OSU, LSU back in title matchup

In the end, resiliency trumped consistency, final performances trumped the flops before it, and league titles trumped everything.

Back on Nov. 4, when Ohio State topped the AP Poll and LSU lurked just behind it, a meeting between the teams in the BCS title game seemed an appetizing and likely prospect.

Two days ago, it looked impossible.

But after a colossal choke by West Virginia and a somewhat expected loss by Missouri, both the Buckeyes and (Bayou) Tigers found themselves in the right spots Sunday night.

And now, after rallying from demoralizing losses to win their final games, the two teams will meet in New Orleans to decide it all.

The Jan. 7 clash could be superb, but most will remember the wild ride to the championship and the lingering questions about the selection system.

"I don't think it's so much the system as it is the year," said BCS coordinator and SEC commissioner Mike Slive. "What I find interesting about this year is, is this year an anomaly or is this year a precursor to what we might see in the future?

"Trying to analyze that question leads us to the discussion about whether this format needs an adjustment."

After the nuttiness of Saturday night, Sunday's selections were fairly predictable. Ohio State, benefiting from the lack of a league title game, was the obvious No. 1 despite a home loss to Rose Bowl-bound Illinois.

Only two teams -- LSU and Virginia Tech -- had legitimate shots for the No. 2 spot. LSU came in second in both the Harris and coaches' polls, pushing ahead of Virginia Tech, which finished No. 1 in the computer rankings. The Tigers' 48-7 victory against Tech on Sept. 8 gave them a clear edge.

Oklahoma had a résumé similar to LSU -- 2 close losses against so-so opponents -- but the Sooners were hamstrung by a league that couldn't match the SEC top to bottom.

That brings us to schedule strength: Did it matter?

LSU clearly benefited from a slate that included seven top-20 teams, and the SEC was the nation's toughest conference, according to the Sagarin ratings. Illinois had the Big Ten appeal the Rose Bowl desired, but a schedule that ranked 10th-toughest nationally based on cumulative opposition certainly didn't hurt.

On the flip side, Kansas was selected to the Orange Bowl despite playing the nation's 81st-toughest schedule.

Missouri beat Kansas and played the nation's 13th-toughest schedule, but with 1 more loss than the Jayhawks, the Tigers tumbled from top-ranked Saturday to the Cotton Bowl on Sunday. With head-to-head evidence at their disposal, the BCS got this one completely wrong.

One thing it got right was selecting Hawaii, the nation's only unbeaten team, for the Sugar Bowl. The Warriors finally can put their electrifying offense against a first-rate opponent (Georgia) after getting spurned in scheduling by several bigwigs.

Georgia dropped from fourth to fifth in the final BCS standings, leaving coach Mark Richt to wonder if teams that don't win their leagues should even be eligible to reach the title game.

Ohio State coach Jim Tressel, after abstaining from voting in the final coaches' poll last year, cast his first 6 votes in Sunday's poll for the winners of the BCS conferences. (He put Ohio State first and LSU second).

"If you're trying to sift out what the most equitable set of constraints, (a league title) would be a very healthy one," Tressel said.

LSU's Les Miles stood in Richt's shoes a year ago, coaching a red-hot team that didn't win the SEC and subsequently went to the Sugar Bowl.

After an emotionally draining weekend in which he defended his commitment to LSU, won the SEC title game, saw his defensive coordinator (Bo Pelini) become Nebraska's coach and whoop it up with his players during the selections, Miles likes his current position a bit better.

"Arguably, this is very representative of the best of college football," he said.

Miles added that he advocates a four-team playoff as long as it doesn't destroy the bowl system. Slive said BCS powers-that-be will continue to examine a "plus one" option.

Changes are crucial, but Slive noted that the wacky season provided plenty of opportunity.

"The brass ring was there for a lot of different people to grab," Slive said. "Sometimes they did, sometimes they didn't.

"When they didn't, it allowed two teams to fight their way back."