"This is the result of reaching those goals," Saban said. "The national championship is the scoreboard."
Southern Cal followers believe that the Rose Bowl scoreboard, which showed the Trojans as 28-14 victors over Michigan on New Year's Day, is evidence that USC is the national champion. The final Associated Press poll released yesterday agreed; members of the media voted the Trojans No. 1.
This season in college football, there was no final resolution. By beating Oklahoma in this season's Bowl Championship Series title game, LSU (13-1) grabbed the BCS version of the national title.
USC (12-1) was left out of the Sugar Bowl because the computer-generated BCS ranking deemed LSU and Oklahoma more worthy. The coaches' poll had the Trojans No. 1 in its final regular-season poll. But the coaches had an agreement with the BCS that they would recognize the winner of the BCS title game as national champion. And when the final coaches' poll was released yesterday, 60 of the 63 coaches who voted honored the agreement.
"In no way do I disrespect anyone who voted against us," Saban said. "I think everyone is entitled to their subjective opinion. . . . Unfortunately, the system couldn't handle three teams."
This is the sixth year of the current BCS format, which was designed to avoid shared championships. In each of the previous five years, only one team finished undefeated, so any controversy was muted. Since LSU and USC are the lone remaining teams with one loss, a game between the Tigers and Trojans would resolve the issue.
"I think there'd be an awful lot of people who would love to see the matchup," USC coach Pete Carroll said during a teleconference after the Sugar Bowl. "It would be exciting for the country. It's too bad it can't happen."
Saban said he has been in favor of putting together a championship game after the bowl games. But he also has reservations about lengthening the season.
