LSU vs. Alabama Rematch: Breaking Down the Votes That Made This Game a Reality

This year's national championship game on January 9th will be the long-anticipated rematch between the LSU Tigers and the Alabama Crimson Tide. Oklahoma State didn't make the cut, even after a big win on Saturday night to improve their BCS resume.

LSU’s appearance in the national title game doesn’t come as a surprise. The Tigers were a unanimous selection across the three BCS polls and were heading to New Orleans no matter what. The rankings on Sunday night just confirmed that.

Although LSU’s place in the title game again was a virtual lock (even before the SEC championship game), the other half of this national title bill came down to the very last second. The final standings revealed that the Alabama Crimson Tide had held on to the No. 2 spot, which ensured the January rematch.

How did Alabama hold on to No. 2—even though LSU already beat the Crimson Tide—to make the national title game?

The computer rankings showed the Cowboys of Oklahoma State were the No. 2 team in the nation in the final BCS standings. It was the human polls that left the Cowboys ranked No. 3.

Alabama, on the other hand, was ranked No. 2 in both of the human polls in the final week. Alabama dropped a spot in the computer tally when OSU jumped them after their big win against Oklahoma.

The Crimson Tide is heading to New Orleans due, in part, to playing a much tougher schedule than Oklahoma State. Alabama lost only one game—to its national championship game opponent LSU—and they cruised through the rest of the SEC schedule.

The Cowboys, on the other hand, also lost only one game during the regular season—but it was to an overachieving Iowa State team. The loss, on the road in overtime, didn't match up to Alabama's loss to LSU.

So, Oklahoma State is preparing to make the trip to Glendale to face Andrew Luck and the Stanford Cardinal in the Fiesta Bowl. You have to believe there is jubilation in the streets of Tuscaloosa and heartbreak in Stillwater.  

Did the BCS get this year’s national title game right by pitting LSU against Alabama? Should Oklahoma State have been given the chance to play in its first national title game instead?