2010 BCS NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP: TEXAS VS. ALABAMA
by William Queen-Contributing Writer-Football Reporters Online
(eds: note-William writes this piece from Texas' point of view. We will have a second piece from the "Tide's" pointof view over the weekend)

Texas caught the bad end of the BCS in 2008 and, due to a 3-team tie, was forced to sit out the Big 12 championship game which ultimately sent Oklahoma to the BCS national championship game. Though they ended their season off on a good note with a close win over the bowl-bereaving Buckeyes. Quarterback Colt McCoy entered his senior year with very high expectations, as he has yet to win a national championship. Well, needless to say, 13-0 closes the deal. Though their win over Nebraska in the Big 12 championship game was all but certain, the Longhorns still came out with the W and a ticket to the big one. Perhaps their biggest question was the level of difficulty they played throughout the season. But a #1 rushing defense complimented by the #3 scoring offense, stats don’t lie.

With more than a month to build up hype for this game, the media has yet to disappoint. Predictions shoot out in every which way, so why not give it a shot? Plus, with all this extra time to think about it, it better be good.

When it’s game time, the betting lines can say whatever they want, but the real football has yet to be played and the clock has yet to start ticking. But when they do take the field in the most important college football game of the year, predictions won’t matter and the experts aren’t any smarter than the fans sitting at home. Texas, Alabama, who want’s it more?

The game started out all in favor of the Horns. Sending Bama’s offense in reverse and sniffing out a fake punt, Texas had the ball on Alabama’s side of the field with tons of momentum. However, perhaps the most important event of the game, quarterback Colt McCoy left the game due to injury. But all was sound in Texas, as they were winning after a field goal. And as if things couldn’t get any more lopsided to start off the game, the kickoff is recovered by Texas on Bama’s side of the field once again. Yet, the Tide’s defense calmly held Texas to another field goal.

At this point, though every ounce of momentum is in favor of Texas, yet they only lead by a mere six points. A lead that could easily be overshadowed by a quick Alabama touchdown. Their offense hasn’t been up to par since the loss of McCoy. But if Bama keeps it up, it doesn’t matter who’s taking the snap, Texas has this game wrapped up.

Well unfortunately for Texas, the Tide are undefeated for a reason; Ingram caps off their next drive with a touchdown run from 2 yards out. Now losing 7-6, Texas fans are simply praying that Colt McCoy will come back on the field. But he’s long gone in the locker room and wouldn’t be seen for the rest of the half. A personal foul and a few incomplete passes force the Longhorns backwards and into punt formation and after a few of those go by, it’s only a matter of time before Alabama responds. Trent Richardson, Alabama’s 2nd string running back, runs a 49-yard game-changing touchdown and puts the Tide up 14-6.

More and more drives go by and Texas begins to realize that they have virtually no shot at scoring this half. Garrett Gilbert, the backup Texas quarterback, wouldn’t be able to throw a touchdown pass to save his life.
Actually, I take that back. With less than 15 seconds left, Gilbert throws a shovel pass to the running back and his pass is intercepted for a touchdown with just three seconds left n the half.

As a Texas fan, I died a little inside when I watched this play. A true freshman quarterback is forced into a situation where he’s the starting quarterback for Texas in the national championship vs. the #1 defense in Alabama. And what does he do? Throw an interception for a touchdown.

Just as the 2nd half starts, it is announced that Colt McCoy is not going to play for the rest of the game. A legendary career, one of the best quarterbacks of the decade that quarterback sneak for no gain was Colt McCoy’s last play of his collegiate career. Now, Texas has a dilemma. How do they overcome a 24-6 halftime deficit with a true freshman quarterback with almost no confidence on the biggest stage in college sports?

Starting off the half, Gilbert looked a little more stable offensively and started to make some connections with their talented receivers. However, the scoreboard stays the same and the Tide maintain the lead.
Drive after drive went by and Texas’ time started to run out. With under six minutes left in the 3rd quarter now, Texas was attempting to sustain an actual scoring drive. But their success simply didn’t change.
Just as Texas looked like they had absolutely no hope to pull this game together, the Horns get a great stop on defense and gets great field position to start off the drive. The only thing was, could they convert?
The answer is yes.

A 44-yard touchdown pass from Garrett Gilbert to Jordan Shipley sparks the life in Texas Alabama’s lead is cut to just eleven. And hey, while we’re at it, we might as well throw an onside kick in their; Nick Saban isn’t the only coach that can make up bad trick plays. The only difference is that this one worked. Texas recovered the onside kick with great field position with only an eleven point deficit.
The next drive didn’t go quite as expected though. All three downs were passes down field to big-time receivers Jordan Shipley and Malcolm Jenkins; all three incomplete. After the punt, the 3rd quarter came to an end and the final quarter of college football was about to be underway. Perhaps the most impressive unit of the 2nd half, the Horns defense held all three of Bama’s offensive drives to 3-and-outs; a great turn around by the Texas defense.

Alabama started off the 4th quarter with the ball and decides to put an end to all this Texas madness. A drive aided by two Texas personal fouls, one a pass interference and the other illegal touching, the Tide simply wasted time and helped secure their lead while they had the ball in their possession. Texas would’ve had em’ stopped twice before, but, as I mentioned before, two personal fouls put Alabama in decent position to make a scoring drive. On a 52-yard field goal, Alabama missed wide left and gave Texas another chance with just under 11 minutes left in the 4th.

At this point, you can see the game coming to a close. The time has almost winded down to a point of desperation for the Horns. Though it’s only an 11-point game, if Texas doesn’t score here then it’s not looking good.
Tic, Toc; the clock is running and the Horns offense isn’t exactly running along with it. Though the ball is moving down the field, the time is slipping away right before out eyes. Just over 6 minutes left in the game, in the season.
But memories of the 2005 national championship between Texas and USC start to flow back into the minds of Texas fans as Garrett Gilbert connects to Jordan Shipley in the end zone to cut the lead to three! Images of Vince Young running into the corner of the end zone, the confetti and all, seeping into the minds of Texas fans.

Mark Ingram won’t put up with it though, as he carries Alabama’s offense on his back to a few first downs. But once Alabama turned to passing, the drive stalled and were forced to punt with 3:21 left in the game. As if it could be any more nerve racking. Losing 21-24 with 3:21 left to go… in the national championship. The whole season is on the line and in the hands of a true freshman quarterback. The #3 scoring offense in the nation vs. the #1 defense in the nation, Texas-Alabama; this is college football.

The last hope for Texas, the game winning drive. First and ten on their own 17. And they fumble it. Gilbert got hit from behind and fumbled the ball and was recovered by Alabama with just 3:02 left in the game.
A season-breaking play for the Texas Longhorns, all Alabama has to do is waste time and score a touchdown from four yards out and they will have sealed the deal.

First and second down go by, both handoffs to Ingram, and still no touchdown. But the Heisman winner prevails and scores from a yard out on 3rd down to wrap up the national championship game with just over two minutes to go.
Texas started off fast, but when Colt McCoy went Sam Bradford on everybody and got hurt, the game plan for both teams were completely changed. The offense for Texas was forced to be conservative and helped Alabama go on a 24-0 run in the 2nd quarter. Though the Horns scored a touchdown in both the 3rd and 4th quarter, Bama’s lead was too strong to overcome and Heisman winner Mark Ingram was just not gonna let it happen. 22 carries for 126 yards, a 5.3 average, and 2 touchdowns, Ingram did not disappoint. Only a sophomore, this guy is a player.

The last time Greg McElroy lost a football game as a starter was in the 8th grade, an impressive streak for anyone who’s ever played football. Also, this is not only a win for Alabama, but a win for the SEC. This marks the first time in college football history that a team from the same conference has won 4 straight national championships. Quite a statement for both Alabama and the SEC.

Now, when it’s all said and done, the final score stands at Alabama - 37 Texas - 21. Not many people thought it would be Alabama by 16, but sometimes football is unpredictable; just ask Colt McCoy. Defiantly the biggest changing variable to the game, McCoy changed college football history forever.

Gator chomp gets rolled by Tide. Alabama wins SEC for first time since 1992.
 
By Rafael Garcia
Sr. Contributing Writer Football Reporters Online
Southeast Region
 
Alabama 32 Florida 13
All season long this was the match up everyone wanted. No other team in the conference looked like they would compete so the best were at it Saturday in Atlanta. There were story lines like the next to last game in the career of AT&Tebow. Could Mark Ingram make his case for the Heisman? Would Greg McElroy start quick or work from behind? Which one of these defenses would step up when it mattered most? There could be a host of other questions but these were the burning ones. AT&Tebow has had a collegiate career that will be talked about for years to come. He has built so much respect from his peers that it appeared like he was almost untouchable. In the SEC championship game Alabama made sure he was touched plenty. He had been able to dodge every bullet and come out a winner for so long he knew no other way. That was until he lined up against an Alabama team that was playing for so much more than an SEC or BCS title. They were playing to be kings of the mountain again. They were playing for a coach that took this job with one thing in mind. That was to bring this program back to national prominence and to another national championship. Anything less would be complete failure for a coach some don’t like but can’t help respect. Coach Nick Saban took a lot of heat when he left Baton Rouge for the southern hospitality of Alabama. This was one that the Tide have been working on since the last one in 1992. So Tebow did his best to keep his team in the game but a drive in the first quarter stalled and ended in a field goal. When he hit David Nelson from 23 yards to make it 12-10 that was just answered by Ingram a minute later when he ran in from three. That scoring run would be all the Tide would need and Tebow would fall short on his last try in this conference of champions. He would finish 20-35 for 247 yards with an interception as well as the touchdown pass. He would finish the way he did not plan when he decided to come back for his senior year to get this SEC title as well as the BCS trophy. Now it’s on to the NFL and see if he can find a place among the big boys of the sport he loves so much. Mark Ingram came into the season well known by the SEC but still had questions to answer. What he did Saturday was put his stake in that Heisman argument running for 113 yards on 28 carries. He did his most damage where it hurt the Gators the most, in the red zone. He would have touchdown runs of seven, three and one yard. He kept the Gator defense off balance all day, as they could not contain him. He ran left and right as well as off-tackle. He gave his quarterback the time to throw the football and make his own case too. McElroy had never lost a start before this one and he put on an MVP performance going 12-18 for 239 yards and no interceptions. He needed to start quickly with Ingram running the ball well to be effective. So with his running game giving him 251 yards he was able to hurt Florida. He hit his receivers when he needed and was accurate in doing so. His timely passing and determination gave him the MVP and maybe a bright future to look forward to. The last question was about defense and Alabama flat out shut down the bite of the Gators. They were held to 13 first downs and 88 yards rushing. Bama held the ball for almost 40 minutes and the Florida offense was just 4-11 on third down conversions. When the Gators were trying to threaten Javier Arenas picked Tebow off and the game was done. It was as dominating a performance as you could get in this epic. Two teams on a collision course from opening day, and now only one was left standing. So it is the Tide of Alabama that moves on the BCS game against Colt McCoy and the Longhorns. It will be a game, but in the end I have to stick by what I have said all year, the SEC is king of the college football world and when it’s all said and done the Tide of Alabama will sit on top as BCS champions.

                      
 SEC Wrap Up Week 10
 
By Rafael Garcia
Sr. Contributing Writer
Southeast Region
 
Alabama 24 LSU 15
 
For Alabama the task was simple, win the game and win the West. They needed this win to keep pace with Florida and Texas for the BCS title. So as the teams took the field each coach knew they had to get the best game of the year from their teams. What they got was an entertaining game that now clears the picture in the SEC. LSU looked strong early and it looked like they would get the best in this one. With LSU playing the run, the Tide put the ball in the air 25 out of the 34 times they threw the football in first half, but could only muster a Leigh Tiffin 28-yard field goal. In the meantime the Tigers were up 7-3 with Quarterback Jordan Jefferson and running back Charles Scott leading the way. Then the two of them were hurt in the second half and the game changed. It was 10-9 Alabama after a safety when Stevan Ridley had an 8-yard scoring run to put LSU up 15-10 going into the fourth quarter. Then Alabama showed the form that has gotten them this far this year. Running back Mark Ingram ran for 106 of his 144 yards in the second half and receiver Julio Jones had his best game of the year. It was reported that one or more of the Tigers defensive backs had been talking smack to Jones all day. Well all of that was squashed when he broke LSU’s back on a 73-yard catch and run for a 21-15 lead his team would not relinquish. Another Tiffin field goal with 3:04 left ended the scoring. With the win the Tide clinched the West and will play Florida for the SEC championship on December 5 in Atlanta. Barring a breakdown before that, the winner in Atlanta should play for the BCS title.
 
Tennessee 56 Memphis 28
The one thing that has been a constant this year in Knoxville is coach Lane Kiffin. He has stirred the stuff on more than a few occasions and this week was no different when Memphis coach Tommy West supposedly said some kind of joke that involved Kiffin and a dog. After the game Kiffin shot back in true fashion saying the dog had bitten back. He did not make any friends in the game either as he had his Vols play with the intensity of a conference championship. They kicked an onside kick with a 14-0 lead in the first quarter and went for it a few times on fourth down in the first half. He would also call a timeout on a third down play when Memphis had the ball at their own 14. It was his way of sending a clear message to his team that they would be playing full throttles the rest of the season. Yes it was Memphis they were playing and the Tigers scored most of their points against back up players. It did not matter as Jonathan Crompton threw for a career best 331 yards, five touchdown passes and one rushing touchdown. It could have been worse but Kiffin pulled him in the third and then the defensive subs followed. It was a game that Kiffin hopes he can use to help recruiting in the Memphis area for the future. He has made many waves in his rookie season but he has also put a fire under these Vols. They are playing the brand of football that has not been seen in awhile here. They still have a few games left and if they can win out they stand a shot at bowl bids like the Outback and the Cotton. It’s still early up on Rocky Top but things are looking up for the future of Tennessee football.
 
Florida 27 Vanderbilt 3
One of the things I hate to hear is when they say a team got a moral victory in a loss. To me there is no such thing. So that takes us the Gainesville and the game between the Commodores and the Gators. It was never a contest but Vandy sacked AT&Tebow four times and limited him to just 27 yards rushing. He was efficient but Vanderbilt made him work harder than usual and Florida looked to have more questions than answers. They could not get into a flow and were confused with the different looks they were getting from the Vandy defense. Either way the Gators won their 19th straight game and is now on cruise control for their showdown versus Alabama for the SEC title. As for Vanderbilt, they showed again they have a top-flight defense but lack the offense and consistency to beat teams like Florida. Mistakes and stalled drives continue to be the flavor and they had to punt seven times. Mackenzi Adams started for the injured Larry Smith but could only get 100 yards passing and the offense managed just 199 total yards. That will not get it done in this league so Florida must now win out and use these next games as preparation for Alabama. If they play like they did on this day they will not beat the Tide and defend their national championship. Hold on cause now its SEC football at it’s best.