Alabama Football: Top 3 Reasons the Tide Belong in the BCS Championship Game

As the 2011 college football season nears an end, we the people are once again left with the turmoil and confusion that is the BCS. Sure, LSU has proved itself to be the No. 1 team in the country, but who deserves the right to face them in the BCS Championship?

Many argue that the current No. 2 team in the country, the Alabama Crimson Tide, had its chance and fell short. These people would claim that Oklahoma State is the most deserving one-loss team in America.

Well, as you might have guessed, I don't see it that way. Let's take a look at why I believe Alabama should be No. 2 and should meet LSU in the BCS National Championship Game.

Second to One

Alabama's only loss this season came at the hands of the undefeated LSU Tigers. Although many argue that this is reason enough not to give the Tide another shot, I would argue the exact opposite. Why? Despite losing 9-6 in overtime at home earlier in the season, Alabama is still the next best team in the country.

The only other team with any argument to be No. 2 is Oklahoma State, but the Cowboys fell to an unranked Iowa State squad 37-31 in double overtime. Double overtime, really?

Until then, Iowa State had never beaten a team ranked in the top six spots of the AP Poll. If ever there was a game to choke, this was not it. By losing that game, Oklahoma State made a statement that resonated around the country, "We are not ready for the big one."

However, the Crimson Tide took LSU to the limit. In fact, had the offensive play-calling been a little more aggressive, Alabama might not have had to rely on its poor special teams quite as much. Just five extra yards could have been the difference between a missed field goal and a victory.

But I'm not about to base my opinion on what could have been. The fact is, Alabama lost by three to the No. 1 team in the land. The Cowboys, on the other hand, lost to a bottom dweller that had no right finishing the game within 30 points of the so-called offensive juggernaut.

Defense Wins Championships

So the old saying goes. Through 12 games this season, Alabama has the nation's top defense in all four major categories.

Flashback to two years ago when the Crimson Tide featured another tyrannical defense centered around linebacker Rolando McClain: In the 2009 BCS Championship, the Alabama defense sent Texas quarterback Colt McCoy to the locker room early in the first quarter.

The Tide quickly started to pile on the points, and the Longhorn offense could never quite get in the groove against an unrelenting Alabama defense. The Longhorns eventually lost that game 37-21.

Was there any way Florida quarterback John Brantley could have anticipated he'd be playing the role of Colt McCoy here in 2011? Granted, it wasn't the BCS Championship, and Florida is nowhere near the caliber of team that Texas was in 2009, but the point is the same. Alabama is as physical as they come, and if any team in the country has a chance of beating LSU, it's the Tide. 

The West is the Best

For the first time in the history of the BCS, one conference had three teams ranked one, two and three in the rankings. However, not only were these three teams from the SEC, but they were also all from the same division—the SEC West.

Oddly enough, the past two national champions have been members of that same division. Both Alabama in 2009 and Auburn in 2010 ran the table in the SEC Western Division and their conference as a whole before going on to win the BCS Championship.

Considering history, it might be safe to say that LSU is unbeatable this season, but if any team has a chance to beat the Tigers when it matters most, it would most likely be another squad from the SEC West. Now that Arkansas has been eliminated, Alabama has cemented itself as the clear No. 2 team in the country.