8:45PM EST December 2. 2012 - For as much as college football evolves and its postseason format changes, this is still a sport ruled by tradition and exclusivity. In the last 75 years, only 30 different schools have claimed at least a share of the national title.
And In that span, two programs have won it all more often than anyone else: Alabama and Notre Dame. On Jan. 7, they'll meet at Sun Life Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla., for the Bowl Championship Series title.
"It's a real historic game, two historic teams, great traditions," Alabama linebacker C.J. Mosley said. "We have to make sure we play our type of football and try to block out all the clutter."
And there will be plenty of clutter between now and then, given the myriad story lines at play. Among the most prominent: Alabama coach Nick Saban trying to solidify a dynasty with three championships in the last four years, the Southeastern Conference aiming for its seventh consecutive BCS title and Notre Dame roaring back from a slump that consumed most of the last two decades.
Though numerous BCS controversies over the years helped build momentum for a four-team playoff, which will begin in 2014, the only uproar this year involved the inclusion of Northern Illinois. By finishing 15th in the BCS standings (just above the top-16 cutoff) and ahead of the Big East (Louisville) and Big Ten (Wisconsin) champions, Northern Illinois earned the Mid-American Conference's first-ever BCS bid and will face Florida State in the Orange Bowl on Jan. 1.
That development knocked Oklahoma, which won a share of the Big 12 title with Kansas State but lost the head-to-head tiebreaker, out of the BCS and into the Cotton Bowl. It also moved Louisville from the Orange Bowl to the Sugar Bowl, where it will play Florida.
And though Northern Illinois' presence won't sit well with the power conference set, given the Huskies (12-1) lost their season opener to an Iowa team that finished 4-8, it was a momentous occasion for the school in DeKalb, Ill. When it won the MAC last year, Northern Illinois earned a trip to the GoDaddy.com Bowl in Mobile, Ala.
Despite the longshot Northern Illinois story, this will be remembered as a year for the bluebloods.
Notre Dame, No. 1 in both human polls, finished 12-0 and was the only undefeated team in the Football Bowl Subdivision eligible for the postseason this year. (Ohio State, which also went 12-0, played under a bowl ban this year for NCAA rules violations under former coach Jim Tressel.)
And though Alabama was among five teams with one loss, its selection for the championship game was never in question after beating Georgia in Saturday's SEC championship game, 32-28. Last year, the Crimson Tide edged Oklahoma State for the No. 2 position in the BCS standings and then beat LSU 21-0 to win its ninth national title.
Despite failing to win the SEC East, Florida ended up No. 3 in the standings, which automatically qualified the Gators for a BCS bowl and knocked out Georgia because of the BCS rule that only two teams from one conference are allowed into the system.
In addition to the SEC, the Pac-12 was a clear winner this year. In addition to Pac 12 champion Stanford playing getting its traditional Rose Bowl slot, the Fiesta Bowl took Oregon as an at-large team. The Ducks will play Kansas State in a game that looked like it might have been the national championship matchup when they were ranked 1-2 last month.
Source : http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ncaaf/2012/12/02/bcs-alabama-notre-dame/1741157/