TCU
This college football season has been full of upsets. Perennial national championship contenders like USC, Florida, and Oklahoma have all lost already this season.
When top contenders lose, it opens the door for non-BCS teams to sneak into the major bowl games usually reserved for the elite from power conferences like the SEC, Big 10 and Big 12.
We’ve seen it before. I’m sure every OU fan remembers the Sooners’ surprising loss to BCS-buster Boise State in the Fiesta Bowl two years back.
This year, there are several other teams joining 12th-ranked Boise State with the potential to sneak into the national spotlight.
No. 11 Utah, No. 14 TCU, No. 18 South Florida, No. 20 Ball State and No. 21 BYU all could have a shot at a BCS bowl if they win out the rest of their schedules.
Utah, Boise State and Ball State are all undefeated, while BYU and TCU have one loss each.
BYU will actually play Utah this season, meaning one of those teams will inevitably fall out of contention for a BCS spot.
The team that I believe has the best shot at breaking through to reach a BCS bowl is TCU. TCU has one loss, which was to a No. 2 ranked Oklahoma team earlier this year.
Given the high ranking of the team they lost to, and the fact that it was early in the season, it can be considered a “quality loss” that won’t hurt them too much in the polls. They soundly defeated BYU just last week by a score of 32-7.
Utah is ahead of TCU in the polls, but the teams will meet on Nov. 6, giving TCU a chance to both knock out another potential BCS buster and to earn a quality win over a ranked opponent.
TCU could conceivably jump over Boise State and their weak schedule just by beating Utah, even if Boise happens to win out, which seems unlikely given the parity we have seen this season.
In this upset-filled season, it has been near-impossible to predict anything.
Every time a team gets anointed the “best” team, it seems that they follow that up by losing.
Unfamiliar teams have snuck into the top 25, including Ball State, a team that had never been ranked before this season.
With so many non-BCS schools in contention, the question is not whether we will have a BCS-buster, but rather which team will it be, and I believe it will be TCU.
— Aaron Colen is a journalism junior
Boise State
With the parity that encompasses college football these days, calling a non-BCS team that crashes the end of season festivities a surprise no longer fits.
Teams from the Mountain West and the WAC now all have a legitimate shot at playing one of the big boys in a BCS bowl.
So who will be this year’s team?
I am going with the answer I have seen before: Boise State.
As much as Sooner fans cringe at the memory of the Statue of Liberty play, the Broncos will make an encore appearance in January.
And rightfully so.
Boise is one of four non-BCS conference teams without a loss. For any non-BCS team to play in one of the five BCS games, they will have to finish the season undefeated.
Boise has already played through the toughest part of its schedule and pulled off a win against then-No. 17 Oregon. Fresno State is the toughest opponent left on the Broncos’ shcedule.
Utah still has a difficult schedule left to play, including a showdown with TCU and a rivalry game against BYU. Odds are they will lose one of those games.
Ball State and Tulsa, as impressive as both teams have been, have not built up the reputation as an elite non-BCS school and have not beaten, nor will they play, a ranked opponent this season. I cannot imagine these two squads playing in a BCS game.
The Broncos are also already within striking distance. In the first BCS poll, Boise is ranked No. 13, just behind Utah. With the Big 12, SEC and Big Ten showdowns still to come, all Boise has to do is keep winning to move up.
They can let Texas, Oklahoma State, Tech, OU, Ohio State, Penn State, Alabama, LSU and Florida continue to beat each other.
The way Boise wins also has a lot to do with their ranking. The Broncos are second in the nation with a miniscule 10.5 points allowed per game.
There is another reason I think Boise will probably edge even an undefeated Utah team to get into the BCS picture. The factor is intrigue.
Even though Utah was the first non-BCS team to get into the BCS, Boise was the first to win. How many fans would turn on a BCS game where Boise State had a chance to dethrone a Goliath again? Maybe even the same beast it defeated the first time?
I would definitely watch and the BCS committee knows it.
In the end, it is about the money, and having a hot Cinderella come back and play is sexy. If Boise stays undefeated, they will play.
— Zein Jivani is a broadcast and electronic media sophomore.
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dbh 3 years, 7 months ago
Watch for UTAH to make the BCS... This years UTAH is going to be a Top 10 Team. Like the sports story and others will to!!!