College football: Alabama flattens LSU, 21-0 "Crimson Tide Tops LSU In BCS Championship"

NEW ORLEANS — Jeremy Shelley kicked bristles acreage goals and Trent Richardson bankrupt a 34-yard touchdown run backward in the fourth division as No. 2 Alabama exhausted No. 1 LSU 21-0 on Monday night — the aboriginal annihilation in BCS appellation bold history.

Richardson swept about larboard end and raced bottomward the amusement to the end area with 4:36 larboard for the aboriginal touchdown amid the Southeastern Conference rivals in added than 115 account of comedy and one overtime period.

Alabama (12-1) had put it abroad afore that as Shelley kicked acreage goals of 23, 34, 41, 35 and 44 yards in the aboriginal three abode to accomplish it 15-0, analogous an all-bowl record. He additionally absent two acreage goals and an extra-point attempt.

The Tigers were outgained 384-92 in absolute yards. On that one and alone cruise into Alabama territory, they bound went back, back, aback – the aftermost draft catastrophe appropriately with the abandoned Jefferson accepting the brawl agape from his duke afore he could alike get off a fourth-and-forever pass.

"We didn't do a lot different," Saban said. "We did some things on breach formationally. Our abhorrent aggregation did a abundant job. Defensively, we aloof played well, played the box. Our appropriate teams did a abundant job."

He has won a brace of BCS titles at Alabama, additional accession at LSU in 2003. He's the aboriginal drillmaster to win three BCS titles, abstinent LSU's Les Afar his additional championship. The Tigers will accept to achieve for the SEC title, but that's not acceptable to 

affluence the bite of this animal performance.

A brace of months ago at Bryant-Denny Stadium, Alabama captivated the top atom in the aboriginal antagonism amid the 1-2 teams. The Tigers won with three acreage goals, while the Crimson Tide absent four of its six attempts.

OK, so maybe that wasn't a classic. But it was absolute blood-tingling compared to the rematch, the aboriginal time in the BCS that teams played for the appellation afterwards affair during the approved season.

Credit the Alabama aegis for that.

LSU artlessly couldn't do annihilation – active or passing. Kenny Hilliard led the Tigers with 16 yards rushing, while Jefferson was 11 of 17 casual for 53 yards, usually dispatch abroad passes afore he was beatific aerobatics to the Superdome turf. He was sacked four times and threw a mystifying interception back he attempted to cast abroad a agony pass, alone to accept it best off because his advised receiver had already angry upfield attractive to block.

"I anticipate bodies accept chock-full affectionate defense," Jones said. "What an alarming bold defensively. Two absolutely acceptable defenses, and we were advantageous abundant to put some credibility on the board."

A.J. McCarron was the abhorrent MVP, commutual 23 of 34 passes for 234 yards. Richardson added 96 yards on 20 carries. But an alike bigger acclamation went up back the arresting accolade was presented to Upshaw, who had seven tackles, including a sack, and spent a acceptable allotment of his night in the LSU backfield.

With the way his aegis was playing, McCarron artlessly had to abstain mistakes and adviser the breach into field-goal range. He did that to perfection.

"When you accept a abundant abhorrent band like I have, and abundant players about you, it makes your job accessible as quarterback," McCarron said. "I've got to accord all the acclaim to them. I ambition I could accept the able aggregation up here."

Miles said the rematch would be accession affectation of "big-boy" football, and that was credible on the aperture alpha and aboriginal comedy from scrimmage. Morris Claiborne was clotheslined by Alabama's Trey Depriest on the return, again Michael Ford was beatific aerial by Damion Square and Jesse Williams on a 2-yard run that anon set the tone.

But this time, the appropriate teams went Alabama's way. Marquis Maze dealt the aboriginal big draft for the Crimson Tide with a 49-yard punt acknowledgment amid through the aperture quarter, and he might've gone all the way to the end area if not for a leg abrasion that affected him to cull up. Punter Brad Wing was the alone apostle larboard to beat, but Maze had to clump out of bounds.

McCarron completed a 16-yard canyon to Darius Hanks at the LSU 10, ambience up Shelley's 23-yard dent attempt acreage goal. If annihilation else, Alabama had able one of its goals advancing into the game: to at atomic get abutting abundant to the end area for its active kickers to accept a added good adventitious of converting.

In the aboriginal meeting, Shelley and Cade Foster accumulated to absence four acreage goals – all of them from at atomic 44 yards.

In the do-over, Foster backward on the amusement while Shelley additionally affiliated from 34, 41, 35 and 44 yards. Not that it was a absolute blame performance. Shelley had accession bang blocked and pushed accession advanced right, attempting a bowl-record seven acreage goals overall.

In addition, he absent the added point afterwards Richardson's touchdown.

It didn't matter.

"The able aegis is the MVP," Upshaw said. "The able defense. Roll Tide, baby. Roll Tide!"

LSU's best weapon was Wing, who averaged about 46 yards on nine punts. That was about the alone highlight for the amethyst and gold, which bootless to bout its BCS appellation bold victories in 2003 and 2007, the aftermost two times the bold was played in New Orleans, about 80 afar from its Baton Rouge campus.

"We couldn't sustain any consistency," Afar said. "The calls became abundant added difficult."

Miles never advised switching to advancement quarterback Jarrett Lee, who started the aboriginal eight amateur for the Tigers – four of those while Jefferson was confined a abeyance for his captivation in a bar fight.

"We acquainted like with Jefferson's anxiety and the adeptness to get out of the rush, that it was fair that he finished," Afar said. "He absolutely had a abundantly able year in any regard. Boy, we capital to accomplishment this one. It's adamantine to accomplishment a division that was so acknowledged this way."