The Tigers and Crimson Tide squared off in the game of the year in college football on November 5th in front of a sold out crowd in Tuscaloosa. The game pitted the No. 1 ranked LSU Tigers (8-0) against the No. 2 ranked Alabama Crimson Tide (8-0) in what many labeled, albeit far too early, the "Game of the Century." The game featured two Heisman finalists, LSU's Tyrann Mathieu and Alabama's Trent Richardson, and two of the top coaches in college football, LSU's Les Miles and Alabama's Nick Saban. Although everyone knew that the winner would have the straight shot to the SEC Championship game, nobody thought that the loser of the game would have a serious shot at the BCS National Championship, as a rematch seemed impossible. LSU's overtime victory not only captivated a nation, but also started a controversy on the topic of who deserved to play LSU in the National Championship game. Many fans would call for Big 12 Champion Oklahoma State, but their wishes fell short when the BCS committee announced that LSU and Alabama would meet again in the title game on January 9th. The title game will be the first rematch in BCS National Championship game history and will be a classic if it lives up to their first contest.
As for the November 5th game, fans across the country expected a low scoring, back and forth contest that would probably end in the final minute of regulation or overtime. Well, it was back and forth. And it did end in overtime. As for the low scoring, well, let's just say the Tigers and Crimson Tide exceeded expectations. Both defenses shined, each allowing only 15 total points and no touchdowns, and LSU would eventually win 9-6 on a game winning Drew Alleman field goal. The story of the game was not the defense, though, but rather Alabama's poor kicking. The Crimson Tide offense was shut down in the red zone but was able to get in field goal range several times throughout the game. Alabama Junior Jeremy Shelley went 1 for 2 in the first half but was replaced by Sophomore Cade Foster in the second half. Foster struggled to say the least. He went 1 for 4, including a missed 52 yard field in overtime that would have helped the Tigers defense later in extra period. Despite both teams' struggles, I expect the National Championship game to be one of the closest games national title games to date and one of the best games of 2012.
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