Alabama 31 - 45 Oklahoma (Final)

Alabama got the ball on its own 11 yard line with about a minute to go and a chance to win the game.  But once again, the Crimson Tide line could not protect McCarron.  He was sacked, he fumbled the ball, and Oklahoma scooped it up for another touchdown.  So in the end, the Sooner fans had a pretty easy time of it tonight.

Oklahoma fans have suffered a lot of disappointment since they won the National Championship after the 2000 season.  In the 2003 season, they lost the Sugar Bowl -- and the National Championship -- to LSU.  In the 2004 season, they lost the Orange Bowl -- and the National Championship -- to USC.  In the 2008 season, they lost the National Championship to Florida.  Along the line, they also lost a Fiesta Bowl to Boise State, they had to watch Texas win the National Title in the 2005 season, and they had to watch the SEC win seven national championships in a row.  These are hard tidings for a proud and noble fan base that believes, in its heart of hearts, that it has the best college football program in the country.

This has not been a banner year by OU standards.  The Sooners were blown out by Texas, and they lost the Big XII title to Baylor.  But they rallied in the last game of the season for a huge win against Oklahoma State, and that gave them a chance to play Alabama in the Sugar Bowl.  The Crimson Tide won national titles in the 2009, 2011, and 2012 seasons.  Their fans have led the charge of SEC fans who insist their conference plays the best football.  In other words, Alabama was where Oklahoma thinks it should be.

So this Sugar Bowl was a glorious opportunity for the Sooners to re-assert themselves, and to regain what they regard as their rightful place in the pecking order of college football.  To add insult to injury, Alabama was installed as a 17-point favorite.  But Oklahoma made the oddsmakers look foolish, as they dominated Alabama -- humiliating the Tide on both sides of the ball and leaving their fans with no alternative but to admit that Oklahoma was the better team.

Alabama fans will have many reasons to complain about the performance of their heroes tonight.  They will claim that the team wasn't motivated -- that the heartbreaking loss to Auburn took the wind out of their sails -- that their coaches foolishly got away from the running game that was Alabama's only advantage.  But if they are fair, the Alabama fans will admit that their team committed the unforgivable sin of Southern football -- they didn't play with as much intensity, passion, and intelligence as their opponents.  And, as a result, they will not be taking the Unofficial College Football Championship back to Tuscaloosa.  Instead, their all-time record in UCFC games falls to 29-14 -- and their record against OU falls to 1-3-1.

As for the Sooners, they have imitated Baylor's performance from last year -- taking the UCFC late in the season and then keeping it with a thumping bowl victory over a big-name opponent.  The Sooners' UCFC record improves to 28-16-1, and Sooner fans can enjoy seeing this page in their colors for a long time to come.  We will have to wait to see if Oklahoma can keep the title as long as Baylor did.  In the meantime, we honor them for one of the best Sugar Bowl performances we have ever seen.

The Sooners will open the 2014 season on August 30 in Norman against Louisiana Tech.  If the Good Lord is willing and the creeks don't rise, we will be watching.

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Alabama 31 - 38 Oklahoma (2:44 left in 4th Quarter)

He got it.  Pass interference on Alabama.  First and 10 at the Alabama 38.  Game over.

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Alabama 31 - 38 Oklahoma (2:52 left in 4th Quarter)

With 2d and 8 from the Alabama 48, OU calls time.  Knight runs for one yard, setting up a 3d and 7 with 2:47 to go.  But Knight has been converting these all night, and I don't see why this next play should be any different.

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Alabama 31 - 38 Oklahoma (3:23 left in 4th Quarter)

Once again, the Sooners are zipping down the field -- they are now out to the 50.  They will soon have the points they need to clinch this game.

Personally, I thought Alabama should have gone for an onside kick after they scored that last touchdown.  It was extremely unlikely that Alabama's defense would prevent OU from scoring, and one more score is all the Sooners need.

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Alabama 31 - 38 Oklahoma (5:12 left in the 4th Quarter)

And there's the story of the game right there:  on 3d and 9 from his own 13, Trevor Knight hits a 10-yard pass for a first down.

Earlier this season, Johnny Football showed that Alabama was vulnerable to a mobile quarterback.  His defense couldn't do enough for Texas A & M to win.  But Trevor Knight's defense has chipped in three turnovers, and that will probably be enough to hold the UCFC.

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Alabama 31 - 38 Oklahoma (6:22 left in the 4th Quarter)

Alabama scores on a 61-yard pass to Derrick Henry, who has been their best player tonight.  But now they have to give the ball back to Oklahoma.

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Alabama 24 - 38 Oklahoma (9:03 left in 4th Quarter)

Alabama has two good running backs, Derrick Henry and T.J. Yeldon.  Together, they have 21 carries for 159 yards -- an average of 7.6 yards per carry.  But for reasons I don't understand, the Alabama coaching staff has very little interest in running the ball.  They keep having A.J. McCarron try to throw instead.  This worked for awhile, but McCarron has been completely overwhelmed by Oklahoma's blitzing attack.  He has thrown two interceptions and been sacked six times -- not to mention a host of hurried passes and intentional grounding calls.  In other words, rather than relying on its advantage -- the physical strength of its running game -- Alabama adopted a plan that played to Oklahoma's advantage -- its team speed.

The same thing has happened on the other side of the ball, where Oklahoma's speed has made Alabama's defense look like the Keystone Kops.  Once again, Alabama has done well in the running phase of the game -- holding OU to 72 yards on 22 carries.  But OU quarterback Trevor Knight is 29-40 for 323 yards and 4 touchdowns.

Of course, we should also remember the difference in turnovers.  According to some guy I found on the Internet, in 2012 NFL teams with a turnover difference of plus-2 went 43-10 -- a winning percentage of 81 percent.  In tonight's game, Oklahoma had only one turnover -- an interception down the middle of the field in the first quarter.  That turnover gave the ball to Alabama deep in its own territory -- it was basically like a punt.  But Alabama had three turnovers, each of which was devastating:

1.  After the OU interception, McCarron threw an interception of his own, giving the ball right back to the Sooners.  On the next play, Knight threw his first touchdown pass of the game.

2.  With the score tied at 17 and Alabama about to take the lead, T.J. Yeldon fumbled on the OU 8.  A few plays later, the Sooners led 24-17.

3.  Late in the first half, with the score 24-17, McCarron threw another interception that was returned all the way to the Alabama 13.  On the next play, OU scored to take a 31-17 lead.

So OU has benefited from a two-turnover advantage, and the three Alabama turnovers led directly to 21 Oklahoma points.  That is an almost impossible difference to overcome.

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