Destination: New Orleans, Alabama-LSU Rematch Is a Go

The final BCS standings have been released by ESPN and Alabama remains No. 2.  The Oklahoma State Cowboys gave a great last hurrah against Oklahoma, but it wasn't enough to leap-frog Alabama.

Many thought the Cowboys domination of the Sooners would be enough to impress the voters. Unfortunately for the Pokes, the voters remembered the loss to un-ranked Iowa State.  

They also acknowledged that the Sooners have been in a downward spiral for the last half of the season, lacking who was arguably their best player, wide receiver Ryan Broyles.

The Cowboys have been favored by the computers, but the USA Today Coaches' Poll had them at No. 3, but just a mere 32 points behind Alabama.  The Harris Poll has been favoring Alabama for some time, ranking them second and the Cowboys fifth behind Stanford and Virginia Tech.  

The Hokies loss to Clemson in the ACC Championship Game gave Oklahoma State the boost they needed, but the Harris Poll served as the tie-breaker between Alabama and Oklahoma State.  

The talk of a rematch has been extremely polarizing.  

The biggest argument Alabama has had is they barely lost to the best team in the nation in overtime, not to an un-ranked underdog.  Oklahoma State's argument has been, "Alabama had their shot".  

The question I always asked was, "What shot?".  

A shot to play LSU, or a shot to play for the national championship?  Both teams had their shot to play for the title.  LSU just happens to also be playing for the national championship, so the fact that they have already faced the Tide is irrelevant.  Oklahoma State had their shot to play for the national championship, too.  

Whether it were Alabama or Oklahoma State that was chosen doesn't really matter.  Just like a presidential election, you are going to have some very happy folks and a lot of disgruntled fans.

The BCS has been a hated aspect of college football for over a decade now, with fans, coaches and beat writers alike all calling for its dismantling.  A rematch between two teams from not only the same conference, but the same division as well, is the best possible argument against the BCS.

A plus-one system would be—by far—the best option, keeping all the bowl games intact and simply making the national championship a two-game affair.  

But that's a story for another day.

Today, Alabama begins preparations for their redemption, Oklahoma State laments their uncalled for loss and LSU cringes because we all know they don't want to face Alabama again.