The Stakes of the Big Game

John Brandon previews tomorrow's BCS championship game:

For Notre Dame, a win means everything. A victory against Alabama would knock the SEC from its pedestal, grease the recruiting gears, crank the Irish hype machine back up to the obnoxious levels it's capable of, bring the faithful to a fever pitch. A close loss for Notre Dame will be disappointing because they may not get back to this level for a while. It's not outlandish to think they'll be back in the next few years, but it's also not outlandish to think that it could be a long, long time before stars align for them again. Now if the Tide beats Notre Dame handily, which I don't believe they will, that would be very damaging indeed. It will seem then that the Irish never belonged in the game. The gap between SEC and Other will seem as real as ever.
For Alabama, this is another notch on the old goalpost. They'll play well and they'll either win or they'll lose close and they'll be right back in the hunt next year, hosting LSU, exacting revenge on A&M. A win, they say, cements the dynasty. A loss will be a chance for Saban to refine his procedures and policies.

Go Irish.  A victory would be good if just for the fact of giving the ND haters a reason to care once again.  Plus, I hate the SEC.  The only things it is good for are hot girls in sundresses and shutting up Ohio State fans.