Despite its drama, the Fiesta Bowl couldn't have ended any other way

GLENDALE, Ariz. -- It's become a storyline as cliché as boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy gets girl in the end.

Only for Ohio State, its romantic comedy has devolved into a horror film where the Buckeyes get the lead, lose the lead and continually fall short in the end. It's a script they've followed the past three years in BCS bowls, although this year's episode provided the most heart-wrenching finale.

The happy ending was dashed when Texas wide receiver Quan Cosby shook off Ohio State safety Anderson Russell in the middle of the field and ran into the end zone for a 26-yard touchdown with 16 seconds to go to give Texas a dramatic 24-21 win at the Fiesta Bowl

Through three quarters, Ohio State followed the script perfectly. After taking a 6-3 halftime lead, it began to fade in the second half as it had during its last two BCS blowouts, watching Texas take a 17-6 lead that looked as if it would only grow. That's when the Buckeyes were supposed to exit stage left and allow Texas to run away with the win just like Florida and LSU had the past two years. Only this time, they reversed the script. They didn't go away. They planned to leave with the girl this time.

Ohio State scored 15 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to take a 21-17 lead with less than two minutes to go that seemed about as improbable as senior quarterback Todd Boeckman connecting with his freshman replacement, Terrelle Pryor, for a touchdown. It was playing out to be a storybook ending for the Buckeyes before quarterback Colt McCoy and Texas won the game on a last-minute drive -- just as Texas Tech had done earlier this season in knocking the Longhorns of the national-championship picture.

"It was a dream come true," Texas defensive end Brian Orakpo said. "When you are a kid, you dream of making plays towards the fourth quarter. Quan made a great catch. Colt made a great throw. Man, it's a story you can write a book about with this 2008 University of Texas team."

While Ohio State did its best to reverse its current trend of three straight losses in the BCS and the Big Ten's now six-game losing streak in BCS bowls, Texas did its best to prove that the best one-loss team in the country may not be in Miami Beach right now.

"I think this is the best team in the country, that's why I'm going to vote us No. 1," said Texas coach Mack Brown, echoing the sentiments USC coach Pete Carroll and Utah coach Kyle Whittingham said about their teams after their recent bowl wins. "I don't think anybody can beat Texas right now."

That's right, move over USC. Step aside Utah. The "What If" club just got a little bigger heading into Thursday's BCS National Championship Game between Oklahoma and Florida

If all publicity is good publicity, then the BCS has been great for college football, but in a Britney Spears Lindsay Lohan Paris Hilton kind of way. Yes, we talk about it ad nauseam, but never in a positive light. Any conversation about the topic is usually pointless and leaves you with an empty feeling.