1. Tigers prove to be best team: Don't disparage LSU by saying SEC speed and athleticism triumphed over a slow Big Ten team. This was a very good, very healthy team that proved it was the best team in America with great execution on both sides of the ball after giving up an early 10-0 lead. The offense might have taken its foot off the gas in the second half, and the defense had a few struggles, but in the end, LSU beat a terrific Ohio State team 38-24 to show it was more than just a collection of athletes. This was a great team. Ohio State also has great athletes, plenty of speed, and tremendous NFL prospects up and down the board. It also got beaten, outcoached, and outplayed. There was nothing fluky about this, there shouldn't be a mental asterisk in the minds of those who think Georgia or USC deserved a shot at the championship, and there's really no debate. Glenn Dorsey was just one of the Tigers who said time and again that he felt night-and-day better than he did several weeks ago and that this was the team that dominated Virginia Tech early in the year. This was the team that everyone thought had a great shot to be playing for the title from the word go. This was the best football team in America.

	BCS title game
Stories: LSU dominates OSU, wins BCS title Kriegel: LSU's dominance shows Fiutak: BCS Stream of consciousness Zemek: Buckeyes dropped the ball Fiutak: LSU not just about speed Jacked Up: LSU fans crow, OSU fans cry Video: BCS Bonanza Central

3. Les showed some smarts: The perception is that Les Miles can't really coach Xs and Os. The perception is that he's a lot of personality, coaches from the gut, and was blessed by a heater of a team handed over from the Nick Saban era. For all the goofiness and all the hullabaloo about the Michigan situation, it's time to give the guy his just due as one of the best coaches in America, and not just a caretaker. Remember, two years ago he had to deal with the Hurricane Katrina situation, yet somehow managed to keep the team focused and together, and led the way to an 11-2 season complete with a Peach Bowl win over Miami. Last year his team rolled to a Sugar Bowl win over Notre Dame, and now he has a national title to his credit while going 3-0 in bowl games. His LSU teams have won three elite games by an average of 40-14 with three straight two-loss seasons. While Saban had to pull the program out of doldrums, he only had one year with fewer than three losses, and that includes the season after winning the 2003 national title. Miles is now 34-6 in three years and has matched Saban's national title. Of course, now the pressure is really on. Restock the shelves, keep the juggernaut rolling, and do it again. No pressure there.

4. '08 Tigers could remain among the elite: So where does LSU go from here? It's not like the SEC is going to run away and hide with Florida and Georgia likely to be top-five caliber, and LSU will have to face both teams from the East, including a trip to Gainesville. There's also an early trip to Auburn. However, the rest of the slate is more than manageable with the only other road game coming at Arkansas and the non-conference schedule nothing to worry about. Team-wise, the offensive line will be great again, the receiving corps has playmakers, and the backfield is beyond loaded with everyone but FB Jacob Hester coming back, including Ryan Perrilloux, who appears to be more than ready to take over for Matt Flynn under center. The defense will be the issue. If the players expected to leave early are all gone, that means as many as eight starters might have to be replaced. But the Tigers still might have enough to take a wee step back in the always great SEC, be 10-2 again, and still be one of the elite teams.

5. Argument for those seeking playoffs: For those who want a playoff, here's your closer argument: Pittsburgh and the SEC's performances in national championships. Let's say West Virginia comes back late and pulls off the win over the Panthers. That would've meant a Mountaineer-Buckeye national championship and LSU would've been in the Sugar Bowl. Let's say Missouri beats Oklahoma in the Big 12 title game, then LSU would've also been in New Orleans playing in a non-national title game. When Les Miles and his players talk about a bit of divine inspiration — that might be stretching the laws of the spiritual world — but they certainly got the right breaks (and don't forget the leapfrog in the polls over Georgia).

Last year, it took a USC loss to UCLA for Florida to play for the national title. Tennessee was unbeaten when it played for the 1998 national championship, but over the last 12 years, the SEC has had four other national champions and each needed help to back into a title shot (in 1996 Florida needed Ohio State to come back late to beat Arizona State in the Rose Bowl and in 2003 LSU got into the title game over No. 1 USC in a controversial BCS poll). The SEC has to get the benefit of the doubt at every turn after proving itself worthy whenever it's gotten the chance. The league doesn't lose national title games (Florida in 1995 being the last one). So there's how you win the debate. How many other national champions have we missed out on because the breaks didn't go the right way? What would Auburn have done in 2003 if it had gotten in over Oklahoma or USC? Let the debates continue.