New National Champion

I'd like to congratulate the LSU Tigers on winning the 2011 National Championship in college football. The Bayou Bengals have completed one of the most dominant regular seasons in the history of college football and deserve a place in the discussion of all-time best teams. LSU's undefeated record combined with a dominant scoring margin is impressive and it's virtually unbelievable when you consider the competition they played against.

LSU's destruction of Georgia yesterday was their 7th victory against a ranked team this season. It was their 4th time beating a team ranked in the Top 15. Even more ridiculous - they've defeated three teams that were ranked in the Top 3 at the time of the game! Along with the scheduling, to rub it in to the rest of the country, the only game LSU hasn't won by at least 13 points was their 9-6 victory over Alabama. The Tigers haven't just won big games, they've crushed the opposition. Slight side note - God bless LSU for not being afraid to go on the road and play big non-conference games. It says a lot about your program and the mindset of your football team when you are willing to play great teams from other conferences and I admire the Tigers for taking everyone's best shot. Actually, I'd probably take LSU to win the AFC West in the NFL.

Honey Badger don't care...

In my mind, LSU has already done enough to deserve the title of National Champions. Yet, they still have to play (and likely win) one more game. As of now, it's uncertain who the Tigers will face in the BCS Championship game in New Orleans on January 9, but I'd make the argument that it shouldn't matter. If LSU plays Alabama and loses, I think they still have a more impressive resume than the Crimson Tide. LSU already won on the road in Tuscaloosa - how could a neutral site victory by Alabama be more impressive? (Ironically, I think Alabama is a better team than LSU but missed too many opportunities in their game against the Tigers.) If LSU loses to Oklahoma State, they'd have one loss to the 2nd ranked team in the country - still sounds a lot better than Oklahoma State's one loss to an unranked Iowa State team. Fortunately, even though I'm making the case for not even playing the game, the boys from Baton Rouge don't care who they play on January 9 because they'll take on anybody. They're not concerned about who the opponent is - their primary goal is to leave no doubt about who the best is.

Funny thing about this whole post for me - I don't like LSU! I admire and respect their program but I don't like the players or the fans. Still, I can't deny how dominant they've been this season. They've answered the bell time and again, which is why think the crystal ball should already be on display in Baton Rouge. I don't think any outcome on January 9 is going to change my opinion on that. LSU has earned the title of champion and deserves to be talked about as one of the best ever. 2011 was another great season for college football, but the discussion about who the champion is should be over.