma State. So it’s easy to see why LSU students and fans would rather face the Cowboys than the Crimson Tide.
“A lot of people said Oklahoma State had a harder schedule than Bama, played more ranked teams and what not. But I think the reason Bama was put into the championship game above them is just because of the SEC’s reputation,” Terrell said. “It’s just so established by now.”
Had the BCS selected Oklahoma State over Alabama, the country would have seen the same story. Another potent offense. Another SEC defense. But the BCS made the right choice, and the nation will see the two best teams from the dominant conference.
