BCS bonanza: Alabama vs. Notre Dame

Alabama vs. Notre Dame. The BCS championship game couldn’t get much bigger.

The Crimson Tide locked up a spot in the title game in Miami on Jan. 7 with a 32-28 victory over Georgia for the Southeastern Conference championship Saturday.

Sunday’s selection show is just a formality.

The hype can begin now for what could be the most-watched BCS title game since the system was implemented in 1998. It’d be hard to find two more popular programs and a more enticing matchup.

The top-ranked Fighting Irish (12-0) have won eight AP national titles _ matching Alabama for the most _ but none since 1988. They’ll be playing in their first BCS championship game.

Alabama (12-1) is making its third BCS title game appearance in four years. The Crimson Tide is trying to become the first team to win back-to-back BCS titles, and three in four years.

“We created a great opportunity for ourselves,” Alabama coach Nick Saban said after his Tide beat the Bulldogs at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta.

The Irish and Tide have played six times, though not since 1987. Notre Dame is 5-1 against `Bama, including a 24-23 victory in the Sugar Bowl in 1973 that gave the Irish a national championship. They also played in the Orange Bowl in 1975, and the Irish won 13-11.

The buildup for this one, however, will be unmatched.

“I’m pretty sure it gets the old-heads excited, people that are in their 50s and 60s,” Alabama linebacker C.J. Mosley told The Chicago Tribune. “It’s going to be a historic game.”

A return to glory for Brian Kelly’s Fighting Irish or a dynasty for Saban’s Tide? Seven straight BCS titles for the SEC or the end of a 23-year national championship drought for Notre Dame?

There will no doubt be plenty of people tuning in to find out.

The highest rated BCS championship game was Southern California, going for three straight national titles and back-to-back BCS championships, against Texas in 2006 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif. That game drew a 21.7 Nielsen rating.

Alabama’s BCS title win over Texas in 2010 drew a 17.17 rating, a close third behind the 17.4 Florida-Ohio State drew in 2007.

Considering Notre Dame’s regular-season finale against USC had a 10.3 rating, higher than any of the BCS bowls last season other than the championship game, it’s a safe to say this year’s championship game has a chance to blow by the record.

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