The Big Easy. Three simple words that have a whole lot of meaning. To some, it simply is another name for the city of New Orleans. Looking at the task at hand for Alabama and LSU, I would say it is anything buteasy. It most certainly is BIG. New Orleans has been the site of many memorable college football games. 'Bama fans will never forget the “Goal Line Stand” against Penn State in January of 1979 and the upset of Miami in January 1993. LSU fans cherish both of their recent National Championships, which came from the same Louisiana Superdome in January 2004 and January 2008. I find it very fitting that the first ever National Championship matchup of BCS teams from one conference should take place in the Superdome.
LSU found its way into the big game the old fashioned way. They won every single game they played and ended the regular season as the only undefeated team. Alabama on the other hand needed the help of luck, fate, God, or whatever power you believe in. After a Nov 5th overtime loss to LSU, 'Bama fans knew the battle would be an uphill one to get back into the National Championship conversation.
The first positive sign came very quickly though. On Sunday Nov. 6 the BCS polls only dropped Alabama one spot to #3. Brad Edwards of ESPN, the proclaimed BCS guru, let everyone know though that a win by Stanford the next week would lift the Cardinal over 'Bama regardless if 'Bama won too. Crimson Tide fans also feared getting jumped by the 5th ranked Broncos of Boise St. if they also continued to win. What happened the following week could only be described as BCS chaos: Round 1. Not only did Stanford lose to Oregon in a beatdown, Boise State also lost to TCU ending any prayer they had of busting the BCS race.
So far, so good.
Many 'Bama fans put their hope in Oklahoma beating Oklahoma St. in the last regular season game of the year for the Big 12, but would that win catapult Oklahoma ahead of 'Bama? Well, Christmas came early for the 'Bama Nation in the form of BCS chaos: Round 2 beginning on a Friday night in Ames, Iowa. Lowly, unranked Iowa St. did the impossible, winning an overtime game against Oklahoma St. Then, on Saturday, Baylor defeated Oklahoma, which completely eliminated the Sooners from any future BCS championship game consideration. Alabama, continuing to win, rose back to the 2nd spot in the BCS with a comfortable lead over the 3rd place team, Arkansas, and all signs were pointing to a rematch with LSU. Alabama bulldozed its way past Auburn in what may have been the 2nd best defensive display I have ever seen from a 'Bama team (the 1st being from the 1993 Sugar Bowl against Miami).
With just “championship Saturday” to go, all looked like a lock for an SEC rematch in New Orleans for the National Championship. It was the first proclaimed time that the last weekend of college football would not matter at all. Boy, were the experts almost wrong. Two things needed to happen for Alabama to sit comfortably while they waited for the BCS announcements on Sunday.
1) Virginia Tech win the ACC championship game.
2) Oklahoma beat Oklahoma St. in the Bedlam game.
Neither of those 2 things happened. In fact, Oklahoma St. beat Oklahoma so badly that most began to lobby that Oklahoma St. deserved and had earned the right to play LSU instead of 'Bama.
OK, it’s time to stop telling this story with an unbiased tone. There is no way that a team that lost to the equivalent of Kentucky (we are talking football not basketball here people) has a better “resume” than a team whose only loss came in overtime to the consensus #1 team in the country. How do those two losses even compare? I will tell you what people were thinking. The general college football nation is tired of the SEC. They are tired of the SEC dominance. They have SEC fatigue, and they want so badly to see someone from some other conference win the National Championship. If the Polls and the Computers put 2 SEC teams in the BCS game they were simply handing a 6th straight Championship to the SEC. Many voters had an agenda and a rationale to support it with the Oklahoma St. blowout win. In a vote that would prove to be the closest race ever between the 2nd and 3rd ranked team, Alabama received just enough votes to keep them at #2 and setup “The Game of the Century II”.
Following the Tide
I am so excited to be going to my 3rd National Championship game featuring my beloved Crimson Tide. I was there in 1993 as a 14 year-old boy and then again in Pasadena in 2010 as a 31-year-old father of two. Playing for a National Championship doesn’t happen very often. To be able to attend two in a 3-year time span is just amazing. It is being said that this is going to be the hardest College Football ticket ever. Not difficult to get because no one is selling their ticket, but hard to get because no one can afford what people are asking for the tickets. With a face value of $300 and $350 most are asking scalping prices beginning at $1500 at ticket!
Tide. Tigers. Domination.
Now that all the facts are out of the way, lets talk about DOMINATION! Both of these teams have been beating the hell out of their competition. These are the best two teams in country and they deserve to finish what they started. New Orleans is going to be rocking in the days leading up to the game on Jan. 9th. The scene will be electric inside the Dome, and I expect a juggernaut game just like the first battle. Both teams are ruled by their defensive and running attacks. It is a shame that a team has to lose this game because I fully believe that each of these teams represent the best team that each school has ever had. A debate can be made on the 'Bama side because there have been some amazing Crimson Tide teams, but there is no question that this LSU team is the best Tiger team to ever come from Baton Rouge.
Only one team can hoist the gleaming crystal ball. I think that the Nick Saban lead Crimson Tide will get revenge from the overtime loss and once again be champions of the College Football world. I can’t think of a better bandage for the wounds of a Tornado stricken town. Football has been an escape for many people in Tuscaloosa. What a fitting year to bring #14 home to the great people of a great state from one of the greatest places to play in a National Championship game, New Orleans. Three simple words: The Big Easy. It won’t be easy, but it just may be the biggest win for the Crimson Tide Nation in a long, long time! Roll Tide!
