Congratulations to the Alabama Crimson Tide for winning the BCS National Championship. The Tide came out and just slugged LSU in the mouth shutting out the Tigers 21-0. This game was ugly with the only touchdown scored off a Trent Richardson run late in the fourth quarter to put the game out of reach. There’s a few things that this game taught us.
photo credit: sectalk.com
1. Alabama’s Defense is really really good.
They were the best in the nation coming into the game and proved it again Monday night. Alabama dominated in the trenches allowing LSU to cross midfield only once. Brent Musburger even joked that “Alabama is guarding midfield like it’s the endzone.”
2. Nick Saban is the best coach in college football
Who is better? Saban has won three national titles. You give this man more than a month to plan and it’s lights out for the opponent. Alabama didn’t commit a single penalty the entire game. That’s discipline and focus. Whatever Saban does to garner the team’s attention it works to perfection.
3. Les Miles was out coached
Nick Saban usually out coaches everyone since he is the best, but Les Miles didn’t do himself any favors on Monday. He stuck with Jordan Jefferson despite his QB being clearly rattled. He played conservative and wasn’t creative on the offensive end. It was perplexing.
4. The time between the last game of the season and the BCS Championship game is way to long
This goes for all bowl games and is why the system is so ridiculous. Neither team looked like a complete team. You can give a lot of credit to defenses, but both offenses aren’t really that great to begin with. In fact both offenses are pretty mediocre. You don’t want to take anything away from Alabama’s effort on defense, but it’s hard not to point out the fact that they were facing a pedestrian offense. The time lag between games exposes these deficiencies.
5. It’s time for a college football playoff
This one is obvious. There was a reason there was so much resistance to seeing a rematch of the November 5th game. This would have been a perfect semi-final game especially if it were played in December only a week or two after the SEC Championship game. It would have worked better as a national championship game if both teams would have advanced their semi-final round. Who wouldn’t want to see Alabama and Stanford in one bracket play the winner of LSU and Oklahoma State? Then we would have more football, the teams would be fresher and the games more entertaining.
Ah but the college football playoff is still a pipe dream. We all have to hope the college football power brokers come to their senses and change the system into something that makes sense. Despite despising the current system, I have no problem congratulating Alabama for a fine year and a fantastic performance in this game. What a great season. They are true BCS National Champions. It’s not their fault the current set up is stupid. All those young men did today was play their tails off. They deserve all the credit in the world. Now it’s time for the big boys to step up and make the right decisions to make this an even greater product.
Ari Russell
Saban’s a good coach, but I would argue that Chris Petersen is as good, if not better. He’s done a remarkable job without all the advantages of an SEC powerhouse (top-notch recruits and facilities). Boise’s always disciplined and has near-perfect execution. He hasn’t won three national titles, but he hasn’t been given the opportunity, either. His record is ridiculous, and how many big games has he won with a long time to prepare?
I’d also throw Troy Calhoun out there. I don’t know if he’s better than Saban, but he’s done a tremendous job at one of the hardest places to win in football: the Air Force Academy. They are at a serious disadvantage yet regular give teams a scare and always make a bowl game.
I would put Peterson in the the elite category, he is close to Saban, but I find it hard for anyone to touch St. Nick. He is the best coach in the best conference. Coach Pete is awesome too, but right now Nick Saban is #1. I have love for Troy Calhoun too. I understand the challenges at the service academies, but he would fall well below Peterson.
Good points, but I just think that if the situations were reversed that Saban wouldn’t have nearly the success at Boise that Petersen has had while Petersen would be as successful at Alabama. Regardless, I would love to see these two square off at some point. It would be a helluva game!
I agree about Calhoun. He’s not in the same league as those two, but I just don’t think he gets his due a lot of the time when people talk about the best coaches. I’m from Colorado, and he seems to fly under the radar here, too, (no pun intended) despite CU and CSU being awful.
These stement regarding Patterson and the others being in the same league as Saban is a complete farce. Patterson has yet to succeed in a conference that contains more than two consistant winners on a regular basis. Yes, he has won a few big games, but he has choked when it was all on the line, consistantly. That aside, what was missed in this article is that Saban has coached at more than one school and made three relevant or relevant again. Michigan state has a program today thanks to his time there and their present coach was his hire. LSU has a progem in the elite only because of Sabans time there. How many years had it been since LSU knew what a winning program was like? They have two championships with teams trained and recuited by Saban. He got that program rolling. Finally, 25 years from the last season of the Bear Saban took over a beleagered Alabama and he did what no coach in the interim had been able to do. Within two seasons he had them in the reckoning. Yes he did it in the great SEC where “everybody” wants to go… but why do players want to go there? In a large part thanks to Saban and his making the conference a system of several winners, not just Florida and a couple other shows. No coach in college footbal today is in that realm. Few coaches in history are even on that plateau. Alabama has been fortunate to have several….Thomas; Wade, Bryant, and now Saban. Bama fans are a unique breed as they are one of a handfull of schools who can judge their present coach against greats from their long history. Coaches like Patterson, Kelly, Meyer, and others have a very long way to go before thay can be considered with the greats. Saban is not only already there, but been there for a good while. And his school is not being leavied due head coach involved recruiting violations; in fact he does not have that history, on the contrary he has been quick to assess, report and stop potential issues. He probably lost the Utah game due to leaving th Outland trophy winner at home. He lost several games in 2007 due to a books issue that predated him. So please, if you are going to argue or propose the top coach, be detailed with relevant facts, not guesses or wishes. Thank you.
Great points on Saban, but one thing that weakens all Bama fans argument is the excuse with the Utah Game. Look they blew your doors off. It happens. Give Utah credit. Bear Bryant didn’t go undefeated every year. That said there are other great coaches other than Saban. If Meyer wins one at OSU before Bama wins their next, he will have the same championship pedigree as Saban. You are allowed to praise someone without diminishing another. Even if it makes you sick to your stomach to give Urban any credit. I know that is a hard concept for many Bama fans to comprehend. It’s all good though. Bama fans is what makes CFB so great. You guys are truly unique and it’s great to debate the diehards.