FROM THE BENCH : Longhorns: Best team in America

The top two college football teams in the country will not be playing for the 2009 BCS National Championship on Thursday.

Sure, the game pits No. 1 Florida (12-1) against No. 2 Oklahoma (12-1), but there's a team in Austin that has a legitimate gripe about being left out of the final picture on college football's biggest stage.

Following the Longhorns' 24-21 come-from-behind victory against No. 10 Ohio State in the Fiesta Bowl Monday night, I have to agree with Texas junior quarterback Colt Mc-Coy's post-game comment.

McCoy said on national television that there is not a team in the country that can compete with Texas right now.

Even Texas head coach Mack Brown voiced his opinion and said come Friday, he was waking up to vote the No. 3 Longhorns the 2008 BCS National Champions, despite not playing in the final game.

It's unfortunate that the Longhorns aren't playing Oklahoma for all the marbles considering they already have beaten the Sooners 45-35 earlier this season at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas.

It's also unfortunate that McCoy wasn't named the 2008 Heisman Trophy winner, which is given to the nation's best player for all 12 games - instead of the most important ones at the end of the year.

Now, don't get me wrong. I'm not taking anything away from Oklahoma quarterback Sam Bradford, who is well-deserving of his Heisman honor, but is he really the best quarterback/player in the nation?

The Heisman Trophy should be awarded at the end of the season when all the bowl games are played.

What McCoy did in the closing minute of Monday's Fiesta Bowl victory over the Buckeyes, is symbolic of the season he had this year while spearheading the Longhorns to the top of the national standings.

McCoy, who played Texas high school football for 2A Tuscola, which is smaller than the 19,604 fans that witnessed Arkansas' 96-88 win over then-No. 4 Oklahoma last Tuesday at Bud Walton Arena, led the Longhorns on an 11-play, 78-yard drive which culminated with Quan Cosby's 26-yard game-winning touchdown with :16 remaining in the Fiesta Bowl.

If there is a better player or team in the country, please let me know because I haven't seen them.

Oklahoma should be playing Texas in a rematch of the Red River Rivalry, which took place in early October, instead of Florida.

Had the BCS title game been played anywhere but Florida, it's a pretty good chance that Texas and Oklahoma would have met for bragging rights.

But, unfortunately, the BCS National Championship is being decided by a computer ranking system or the nation's top power conferences instead of letting the two best teams face off.

The current BCS system will never put two teams from the same conference in its title game because it wouldn't want to leave out the SEC, Big Ten or the Pac-10.

When it's all said and done this year, the top two teams in the final national rankings will hail from the Big 12 South Division and unfortunately, the one at the top - Oklahoma - will have one loss to the team - Texas - that deserves it the most.