Best BCS Championship Game Match-Ups

By Joseph Barry on August 10, 2013

Despite the season not kicking off for another two weeks, it’s never too early to start predicting possible BCS Championship Game match-ups. For the BCS Championship Game, fans want a good match-up: period. For example, last year’s game put the two most deserving teams against each other when Notre Dame squared off against Alabama; however, a majority of fans would have preferred to see a one-loss Oregon team’s explosive offense take on the stellar Alabama defense instead. Here are three possible (actually, very realistic) BCS Championship Games that could happen come January, games that fans would drool over for the month leading up to it.

Alabama vs. Stanford

Alabama has unquestionably been the most dominant college football team in the last half decade, having won three of the last four BCS Championship Games. The team that didn’t win was arguably the most talented they fielded. Bama casually puts together top recruiting class after top recruiting class and they simply do not experience anything close to a drop-off.

Alabama will look to continue their dynasty by winning their third straight BCS Championship this season; photo from espn.go.com

When people think of Stanford’s recent success, they likely think of Andrew Luck and Kevin Hogan airing it out for TD after TD. However, Stanford runs a run-first offense and pound out yards on the ground. Tight ends are huge in their offense and have been the main recipients of passes thrown in recent years. Their defense is probably the closest to an SEC defense of any non-SEC team in the country. Led by Shayne Skov and Ed Reynolds, Stanford will look to improve upon last year’s Rose Bowl Championship season in the only way they can: by making it to the BCS Championship Game.

This match-up would be a low-scoring physical contest that fans of classic college football would salivate over. Both would rely heavily on the run, and the biggest factor for each team would be whose lines played better in the trenches. This game would feel a lot like the SEC Championship 2.0, with just a little bit more on the line.

Georgia vs. Ohio State

Both teams have similar scouting reports coming into the season this year: an explosive, experienced offense that returns just about every key piece will need to start off the year in mid-season form as their young, unproven defense gets its footing. By the time the BCS Championship rolls around, each defense would have enough experience that the adjective ‘young’ would no longer apply.

With Braxton Miller (OSU) and Aaron Murray (UGA) under center, the scoreboard could blow a fuse due to how often each team put up points. Each QB could be a Heisman Trophy candidate by year’s end if they improve upon their jaw-dropping numbers from 2012.

Miller and OSU are still hungry, despite going 12-0 in 2012.

The rushing attacks nicely compliment the quarterbacks with the Buckeyes’ Carlos Hyde & Co. looking for a breakout year. Georgia is expecting big things from true freshmen Todd Gurley and Keith Marshall, who took the SEC by storm last year and combine to create the deadliest 1-2 punch in college football.

Even if the two teams’ defenses were experienced, they would have a tough time stopping the offense firepower that would take the field in this hypothetical match-up. Don’t blink: this would be a touchdown fest for the ages.

Oregon vs. Texas A&M

This hypothetical match-up would feature two quarterbacks who could end up being the best signal callers in college football this season. Everyone knows how Johnny Manziel came out of nowhere to become the first freshman to win the coveted Heisman Trophy; many forget that Marcus Mariota of Oregon was just as unknown before the 2012 season. Each led his respective team to a very successful season, but both still have more to improve upon in 2013.

Oregon, despite going 12-1 and winning the Fiesta Bowl, will look to get even better and capture the Pac-12 title after missing out on it a season ago due to an overtime loss to Stanford. After winning two BCS bowls and making a BCS Championship Game appearance over the last three years, the only stone still unturned for the Ducks is claiming the crystal ball for their own.

Arguably the best quarterbacks in college football, Manziel and Mariota could be end up being compared to one another for the rest of their careers; photo from espn.go.com

Had A&M been able to beat either Florida or LSU last year, they very well could have gone to the BCS Championship instead of perennial power Alabama. The Aggies finished the season as arguably the hottest team in the country, completing their inaugural season in the SEC.

This hypothetical match-up could prove to be even more incendiary offensively than the aforementioned OSU-UGA game. Mariota (3,431) and Manziel (5,116) combined to put up 8,547 yards of total offense in 2012; Mariota even caught a 2-yard pass for a touchdown. Each team will need a big tank of oxygen for their respective defenses because this would be a fast-paced, hurry-up showdown, definitely not your grandfather’s game of football.

These are just a few of the infinite possibilities for the BCS Championship Game. What match-ups would you want to see in the final BCS Championship before college football makes the much needed switch to playoffs?

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