A.J. McCarron was the offensive MVP, completing 23 of 34 passes for 234 yards. Richardson added 96 yards on 20 carries. But an even bigger cheer went up when the defensive award was presented to Upshaw, who had seven tackles, including a sack, and spent a good part of his night in the LSU backfield.

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

With the way his defense was playing, McCarron simply had to avoid mistakes and guide the offense into field-goal range. He did that to perfection.

"When you have a great offensive line like I have, and great players around you, it makes your job easy as quarterback," McCarron said. "I've got to give all the credit to them. I wish I could have the whole team up here."

Alabama wins BCS championship Dave Martin / AP Top images   Click to view photos of title game action between Crimson Tide and Tigers. 'Bama blanks, boots LSU 21-0 for title   |  Stats CFT: 'Bama No. 1  |  Anti-Tide voters  |  Polls Estes: 'Dominating night' gives Tide worthy title Opinion: Keep dreaming, Okla. St.   |  Gundy whines Opinion: It was all about Saban   |  'Special team' CFT: Saban's defense never rests  |  'No fluke' Shelley 5 FGs redeem Alabama kickers QBs: McCarron steady  |  Jefferson falls apart CFT vote: 'Bama to repeat as national champs? 'Bama fans celebrate on Bourbon Street CFT: Trojans team to beat next season  |  Nope Tornado tragedy fueled Tide's title run CFT: MIles ripped after loss  |  No big raise   BCS title game winners  |  MVPs Ventre: And the BCS playoff winner would be ... CFT: Recruit's mom mad he picked Tide over LSU Rocky the Octopus aced his BCS picks

While LSU was used to getting big plays from its Honey Badger, cornerback and return specialist Tyrann Mathieu, Marquis Maze dealt the first big blow for the Crimson Tide with a 49-yard punt return midway through the opening quarter. He might've gone all the way to the end zone if not for a leg injury that forced him to pull up. Punter Brad Wing was the only defender left to beat, but Maze had to hobble out of bounds.

McCarron completed a 16-yard pass to Darius Hanks at the LSU 10, setting up Shelley for a 23-yard chip shot field goal. If nothing else, Alabama had accomplished one of its goals coming into the game: to at least get close enough to the end zone for its embattled kickers to have a better chance of converting.

In the first meeting, Shelley and Cade Foster combined to miss four field goals — all of them from at least 44 yards. In the do-over, Foster handled kickoffs while Shelley also connected from 34, 41, 35 and 44 yards. Not that it was a flawless kicking performance. Shelley had another kick blocked and pushed another wide right. In addition, he clanged the extra point off the upright after Richardson's touchdown.

It didn't matter.

LSU's best weapon was Wing, who averaged nearly 46 yards on nine punts. That was about the only highlight for the purple and gold, which failed to match its BCS title game victories in 2003 and 2007, the last two times the game was played in New Orleans, about 80 miles from its Baton Rouge campus.

"We couldn't sustain any consistency," Miles said.

Miles never considered switching to backup quarterback Jarrett Lee, who started the first eight games for the Tigers — four of those while Jefferson was serving a suspension for his involvement in a bar fight.

In all likelihood, it wouldn't have mattered.

Not against an Alabama team that was determined to write a different ending.

"We fell short the first time and we didn't play well," safety Mark Barron said, "but we showed that we were the better team tonight. We shut them out."