LSU vs Alabama? Cancel it

Crazy idea, you say? Maybe, but there's so many reasons this game is not only unnecessary, but could even prove problematic.

Let's start with the city. New Orleans. The land that hurricane Katrina devastated a few years back. They don't need the money. If you can believe no less an authority than an ex-President, some guy named Brownie already did a heck of a job down there. Besides, they'll have Michigan and Virginia Tech showing up the week before the so-called championship game anyway to play in the Sugar Bowl. Motels, hotels, cabbies, rent-a-car businesses, bars, restaurants, you name it, will likely at least double or triple their prices because, no pun intended, they'll be the only game in town. They'll have more money than Katrina had water from all the out-of-town fans. At that, they'll have to work round-the-clock cleaning up that mess because two more thundering herds with different colors are heading their way. Same beds (change the sheets please), same cars, same cajun-style chicken wings, etc. One game's enough.

More importantly, the game itself. A rematch between LSU and Alabama. From the start of the season, didn't it always seem like this was inevitable, as in preordained? The press said so. The talking heads said so. Everybody knows the SEC has the best teams, right? Yours truly isn't so sure about that, because how do we know, unless we see them matched up against other quality teams, from other conferences, at neutral sites, when both sides have a month to study the other one? We don't, and won't, at least this year.

There's a better way. Cancel the championship game and declare LSU the champions. After all, they're the only major college team to be undefeated. Every computer and every poll has them unanimously ranked #1. Too boot, they've already beaten #2 Alabama, AT Alabama. What else is there for them to prove?

To be sure, the game will happen, but that get could problematic, as well. There's a few different ways that could play out. Given those two teams, I seriously doubt anyone thinks a blowout, either way, is going to happen. If LSU wins, they're STILL #1. Yet if Alabama pulls a minor upset, they'll be crowned champs, but -- will they be deserving? They got beat by the same team in their own back yard the first time around. One might liken it to the classic Ali-Frazier fights. Frazier wins the first one. Ali wins the rematch. Only one way to decide who's the superior fighter. They had a third one to settle it.

Problem is, if Alabama wins a close game, there will be no "rubber match", or Thrilla in Manila, to really decide it.

Nick Saban will make speeches. Tuscaloosa will have a parade. Columnists, analysts, and talking heads will go berserk dissecting every game both teams played throughout the season.

And we still won't know which team is the best.

For that reason only, I hope LSU wins this thing. Simpler that way.

Simpler yet if it wasn't played at all.