Is the BCS going to do the nation a disservice one final time? It could be guaranteed that one group feels that way no matter what happens.
After Auburn's miraculous, insane and crazy 34-28 win over Alabama, athletic director Jay Jacobs said that it would be a disservice to the nation if the winner of his team's game against the Missouri Tigers for the SEC Championship would be left out of the BCS National Championship.
"And a one-loss SEC team that wins in Atlanta — if it's us or Missouri — you can't get left out of the BCS after you beat the No. 1 team. We have a better argument because we beat the No. 1 team," Jacobs told USA Today Sports.
"It's already happened in 2004, and it would be a disservice to the nation if we got left out."
In 2004, Oklahoma and USC played for the national title while Auburn was left on the sideline. My how the landscape has changed, and we can thank seven straight SEC champions for that. Nine years ago, an undefeated SEC team was sitting on the outside, and now we're hearing how deserving a one-loss team is over two undefeateds.
But such is the resume of 12-0 Ohio State, a presumptive second in the BCS standings after squeaking by Michigan 42-41. No unbeaten BCS conference team has been jumped by a one-loss team. Could the final year of the BCS be the first and thus provide another disservice?
Florida State will be atop the new standings and yes Buckeye fans, the schedule that FSU has played isn't much better than Ohio State's. But a 38-point average margin of victory and perhaps the best player in college football means you get excluded in this argument.
Ohio State closed the gap on both Florida State and Alabama last week after taking a jump in the computer polls. Had that not happened, it's possible that OSU would be staring up at Auburn even before playing Michigan State.
With the computer gap closed, it's up to the voters to make the decision after next week. Knowing what you know now and if you had a vote in the Harris or Coaches poll, what do you do?
The quick argument for Ohio State: The Buckeyes are undefeated in a major conference, and they too have one of the best players in the country in Braxton Miller, who would be in the Heisman conversation if it wasn't for an early season injury. Third in the nation in points scored. Yeah, last season doesn't carry over, but this team has won 24 straight.
The quick argument against Ohio State: The Big 10 is weak and, outside of a three-loss Wisconsin team, there's no signature win to point to. Going into Saturday, outside of the Badgers, the highest-ranked team according to Football Outsiders that the Buckeyes beat is Michigan at No. 36. And we saw how that happened. In a blind resume test, how does this team stack up against undefeated non-BCS teams of the past?
The quick argument for Auburn: SEC. SEC. SEC. The Tigers have beaten Alabama, the presumed king of college football, as well as Heisman winner Johnny Manziel and Texas A&M on the road. Only loss is on the road to LSU, who is undefeated at home. If Auburn wins Saturday, it'll be over No. 5 Missouri for two top-five wins in two weeks. Oh, there's that whole team of destiny thing.
The quick argument against Auburn: No, Auburn isn't a team of destiny. It's a very good football team who's two lucky breaks away from being 9-3 and heading to the Capital One Bowl. Overall, six of its wins are by eight points or less. Ohio State has two and Missouri has one.
The quick argument for Missouri: SEC x2. This Tiger team has won every game with the exception of Saturday night against Texas A&M by 14 points or more. Only loss came in double overtime in a game in which it started its backup quarterback. If you want to play the "Auburn is two lucky breaks from 9-3" game, Missouri counters with being one doinked field goal from 12-0.
The quick argument against Missouri: Do you trust a team that blows a 17-0 lead in the fourth quarter at home, even if it's to Connor Shaw, Jadeveon Clowney and South Carolina? With the craziness in the SEC East, wins over Florida and Georgia aren't as impressive as they would have been in August. Also, Missouri doesn't have a win over almighty Alabama on its resume.
The quick argument for Alabama: SEC x3. And the Tide are the two-time defending national champions. Went toe-to-toe in a shootout at Texas A&M and handled Ole Miss and LSU easily at home. And Nick Saban. AJ McCarron. CJ Mosley. On a neutral field, who are you taking over 'Bama?
The quick argument against Alabama: Auburn beat Texas A&M in College Station too, remember? Oh, and here's the big one: Alabama's season is over save for the bowl game. Of course, if both Florida State and Ohio State lose on Saturday, we're probably looking at an Alabama-SEC champion title game. Oh, how fittingly insane that would be for our last BCS title game?
- - - - - - -
Nick Bromberg is the assistant editor of Dr. Saturday on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
Follow @NickBromberg