Week 12 projected BCS rankings: How Oregon’s loss will impact the Top-10
By Jack Crosby
Thursday night marked the first time this season that the BCS was really thrown into some chaos.
The fifth-ranked Stanford Cardinal handed the high-powered Oregon Ducks their first loss of the season, 26-20, which may have all but killed the Ducks’ chances at eventually playing for a national championship.
There were a lot of fans and experts around the country that had their hearts set on seeing Oregon and their offense eventually match up against the Alabama Crimson Tide.
Now, that’s probably not going to happen after what happened in Palo Alto.
So, what might the Top-10 in the BCS look like when the weekend’s over? Let’s have a look:
- Alabama Crimson Tide: This is assuming that the two-time defending champs can get past their own test this weekend at home against LSU. If Alabama keeps winning, they’re simply not moving from this top spot. The voters and the computers will always be kind to Nick Saban and company.
- Florida State Seminoles: As is the case with Alabama, all Florida State has to do now is take care of business the rest of the way, and they’re in. They no longer have to worry about a back-and-forth with Oregon, as they’ve had to do since the initial standings were released a few weeks ago.
- Ohio State Buckeyes: Urban Meyer and his undefeated squad will jump into this space–for now. How long they’ll stay here with the schedule they have the rest of the way–which includes a bye week this week–remains to be seen. Especially since the team that will be right behind them in the rankings has more chances to impress everyone, just like they did last night…
- Baylor Bears: Everyone wanted to see the Bears tested by a “real” opponent. Well, they were on Thursday night and they passed with flying colors, thrashing the Oklahoma Sooners, 41-12. With their toughest Big 12 dates still coming up, they should have enough to eventually surpass Ohio State, and maybe even earn themselves a BCS Title Game appearance if some beneficial things happen in front of them.
- Stanford Cardinal: Even with the win over Oregon, I think that Baylor in the way they won against Oklahoma, coupled with their unblemished record as opposed to Stanford’s one loss, will have just enough to stay ahead of the Cardinal. However, Stanford did do themselves a lot of favors in beating the Ducks and they also have themselves in a good position to benefit from some losses in front of them.
- Oregon Ducks: That first loss may not drop them all that far here, seeing as Stanford was so highly regarded by the computers to begin with. They probably won’t play for the title, but they should still make an appearance in one of the BCS bowls if they can pick everything up and handle business the rest of the way.
- Clemson Tigers: It appears as if the Tigers are back to their usual ways after running into the buzzsaw that is Florida State.
- Missouri Tigers: The leaders of the SEC East are still in a good position to make some noise and a date with the number one team in these rankings may be on the horizon, giving them the chance to do just that.
- Auburn Tigers: With a game against the struggling Tennessee Volunteers this week, Gus Malzahn and his surprising 8-1 team shouldn’t be going anywhere.
- Miami Hurricanes: With Oklahoma’s loss, the ‘Canes should find themselves back in the Top-10 if they can beat ACC Coastal Division rival Virginia Tech on Saturday.