I want to say something nice about computers.

Tradition.

Rose Bowl.

Big 10 versus Pac-10.

Southern Cal vs. Michigan.

I also want to say something not-so-nice about computers.

Tradition.

Rose Bowl.

Big 10 versus Pac-10.

Southern Cal vs. Michigan.

Let’s get something straight.

I’m big on tradition.

I like fried chicken, roastin’ ears, baked beans and strawberry shortcake on the Fourth of July, all washed down with gallons of iced tea. I like the national anthem sung with dignity. I miss day games in the World Series. I still believe in Santa Claus.

I long for a Rose Bowl the way it used to be, the champion of the Big 10 and the champion of the Pac-10 meeting every Jan. 1 in Pasadena. That’s why I’m all aglow about the 2004 matchup, pitting Southern Cal’s Trojans against Michigan’s Wolverines.

The winners of the two conferences haven’t met in the Rose Bowl since Washington defeated Purdue 34-24 in the 2001 edition. With the advent of the Bowl Championship Series, we knew there would be years when we wouldn’t have the traditional matchup, and we didn’t the past two years.

It seemed almost sacrilegious to have imposters such as Miami and Nebraska meeting for the BCS national championship in the 2002 Rose Bowl, and there was something odd about having Oklahoma taking on Washington State in the 2003 game.

Us old guys are feeling much better with news that the Trojans and the Wolverines will be getting it on next month in sunny Southern California. Us old guys are also a little grumpy because the Trojans are playing in the Rose Bowl.

They shouldn’t be. They should be playing Louisiana State for the BCS national title in the Sugar Bowl on Jan.4.

Should be, but they aren’t. And we can thank the dad-gum computers for that.

It was the computers that allowed Oklahoma to retain its No.1 position in the BCS standings and send it into the Sugar Bowl against No. 2 LSU. This despite an old-fashioned, woodshed-style beating at the hands of Kansas State for the Big 12 Conference title Saturday night.

Those same computers didn’t like the Trojans all that well, and that’s why they’ll be playing in Pasadena. This despite the fact that they finished the season with an eight-game winning streak and revived memories of old powerhouse Trojan teams. They also impressed a lot of non-computers along the way.

Real flesh-and-blood humans put the Trojans at the top of the Associated Press media poll and the USA TODAY-ESPN Coaches’ poll. Real flesh-and-blood humans may have seen the Trojans block, tackle, run and pass. Real flesh-and-blood humans may have enthused, “Great balls of fire, but those kids know how to play the game.” Real flesh-and-blood humans didn’t just sit there waiting for someone to feed a bunch of numbers into them so they could spew out cold, heartless results. Real flesh-and-blood humans didn’t keep the Trojans out of the BCS title game. Real flesh-and-blood humans wanted them in there. And they wanted the Sooners – voted No. 3 in both polls – out.

Which is the way it should be. USC deserves to play for the national title. It didn’t get beaten 35-7 in its final regular-season game. It won its last game, thumping Oregon State 52-28.

Don’t you want teams playing at the top of their games meeting for the national title, rather than someone limping in after a thorough thrashing? LSU did its part to get in, thumping Georgia 34-13 for the Southeastern Conference title.

It comes down to something called strength of schedule. Which is where the Trojans got edged out.

Balderdash.

To the voters in the two human polls, it must have come down to something with more flesh in it, more blood in it, more life in it. It must have come down to something more immediate, to something they saw on Saturday. USC winning big, Oklahoma losing big.

USC may yet get rewarded. The AP has its own end-of-the-season poll and its voters could still give the Trojans a national championship, providing, that is, they take care of business in the Rose Bowl against No. 4 Michigan.

If that happens and the Sooners win the BCS title, we’ll have two national champions.

Bummer. Isn’t that what the BCS was set up to avoid?

Oh well, thanks to the computers, we traditionalists get what we want.

Sort of.