SWAMPED: Florida safety Matt Elam (22) forces LSU’s Odell Beckham Jr. to fumble during Saturday’s’ 14-6 win that vaulted the Gators into the Top 10. (
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Two schools of thought have emerged in college football. One will get you a BCS championship, the other will get you a highlight package and a bag of chips.
The Big 12 and Pac-12 believe in video-game offenses run at wireless speed, with defenses that couldn’t stop a puppy from escaping a canine travel carrier.
The SEC East and SEC West believe in prison-yard defenses, where only the strong survive. Saturday was a perfect example of these opposing views.
In Gainesville, Florida and LSU pounded each other like a Caribbean steel-band drummer.
In Austin, West Virginia and Texas sent out their relay teams and raced up and down the field.
Florida broke LSU in the second half, winning a 14-6 slugfest by holding the Tigers to a meager 200 yards in total offense.
West Virginia took the baton on its last possession and scored to take a 48-38 lead en route to a 48-45 triumph.
In all probability, we’re looking at a BCS national championship game that will pit the SEC champ (Alabama) against a Big 12 (West Virginia) or Pac-12 (Oregon) opponent.
The ACC (FSU lost), Big Ten (Ohio State is banned) and Big East (Louisville is a year away, maybe) need not apply.
So who wins this showdown?
Better yet, why do the Oregons and West Virginias of the world have Nick Saban kvetching (bet you never expected to see Saban and kvetch in the same sentence) that it’s time to consider slowing down college football’s offenses?
C’mon, Nick, we’ve been here before.
Two years ago, Oregon — with its rapid-fire quack-quack-quack offense — and Auburn — with its no-name, big-hit defense — arrived at the BCS national championship game.
The team with the defense prevailed, 22-19.
The team with great defense always will prevail against the team with the fast-paced, no huddle offense because the title game is played at a pace unlike any other. Thanks to TV and Madison Avenue execs, there are more stoppages and longer timeouts and a much longer halftime break in the BCS title game.
Florida coach Will Muschamp pointed out the other reason why the defensive-minded SEC’s style wins out.
“I know y’all like all these points being scored,’’ he said. “But the quarterback won’t make it through the season in our league.’’
Former Texas quarterback Colt McCoy didn’t even make it through the first quarter of the Longhorns’ 2009 BCS title-game loss against Alabama.
Oregon and West Virginia can light up the scoreboard and leave broadcasters gushing, but when the money is on the table, look for the SEC to win a seventh straight title.