LSU deserves national title

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Maybe it wasn't the tightly fought championship game you'd hoped for, with a climactic overtime finish like that classic Ohio State-Miami battle six years ago.In that regard, LSU's 38-24 domination of Ohio State in this year's BCS title game could be viewed as a bit of a letdown. Thirty-one unanswered points!...Where, oh where, did that No. 1-ranked Buckeye defense go?No wonder the drumbeat for a playoff is getting louder... It's music to The Unbalanced Line's ears, too. But don't let it cloud your thinking. Sure, in hindsight, it's easy to say a few other teams were more, or at least equally, deserving of a shot at the national title. After USC's, Georgia's, Missouri's and even West Virginia's lopsided bowl victories, that's difficult to argue.Actually, even No. 7-ranked Kansas could make a case after its 24-21 Orange Bowl victory over Virginia Tech. The 12-1 Jayhawks did play a relatively weak schedule, but they are the only team in the Top 10 with just one loss.But forget Kansas and those lackluster BCS bowls for a moment. Save that for the playoff argument.In this season, under BCS reign, LSU is definitely the most deserving and the most fitting team to wear the crown. Deserving? The Tigers beat eight teams that were ranked when they played. Four of them are still ranked, two in the Top 10 of both major polls. No other team can make such a claim, not even close. Fitting? Goodness gracious, LSU's incredible journey to the BCS crown was a perfect microcosm of the wildest and craziest college football season ever.Winding up No. 1 in the polls for a third, and final, time after two triple-overtime losses and three wins in the waning moments of regulation would have never, in anyone's wildest imagination, seemed possible.For now, and for lack of a better explanation, The Unbalanced Line is chalking it up to the same parity-driven anomaly that gave us Appalachian State over Michigan and Stanford over Southern Cal among a record 13 upsets of Top 5 teams by unranked opponents, and the first two-loss champion in the history of the BCS.But, it's an anomaly that could manifest itself into regularity. Which is why it's more important than ever to institute a playoff, and undoubtedly why more college presidents are beginning to march to the beat of Florida president Bernie Machin's drum.After getting stung by the tried-and-untrue BCS system that seldom produces an indisputable national champion, University of Georgia President Michael Adams said, "This year's experience with the BCS forces me to the conclusion that the current system has lost public confidence and simply does not work."His remarks might come across as sour grapes to some; Georgia finished second in the final AP poll and third in the coaches' poll, a spot above USC in the former and a spot below the Trojans in the latter.Nonetheless, it was high time a university president other than Machin spoke out publicly against the farce that is the BCS, because, as Adams rightly pointed out, the current system is "undercutting the sportsmanship and integrity of the game."It's also done a pretty good job of making a mockery of the university presidents who've been espousing the BCS company line in the face of public disdain for most of the last decade.Adams, who's also chairman of the NCAA executive committee, is calling for an eight-team playoff to decide the national championship beginning in 2010 when the current BCS contracts expire.If most of the SEC presidents fall in line with Machin and Adams, it's a pretty good bet a Football Bowl Subdivision playoff of some kind will be endorsed at the conference's spring meetings in Destin, Fla.Machin, an outspoken mover and shaker on the issue, sees his push for a playoff gaining momentum among the SEC presidents, and he wants his conference to lead the way. He also sees the essence of time relative to BCS contract renewals. Fortunately, the incoming BCS chairman, ACC commissioner John Swofford, and the outgoing chair, SEC commish Mike Slive, are already entertaining the idea of a seeded four-team playoff. Anything of the sort beats the Bogus Championship Series, just to get the ball rolling.That's not to say there won't be obstacles... The Big 10, Pac-10 and Rose Bowl will probably fight it tooth and nail.As recent as late December, Ohio State President Gordon Gee said, "As far as a playoff system, there will not be one. They'll have to wrench a playoff system out of my cold, dead hands."Pac-10 commissioner Tom Hansen last July actually threatened his league would walk away from the BCS if a so-called "plus-one" playoff were implemented.That's almost as much of a laugher as Gee's till-death-do-we-part proclamation. It's far more likely Hansen would be forced to walk away from his job, and Gee would live long enough to see Ohio State acquiesce to a power far greater than himself. The Unbalanced Line's call: We'll have a BCS-structured four-team playoff within three to four years and an eight-team format within five to six years.As for Buckeye fans having to endure a second consecutive meltdown in the BCS title game, The Unbalanced Line feels your pain.I watched the game with an Ohio State buddy of mine, and it wasn't easy. It shouldn't hurt so bad to be a Buckeye fan. (Contact John Tucker at jtucker@unionleader.com)(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, www.scrippsnews.com.)