If you had asked me at the beginning of the semester which two teams I would least like to see in the national championship, I would have said USC and OSU.

Why not Texas?

Texas is Wes Mantooth to our Ron Burgundy. Deep down in my stomach, with every inch of me, I purely and completely hate Longhorns, but I respect them.

They're our evil yet equal opposites.

Agent Smith to our Neo, Voldemort to our Harry Potter and Mary-Kate to our Ashley Olsen.

I have no respect for OSU, however, and if somehow the Cowboys did win a national title someday (the only way I can imagine involves a deal with the devil), you know the Sooners won't hear the end of it for 50 years.

But the second worst scenario came to fruition, and I still haven't decided who I want to win. In one outcome, our most hated rival becomes the best team in the country and recruits even better than it already does. In the other, USC becomes the only team to three-peat the national championship and continues to be the schoolgirl crush of Lee Corso and half the sportscasters in the country.

This brings me to my point. I say "three-peat," but that's a matter of opinion, and definitely not mine. Don't you have to repeat before you can three-peat?

No one seems to remember that USC didn't play in a championship two years ago. First, they were the "AP National Champions," then the "Co-National Champions," and now simply the "Two-Time National Champion, Nazi-Thwarting, Electricity-Inventing, Baby-Rescuing USC Trojans."

The collective mindset of college football teams, fans and analysts across the country seems to be: if you can't beat the BCS, ignore it.

Even in a year like this, with clearly defined No. 1 and No. 2 teams, there is some controversy. Oregon only lost to USC and finished the regular season ranked fifth in the BCS. They're playing us in the Holiday Bowl, while No. 22 Florida State (8-4) found its way to the Orange Bowl.

So if the BCS doesn't work, what's the alternative? I hope and pray that I'll see an NCAA football playoff before I die (and at least a few times with OU coming out on top), but it's unlikely for the near future.

ESPN.com recently had a poll asking which method should be used to determine who plays in the four BCS bowls. When I voted, the nationwide results had 13 percent saying "Current system," 14 percent for "Less computer rankings input," 30 percent for "Committee selection" and 43 percent saying "Top eight teams in the AP poll." In AP-favored states like California and Alabama (the home of the Auburn Tigers), only 10 and 7 percent voted for the current system, respectively. Twenty-three percent of Oklahoma voted for the current system.

Anyone who thinks a committee selection would relieve the controversy is insane. Diminishing the computer's role in the selection only puts us closer to complete AP control. I, of course, back the BCS any chance I get. Since we regained our position as national contenders in 2000, the BCS has always favored us. It favors us right now. But it's more than that.

AP voters have yet to prove to me that they can make responsible ranking decisions.

Were they watching the same Notre Dame-USC game as me? USC wouldn't be ranked No. 1 right now if it weren't for that ball popping out of Matt Leinart's hand and flying out of bounds. But it did, and they are.

Notre Dame should've been rewarded for that game, not dropped. USC lost first place votes for that game, but they should've dropped to No. 2 at least.

Apparently, no one watched our game against Texas Tech at all. Voters saw a highlight reel with a spectacular comeback by Tech and raised them four spots. Our fall and their climb in no way accurately represented that game.

Not all is bad for the Sooners in the world of college football, however. At least that smug excuse for a football coach Les Miles got beat out of the BCS. And while I have no intentions of downplaying an important game against Oregon, there are only 269 days left until next season.

-- Garrett Baker is a film and video studies sophomore. He can be reached at dailyopinion@ou.edu.
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