Ohio State had to fight, claw, scratch and politic to gain the No. 4 spot in the national football championship ranking. And what did they get? They got Alabama, the team that in 2009 sent current Ohio State coach Urban Meyer to the hospital and retirement from the Southeastern Conference. It was the Florida vs. Alabama championship game that sent him packing to the cold country of eastern Ohio to take the reins of the Buckeyes.

My GOODNESS. Now you want to come back into the Tide’s comfortable lair in the New Orleans Superdome and the Sugar Bowl and take on another Saban-led team again?

Ask the bookies in Las Vegas what they think about this matchup. The Tide is favored by 10 points. What’s that old saying, “follow the money?” Well, you can be assured those Vegas boys never falter with their points and dollars.

This is a home game for Alabama. It’s like playing in Tuscaloosa. The fact that Ohio State plays in one of the weakest conferences does not help them. That conference reflects big, slow moving players while the SEC teams are speedier ball players. And really, there was no way for Ohio State to win.

Let’s say they were not the No. 4 team but the No. 5 team. Well, they would have had to play another SEC West team in a bowl game, Auburn, Mississippi State or Mississippi. And Vegas would have had them as underdogs in any of these bowl games, according to national polling organizations.

Grumblings are now being heard about this new playoff system. Some conference representatives are under the opinion that eight teams should vie for title rather than four teams as it is now. I believe over the next couple of years they will need to select eight teams. This will provide a better representation of more conferences. Baylor and TCU and their conference will lead this charge for an eight-team playoff.

It is easy to understand why all the SEC West teams will play the roles of favorites in their bowl games. By the same token, most SEC East teams will find themselves as underdogs in their bowl games.

By the way, Florida State opens as an underdog in their Rose Bowl game out in California next month. I have been reading how Seminoles coach Jimbo Fisher believes the entire USA wants his team to lose and cannot really understand why. I am sure his quarterback has a lot to do with it, and his position of defense for his quarterback’s off field downfalls. Some are calling for a complete investigation of the entire Tallahassee police department when the season ends.

Speaking of bowl games it is ridiculous for teams winning only six games getting invitations. I am proud of the South Alabama team, but I just cannot see it winning a bowl game. They won six games on the season but some of these wins were not against quality opponents. Again, I do hope they can win out up in Montgomery.

Well, so much for my sports column. I don’t usually do this very often and I am sure I will not be doing it much in the future.

In some current news, I want to again thank my good friend Jimmy Biggs for the tasty greens he left on my porch last week. I can always count on him to include me on his route. I am sure he finds such good satisfaction growing his vegetables and taking them to his friends. Working with his plants, I am sure, is excellent therapy to help him put his spare time to such good use.

I have keeping up with progress of Airbus. Soon they will open the doors to those whose background and schooling are comparable to their needs. So those of you young men and women presently studying in this air-engineering field, keep it up and be ready for exciting careers with this neighborly friend from Paris who has pegged Mobile and the state of Alabama as their United States hub.

I don’t know how many of you are on Facebook, but if you are not you should jump on board. Here you will get some real helpful information that will make your days go about much better. Of course you will also find some with ego-type personalities that you will eventually tolerate. And then there are those who complain about their many illnesses. Here, too, you learn to tolerate them.

But overall, everyone enjoys the friendly companionship. It is probably easier to guess the hour of the day Danny Sheridan applies coloring to his hair than trying to select the most tempting recipe of the day posted by Facebook cooks and connoisseurs. The more you participate, the closer you become to all your friends here. Yes, it is a wonderful way to develop tolerance and respect for others.

You can email Lowell McGill at exam@frontiernet.net.