The BCS arguably made everything a lot worse in college football when it comes to the mythical national championship, and integrity, as MNC Wednesday has shown us in the last few months. The years have been far and few in between without controversy, but we may have one of the “cleaner” seasons on deck today for you.

That being said, we don’t want to give anything away, so here we go again …

The 2009 MNC: Some seasons are a lot simpler than others, even in the BCS era!

Here is the Associated Press Top 10, including final record with key bowl results:

1. Alabama (14-0) — Won BCS Bowl, 37-21
2. Texas (13-1) — Lost BCS Bowl, 21-37
3. Florida (13-1) — Won Sugar Bowl, 51-24
4. Boise State (14-0) — Won Fiesta Bowl, 17-10
5. Ohio State (11-2) — Won Rose Bowl, 27-16
6. TCU (12-1) — Lose Fiesta Bowl, 10-17
7. Iowa (11-2) — Won Orange Bowl, 24-14
8. Cincinnati (12-1) — Lost Sugar Bowl, 24-51
9. Penn State (11-2) — Won Citrus Bowl, 19-17
10. Virginia Tech (10-3) — Won Peach Bowl, 37-14

The Crimson Tide beat the previously undefeated Gators in the SEC title game to earn its berth in the BCS Championship, and there Alabama took down the previously undefeated Longhorns, although the game was closer than the score indicates as Texas lost its starting QB early in the first quarter and still trailed by only 3 points into the final five minutes of the game.

Either way, the Crimson Tide credentials look strong. Can any other team challenge for the crown? The Broncos finished undefeated, but of course, they were never a consideration for the title tilt. But imagine for a moment if there had been a Final Four at the end of the regular season with 12-0 Alabama, 12-0 Texas, 12-0 Florida, and 12-0 Boise State—not to mention 12-0 TCU and 12-0 Cincinnati. Alas, the sport is not that transparent.

Any teams going to join ‘Bama and Boise in our final analysis? We could look at the Buckeyes, but with two losses, their SOS would have to be a lot better than the Crimson Tide’s mark, and with Alabama’s closing slate, we doubt that is the case. But we will add Ohio State, anyway, just for comparison’s sake.

Are we missing any other teams? Nope. That’s it, as you can see above. In the final analysis, therefore, we have these 3 teams to scrutinize more closely, as we do here. These are the respective SOS ratings for our best teams, after applying the criteria above:

  • Alabama: 13 Division I-A opponents, 6.62 SOS rating, 2nd of 120
  • Boise State: 13 Division I-A opponents, -4.28 SOS rating, 97th
  • Ohio State: 13 Division I-A opponents, 1.71 SOS rating, 52nd

This is a clear-cut case of one team being the best in the country, earning it on the field and cementing it in retrospective analysis. We’re good with that, as the BCS finally “worked” without a lot of controversy. It was crazy, though, to see six undefeated teams still in contention before the conference title games shook up some stuff.

In the end, though, the BCS got it right for once, and we’re happy to see that, even if we’re suspecting that the Crimson Tide hasn’t been doing things on the level in recent times. Either way, this is only the second time we’ve crowned Alabama our mythical national champion, as it remains the most overrated program in the country, historically speaking, as we have stripped the school of five other claimed MNCs over the years. Oh well …

Congratulations to the 2009 Alabama Crimson Tide, the mythical national champion!

Check in every Wednesday for a new feature on the mythical national championship on The Daily McPlay!