LSU vs. Alabama: Why Bama Will Prove Oklahoma State Should Have Been in the Game

Alabama held their No. 2 ranking by a chin hair with their Week 15 victory over Auburn.

The Tide grabbed a BCS National Championship Game berth despite Oklahoma State's drubbing of Oklahoma on December 3rd.

Alabama's championship berth was as contested as the BCS can get. Oklahoma State certainly had an argument to go to New Orleans to take on No. 1 LSU.

After Monday night everyone will be saying, " I wish Oklahoma State had gotten their shot."

The Tide are a great team, without a doubt. Their defense is arguably the best in the country, and Trent Richardson is the best back in the entire nation.

However, the Tide's offense stalls at times.

As good as Trent Richardson is, A.J. McCarron hasn't shown the ability to win games on his own. Granted, he doesn't usually have to. That won't be the case against the stellar Tiger defense.

LSU will exploit Alabama's one-dimensional attack. The Tiger secondary will blanket the Tide's average receiving core and force Richardson to do everything for an Alabama victory.

Richardson is an amazing talent, but he can't handle that load against this defense.

Defensively, Alabama has playmakers at all three levels, but the Tiger offense has improved after each game this season. As long as Jordan Jefferson takes care of the football, the LSU attack is severely underrated.

The stable of LSU running backs will wear down Alabama's front seven by the fourth quarter. This will allow LSU to use their speed in space and stretch the field vertically through the air.

Oklahoma State's defense isn't remotely close to Alabama's based on any category. However, their offense is better than the Tide's and that would go a long way toward upsetting the dominant LSU squad.

The Cowboys bring quarterback Brandon Weeden, receiver Justin Blackmon and running back Joseph Randle to the table. All three players can hurt a defense at any time.

LSU's deep secondary would be spread out against the Oklahoma State attack which could open seams for the lightning-quick Randle out of the backfield.

The Tiger offense is underrated but not electric enough to take full advantage of the Cowboys' weaknesses on the defensive side of the ball.

Alabama and LSU are the two best teams in the nation on paper. Given their similar strengths, the matchup may always be bland and uneventful.

The Cowboys haven't played an uneventful game this season and probably won't as long as their run-and-shoot attack is in place.

Alabama is more talented, but Oklahoma State has the better resume and should be playing on national television Monday night.