Bored

BCS Rankings 1. LSU 2. Oregon 3. Kansas 4. Oklahoma 5. Missouri 6. West Virginia 7. Ohio State 8. Arizona State 9. Georgia 10. Virginia Tech 11. USC 12. Florida 13. Texas 14. Virginia 15. Clemson 16. Hawaii 17. Boston College 18. Boise State 19. Illinois 20. Tennessee 21. Michigan 22. Cincinnati 23. Kentucky 24. Connecticut 25. Wisconsin

Here's a quick revision to the Bowl Bubble entry after yesterday's results. ACC Bowls: BCS/Orange, Chick-Fil-A, Gator, Champs Sports, Music City, Meineke Car Care, Emerald, Humanitarian Locks: Boston College, Clemson, Virginia, Virginia Tech Near Locks: Florida State, Georgia Tech, Wake Forest On the Bubble: Maryland, Miami, N.C. State Maryland's upset of Boston College has increased the chances of possibly ten bowl eligible teams in the conference which means getting win #7 is even more important now. I still don't see FSU getting passed over at 6-6 as at worst they'll get grabbed by the Humanitarian Bowl. Miami looks finished after last night's debacle against UVA as they show no signs that they can pull off a road upset of Virginia Tech or Boston College. Big XII Bowls: BCS/Fiesta, Cotton, Holiday, Gator or Sun, Alamo, Insight, Independence, Texas Locks: Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Texas, Texas A&M, Texas Tech Near Locks: None On the Bubble: Colorado, Kansas State, Nebraska Colorado gets bumped down to the bubble after their loss to Iowa State, who's suddenly become a bit of a pest in the conference. Their game against Nebraska in two weeks will now be for a bowl bid for the winner. Because of the Colorado and Kansas State losses, Oklahoma State and Texas A&M have locked up bids. The conference will definitely get two teams in BCS bowls which gives them nine potential bids and that will be the maximum number of bowl eligible teams the conference can get at this point. The Texas Bowl can become an open bid of K-State fails to become bowl eligible. Big East Bowls: BCS, Gator or Sun, Meineke Car Care, International, PapaJohns.com Locks: Cincinnati, Connecticut, South Florida, West Virginia Near Locks: Rutgers On the Bubble: Louisville, Pittsburgh Only change here is USF locking up a bid as expected. Rutgers locks up a bid if they take care of Pitt at home next week. Big Ten Bowls: BCS/Rose, Capital One, Outback, Alamo, Champs Sports, Insight, Motor City Locks: Illinois, Michigan, Ohio State, Penn State, Ohio State Near Locks: Iowa, Purdue On the Bubble: Indiana, Michigan State, Northwestern Big Ten is the one conference that wraps up it's season next week so we will probably have a pretty good idea of who is going where after Saturday. The losses of Ohio State and Michigan have crippled the odds that the conference gets two BCS bids although there is still a slim chance if Michigan wins their game as OSU still could end up in the Top 14 if enough things go their way the final two weeks. Michigan winning would also be great news for the WAC, which I'll get to. If they don't get two in the BCS that means as many as three teams from the conference could be eligible but end up staying home so win #7 is an absolute must. Iowa has the easiest game with Western Michigan at home while Northwestern has the longest odds with a trip to Illinois. Edit: I bumped Purdue down to near lock as if they lose to Indiana they drop to 7-5 and there might not be a bid available if enough of the six win teams get that seventh win. Conference USA Bowls: Liberty, GMAC, Texas, PapaJohns.com, Hawaii, New Orleans Locks: Houston, Tulsa, UCF Near Locks: East Carolina, Memphis, Southern Miss On the Bubble: UTEP Memphis' surprising win over Southern Miss almost assures the conference will get a very undeserving 6th bid as the Tigers finish with UAB and SMU at home. I dropped ECU to near lock after their shocking loss to pitiful Marshall but they should beat Tulane at home to get win #7. MAC Bowls: Motor City, GMAC, International Locks: None Near Locks: Bowling Green, Central Michigan On the Bubble: Ball State, Buffalo, Miami of Ohio, Toledo Only change is Ohio's bubble bursting. Buffalo is 4-6 but I think they are still mathematically alive to win the East division and I'm too lazy to look up the MAC tiebreaks so I'll just leave them there. Mountain West Bowls: Las Vegas, Poinsettia, Armed Forces, New Mexico Locks: Air Force, BYU Near Locks: New Mexico, Utah On the Bubble: San Diego State, TCU, Wyoming Somebody should force Conference USA to give up one of their bids to the Mountain West. There's a potentially odd situation setting up in this conference which is why I'm not locking up Utah and New Mexico just yet. TCU still has a realistic chance at seven wins which means Utah or New Mexico need to get to eight wins to breathe easy. They play each other next week and for Utah it is much more important that they win because they finish at BYU. New Mexico on the other hand finishes with UNLV at home. Pac-10 Bowls: BCS/Rose, Holiday, Sun, Las Vegas, Emerald, Armed Forces Locks: Arizona State, California, Oregon, Oregon State, USC Near Locks: None On the Bubble: Arizona, UCLA, Washington State Oregon State locked up a bid while Stanford and Washington's slim hopes ended. Already went over UCLA's plight last week and they almost beat ASU but that might have been their last hope. If Wazzu upsets the Beavers at home next week then they still would have a shot in the Apple Cup and UW might have lost Jake Locker for the season last night to a neck injury. SEC Bowls: BCS/Sugar, Capital One, Cotton, Outback, Chick-Fil-A, Music City, Liberty, Independence Locks: Alabama, Auburn, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, LSU, Tennessee Near Locks: Mississippi State On the Bubble: Arkansas, South Carolina, Vanderbilt Kentucky locked up a bid while South Carolina might find itself in some serious trouble now due to Mississippi State's win over Alabama. Even with the loss the Tide will pick up win #7 against UL Monroe next week so they are still a lock. I've moved the Bulldogs up to a near lock as win #7 should be a given in two weeks against Ole Miss. Arkansas is now on the bubble as if they don't beat the Bulldogs at home next week they will have to upset LSU to lock up a bid. South Carolina's bowl hopes may now rest on beating red hot Clemson at home in two weeks. Vanderbilt will have to beat Tennessee and Wake Forest to have any hope as there is no chance they grab a bid at 6-6 over any of the other teams. Sun Belt Bowls: New Orleans Locks: None Near Locks: Troy On the Bubble: Florida Atlantic MTSU and Arkansas State were eliminated this week so the conference title will come down to the Troy/FAU game on December 1st. Troy is at seven wins now so they would have a shot at an open bid now if they were upset. WAC Bowls: BCS?, Humanitarian, Hawaii, New Mexico Locks: Boise State, Hawaii Near Locks: Fresno State On the Bubble: Louisiana Tech, Nevada, San Jose State Only change is New Mexico State's bubble bursting. As I alluded to in the Big Ten entry, everyone in the conference should be rooting for Michigan to beat Ohio State. If that happens it will all but guarantee a BCS bid for the winner of the Boise State/Hawaii game as there is a rule in the BCS that if a non-BCS conference champ finishes in the Top 16 and is ranked higher than any other BCS conference champ they get an automatic bid. Now of course either still has a shot at finishing in the Top 14 if they win out which also give them a BCS bid. All that being said the status of Colt Brennan could throw a lot of things in flux as he has to be doubtful for their game at Nevada on Friday. If he's out and they lose that game, then say Brennan comes back for the Boise State game and the Warriors win, then the WAC will screw itself out a BCS bid.

There's a provision that no conference can have more than two teams in BCS bowls.

Let's get the #1 ranking out of the way Cuban Linx is still there, barely, as teke184 and others have closed the gap. Along with King, Vitamin X is the big winner of the week as racking up all those wins is finally paying off. We had three big losers this week in CanadianChris, Secret Agent, and iggymcfly as we will still not have a repeat champion in the contest. And thanks to three of you I actually move up despite losing, mwahahahaha. Ya I don't get it either. Finally I want to single out the pinjockey as he has been in the contest all four years and has never really been a factor but here in Week 11 he cracks the Top 10. I don't even know if he watches college football but he's picking extremely well this year. The conference tiebreaks and bowl picture will follow the rankings. 1. South Carolina - Cuban Linx 3.25 2. LSU - teke184 3.55 3. N.C. State - AboveAverage484 3.9 4. Virginia - Edwin MacPhisto 4.85 5. Boise State - Vitamin X 5.0 6. Florida State - King 6.45 7. Nebraska - Mecca 6.65 8. Stanford - Bored 8.65 9. Rutgers - the pinjockey 8.8 10. Syracuse - CanadianChris 9.0 Other Receiving Votes: Georgia Tech (iggymcfly), Kent State (JHawk), Texas (UTBroward), UCLA (phoenixrising) Conference Championship Game Tiebreaks Note I'm going to skip any detailed explanation as to why Team A beats out Team B. If you have any questions on why you may or may not still have a shot I'll answer them tomorrow. Big 8 -Nebraska and Oklahoma have clinched spots. They play each other next week so they have a bit of a doubleheader. Big MAC -The winner of the Rutgers/Ball State game clinches a spot. -Miami of Ohio clinches a spot with a win. -Syracuse clinches a spot with a win and a Miami of Ohio loss. Also can clinch if both Miami of Ohio and Buffalo lose. -Buffalo clinches a spot with a win, a Miami of Ohio loss, and a Syracuse loss. Pac-8 -UCLA and Stanford have clinched spots. Southeastern Seven -South Carolina has clinched a spot. -The winner of the LSU/UTEP game clinches a spot. Wester Atlantic -Boise State has clinched a spot. -Virginia clinches a spot with a win. -Florida State clinches a spot with a win and a Virginia loss. Bowl Picture 11 of 18 bids have been locked up, 10 other eligible teams, and 5 more that can still become eligible. As I mentioned last week if I can't find a bowl for a seven win team I will either give up my spot or add a 10th bowl, depending on what the scenario is. Locked In Boise State Florida State Kent State LSU Nebraska N.C. State South Carolina Stanford Syracuse Texas Virginia Bowl Eligible Ball State Buffalo Georgia Tech Miami of Ohio Michigan Oklahoma Rutgers UCLA USC UTEP On the Bubble Arizona Florida San Diego State Temple Washington

Week 11 Results #9 Boise State (Vitamin X) 10, #8 Oklahoma (Secret Agent) 4 Florida (Urban Warfare) 8, #1 South Carolina (Cuban Linx) 8; Urban Warfare wins by tiebreak #2 LSU (teke184) 8, Arizona (UZI Suicide) 6 Minnesota (Vern Gagne) 8, #3 Nebraska (Mecca) 8; Vern Gagne wins by tiebreak #4 N.C. State (AboveAverage484) 9, Hawaii (Carnival*) 8 Ball State (Vampiro69) 9, #5 Syracuse (CanadianChris) 5 #6 Virginia (Edwin MacPhisto) 8, Miami (Spaceman Spiff) 7 Florida State (King) 9, #7 Georgia Tech (iggymcfly) 7 San Diego State (the walkin' dude) 8, #10 Stanford (Bored) 7 Michigan (MFerXtreme87) 7, Texas (UTBroward) 5 Boston College (HarleyQuinn) 9, Miami of Ohio (Hawk 34) 9; HarleyQuinn wins by tiebreak Rutgers (the pinjockey) 9, Ohio (Will Scarlet) 6 Kent State (JHawk) 10, Buffalo (Carnival) 8 UCLA (phoenixrising) 10, Oregon (nogoodnick) 8 Penn State (Urban Warfare*) 8, Temple (Ortonsault) 6 USC (Cartman) 7, Auburn (Tzar Lysergic) 7; Cartman wins by tiebreak UTEP (Angel Grace Blue) 8, Tennessee (kkktookmybabyaway) 5 TCU (Nate) 7, Washington (Smues) 6 Ohio State (Gert T) 7, Notre Dame (KingPK) 5 Alabama (AlwaysPissedOff) 8, Kentucky (Danville Wrestling) 7 Conference Standings Big 8 1. Nebraska (5-1, 8-3) 2. Oklahoma (4-2, 6-5) 3. Michigan (3-3, 6-5) 4. Texas (3-4, 7-4) 4. Notre Dame (3-4, 4-7) 6. Minnesota (2-4, 4-7) 6. Ohio State (2-4, 3-9) Penn State (3-3, 6-5) - probation Big MAC 1. Ball State (4-2, 6-5) 1. Miami of Ohio (4-2, 6-5) 1. Rutgers (4-2, 6-5) 4. Syracuse (4-3, 7-4) 4. Buffalo (4-3, 6-5) 6. Kent State (2-4, 7-4) 6. Temple (2-4, 5-6) 8. Ohio (1-5, 3-8) Pac-8 1. UCLA (5-1, 6-5) 2. Stanford (4-3, 7-4) 2. Washington (4-3, 5-6) 4. USC (3-3, 6-5) 4. Arizona (3-3, 5-6) 4. TCU (3-3, 4-7) 7. San Diego State (2-4, 5-6) 8. Oregon (1-5, 4-7) Southeastern Seven 1. LSU (5-1, 9-2) 2. South Carolina (5-2, 9-2) 3. UTEP (4-2, 6-5) 4. Alabama (3-3, 3-8) 5. Florida (3-4, 5-6) 6. Tennessee (2-4, 4-7) 6. Kentucky (2-4, 3-8) 8. Auburn (1-5, 2-9) Western Atlantic 1. Boise State (5-1, 9-2) 2. Florida State (5-2, 7-4) 2. Virginia (5-2, 7-4) 4. N.C. State (3-3, 7-4) 4. Georgia Tech (3-3, 6-5) 6. Miami (1-5, 3-8) 6. Boston College (1-5, 2-9) Hawaii (2-4, 6-5) - probation

Might as well start tearing down the Orange Bowl at halftime the way this game is going.

O.J. Mayo scored 32 points in his debut but USC is upset by Mercer 96-81. The next preseason tournament of note starts tomorrow with the CBE Classic. It has the exact same format as the Coaches vs. Cancer tournament with the first two rounds essentially just there to be tune ups for the four main schools, although Kentucky proved that isn't always the case. Here's the first round schedule: November 11th North Florida at Maryland Tulsa vs. Hampton November 12th Central Michigan at Missouri Fordham vs. Central Missouri Youngstown State at UCLA Weber State vs. Cal State San Bernardino November 13th Chicago State at Michigan State Louisiana-Monroe vs. Northern Michigan If it goes to form the semi-finals would be Missouri/Michigan State and Maryland/UCLA.

Ballgame. It's down to LSU, Oregon, and the Big XII Champ now.

Nick Saban just got Croom'd. Mississippi State is bowl eligible and should pick up win #7 to lock up a bid in two weeks against Ole Miss, if they don't beat Arkansas next week. Michigan State and Northwestern both win to now give the Big Ten, um 10 bowl eligible teams although not all of them are going to end up going to bowls.

Right, which is why I said Michigan's at large hopes would be over with a loss today and you also can't have more than three losses to be at large eligible. The Rose Bowl will have to look outside the Big Ten for a replacement if Ohio State is in the BCS Title Game. As I posted earlier in the week, West Virginia is the projected team at the moment.

BCS conference teams must be ranked in the Top 14 to be eligible for an at large bid so Wisconsin has no chance. BCS Selection Procedures

No, and the Rose Bowl would never even consider it as they always want a Pac-10/Big Ten match-up.

If they beat Ohio State next week they'd win the conference by tiebreak, thus they control their own destiny. A loss here would only officially kill any BCS at large hopes they had which were already slim. We still have a chance for quite possibly the most undesirable bowl rematch ever in a Oregon/Michigan Rose Bowl.

There was some thought that Michigan might just concede this game with Henne and Hart banged up since they still control their own destiny to win the conference and with their at large BCS hopes being very slim. And just like that Michigan scores, although I don't know how they couldn't review that "simultaneous catch" call.

ESABCPN Coverage Maps 3:30/12:30 8:00/5:00

MFerXtreme87

Who You Should Root For #8 Oklahoma (Secret Agent, 6-4) vs. #9 Boise State* PM (Vitamin X, 8-2) - GAME OF THE WEEK OK: Indiana, Arkansas, Houston, Auburn, Miami BS: 1-0 lead, Northwestern, Tennessee, Tulsa, Georgia, Virginia Tiebreak #2: 90/89 #1 South Carolina (Cuban Linx, 9-1) vs. Florida* PM (Urban Warfare, 4-6) SC: Indiana, N.C. State, Alabama, Georgia, Kansas FL: 1-0 lead, Northwestern, North Carolina, Tennessee, Auburn, Oklahoma State Tiebreak: 51/58 #2 LSU* PM (teke184, 8-2) vs. Arizona (UZI Suicide, 5-5) LSU: 1-0 lead, Virginia AZ: Miami Tiebreak: 47/30 #3 Nebraska* (Mecca, 8-2) vs. Minnesota* (Vern Gagne, 3-7) NE: Alabama, Virginia MN: Mississippi State, Miami Tiebreaks: 38/48, 117/77 #4 N.C. State* (AboveAverage484, 6-4) vs. Hawaii* (Carnival*, 6-4) NCS: Indiana, Alabama, Tulsa, Cincinnati, Miami, USC, Kansas HI: Northwestern, Mississippi State, Houston, Connecticut, Virginia, California, Oklahoma State #5 Syracuse* (CanadianChris, 7-3) vs. Ball State* PM (Vampiro69, 5-5) SU: Indiana, North Carolina, Houston, Auburn BS: Northwestern, N.C. State, Tulsa, Georgia Tiebreak: 37/54 #6 Virginia* (Edwin MacPhisto, 6-4) vs. Miami* (Spaceman Spiff, 3-7) VA: Cincinnati, Miami, USC UM: Connecticut, Virginia, California #7 Georgia Tech* PM (iggymcfly, 6-4) vs. Florida State* (King, 6-4) GT: Indiana, Kansas State, Arkansas, Houston, Georgia, Kansas FS: Northwestern, Nebraska, Tennessee, Tulsa, Auburn, Oklahoma State Tiebreak: 43/52 #10 Stanford* (Bored, 7-3) vs. San Diego State* (the walkin' dude, 4-6) SU: Indiana, N.C. State, Wisconsin, Houston, Auburn SDS: Northwestern, North Carolina, Michigan, Tulsa, Georgia Texas* (UTBroward, 7-3) vs. Michigan* (MFerXtreme87, 5-5) TX: Houston, Auburn, USC, Oklahoma State MI: Tulsa, Georgia, California, Kansas Tiebreaks: 50/48, 164/130 Miami of Ohio* PM (Hawk 34, 6-4) vs. Boston College* (HarleyQuinn, 1-9) MOH: Indiana, Michigan, Kansas State, Tulsa, Cincinnati, USC BC: Northwestern, Wisconsin, Nebraska, Houston, Connecticut, California Tiebreak: 57/58 Rutgers* (the pinjockey, 5-5) vs. Ohio* (Will Scarlet, 3-7) RU: Northwestern, Cincinnati, Miami, USC, Kansas OH: Indiana, Connecticut, Virginia, California, Oklahoma State Kent State* (JHawk, 6-4) vs. Buffalo* PM (Carnival, 6-4) KS: Wisconsin, Cincinnati, Miami, Kansas UB: Michigan, Connecticut, Virginia, Oklahoma State Tiebreak: 75/38 UCLA* (phoenixrising, 5-5) vs. Oregon* (nogoodnick, 4-6) UCLA: Indiana, Tulsa, Cincinnati, Kansas OR: Northwestern, Houston, Connecticut, Oklahoma State Tiebreak: 38/45 Temple* PM (Ortonsault, 5-5) vs. Penn State* PM (Urban Warfare*, 5-5) TU: Indiana, N.C. State, Arkansas, Alabama, Connecticut, Virginia, California, Kansas PS: Northwestern, North Carolina, Tennessee, Mississippi State, Cincinnati, Miami, USC, Oklahoma State Tiebreaks: 48/58, 151/145 USC* (Cartman, 5-5) vs. Auburn* (Tzar Lysergic, 2-8) USC: Tennessee, Auburn, Florida, California AU: Arkansas, Georgia, South Carolina, USC Tiebreaks: 50/32, 125/78 Tennessee* PM (kkktookmybabyaway, 4-6) vs. UTEP* (Angel Grace Blue, 5-5) TN: North Carolina, Kansas State, Arkansas, Houston, Florida UTEP: N.C. State, Nebraska, Tennessee, Tulsa, South Carolina Washington* (Smues, 5-5) vs. TCU* (Nate, 3-7) WA: Northwestern, Michigan, Houston, Miami, Kansas TCU: Indiana, Wisconsin, Tulsa, Virginia, Oklahoma State Notre Dame* (KingPK, 4-6) vs. Ohio State* (Gert T, 2-8) ND: West Virginia, Kansas State, Arkansas, Mississippi State, Tulsa, Connecticut, Miami, California OS: Louisville, Nebraska, Tennessee, Alabama, Houston, Cincinnati, Virginia, USC Tiebreak: 58/35 Kentucky* (Danville Wrestling, 3-7) vs. Alabama* PM (AlwaysPissedOff, 2-8) KY: Nebraska, Arkansas, South Carolina AL: Kansas State, Tennessee, Florida

Nothing from Fokai so I guess I have to put Hawaii on probation. As already noted Carnival's picks will be used for them this week. Secret Agent, Cuban Linx (!), and UZI Suicide are late with their picks. PM'd Picks Boise State - Vitamin X THURSDAY West Virginia SATURDAY Northwestern N.C. State Michigan Kansas State Tennessee Alabama Tulsa Georgia Connecticut Virginia Florida USC Kansas Tiebreak #1: How many total points will be scored in the Auburn/Georgia game? 41 Tiebreak #2: How many rushing yards will Michigan's Mike Hart have against Wisconsin? 89 Tennessee - kkktookmybabyaway THURSDAY West Virginia SATURDAY Indiana UNC Michigan Kansas State Arkansas Alabama Houston Georgia Connecticut Virginia Florida California Kansas Tiebreak #1: 45 Tiebreak #2: 123 Buffalo - Carnival THURSDAY Louisville at West Virginia SATURDAY Indiana at Northwestern North Carolina at N.C. State Michigan at Wisconsin Kansas State at Nebraska Arkansas at Tennessee Alabama at Mississippi State Houston at Tulsa Auburn at Georgia Connecticut at Cincinnati Virginia at Miami Florida at South Carolina USC at California Kansas at Oklahoma State Tiebreak #1: How many total points will be scored in the Auburn/Georgia game?38 Tiebreak #2: How many rushing yards will Michigan's Mike Hart have against Wisconsin?145 Ball State - Vampiro69 THURSDAY Louisville at West Virginia SATURDAY Indiana at Northwestern North Carolina at N.C. State Michigan at Wisconsin Kansas State at Nebraska Arkansas at Tennessee Alabama at Mississippi State Houston at Tulsa Auburn at Georgia Connecticut at Cincinnati Virginia at Miami Florida at South Carolina USC at California Kansas at Oklahoma State Tiebreak #1: How many total points will be scored in the Auburn/Georgia game? 54 Tiebreak #2: How many rushing yards will Michigan's Mike Hart have against Wisconsin? 124 Georgia Tech - iggymcfly

My Picks West Virginia Indiana N.C. State Wisconsin Kansas State Arkansas Alabama Houston Auburn Cincinnati Miami Florida USC Kansas 44/148

I agree USC is almost a lock to end up in the Rose or Fiesta Bowl if they win out, depending on Oregon getting into the BCS Title Game. But he says that if USC loses once they would end up in a much worse bowl game, which is highly unlikely. The Holiday Bowl isn't going to pass on USC if they are available unless they completely tank the last three games.

I'd say it's very likely they'll end up in the Holiday Bowl, if they beat Cal and UCLA but lose to ASU. If we assume Oregon and ASU run the table they'll end up in BCS bowls and then the Holiday gets the choice of USC or Cal. They wouldn't pick a four loss Cal team over a three loss USC team.

I put together the bowl projections from ESPN, CBS Sportsline, Sports Illustrated, and CFN and came up with a consensus for what are the most common bowl projections at the moment. BCS: Ohio State vs. LSU Orange: Virginia Tech vs. Missouri Fiesta: Oklahoma vs. Arizona State Sugar: Georgia vs. Hawaii Rose: Oregon vs. West Virginia GMAC: UCF vs. Miami of Ohio International: Cincinnati vs. Bowling Green Capital One: Michigan vs. Florida Gator: Boston College vs. Kansas Cotton: Texas vs. Alabama Outback: Penn State vs. Auburn Chick-Fil-A: Clemson vs. Tennessee Insight: Colorado vs. Wisconsin Music City: Florida State vs. Arkansas Humanitarian: Boise State vs. N.C. State Sun: California vs. Connecticut Armed Forces: Air Force vs. Iowa Independence: South Carolina vs. Texas A&M Alamo: Purdue vs. Kansas State Liberty: East Carolina vs. Kentucky Car Care: Rutgers vs. Wake Forest Emerald: UCLA vs. Georgia Tech Texas: Oklahoma State vs. Tulsa Champs Sports: Virginia vs. Illinois Holiday: USC vs. Texas Tech Motor City: Central Michigan vs. Indiana Hawaii: Fresno State vs. Southern Miss Las Vegas: BYU vs. Oregon State New Mexico: Nevada vs. Utah PapaJohns.com: Houston vs. South Florida New Orleans: Troy vs. Memphis Poinesttia: Navy vs. New Mexico

The bracket is set up where the semi-finals will be Memphis/Oklahoma and Kentucky/UConn.

As mentioned earlier the ASU/Oregon game will be carried by ESPN after all and it'll be the first Pac-10 conference game televised on ESPN since 1994, although they were already scheduled to show a few games this month. Those in Oregon and Arizona will still get the local telecasts of the game. Big Ten fans though who don't have a satellite dish won't be so lucky this week though as the Wisconsin/Ohio State game will be available on the Big Ten Network only which should just thrill fans from both schools. This week of course is LSU's first game against Nick Saban and Alabama although it's too bad the game isn't in Baton Rouge as it would be a lot more fun but it should be interesting none the less. And finally, is this the year Navy beats Notre Dame? It's a bit of a down year for the Midshipmen but if there was ever a year to beat the Irish this is the one. Network/Basic Cable Schedule THURSDAY #11 Virginia Tech at Georgia Tech, 7:30/4:30 PM, ESPN FRIDAY Nevada at New Mexico State, 8:00/5:00 PM, ESPN2 SATURDAY Purdue at Penn State, Noon/9:00 AM, ESPN Iowa at Northwestern, Noon/9:00 AM, ESPN2 Nebraska at #8 Kansas, 12:30 PM/9:30 AM, FSN Kansas State at Iowa State, 12:30 PM/9:30 AM, Versus Navy at Notre Dame, 2:30 PM/11:30 AM, NBC #12 Michigan at Michigan State, 3:30/12:30 PM, ABC/ESPN* Cincinnati at #18 South Florida, 3:30/12:30 PM, ABC/ESPN* #15 Texas at Oklahoma State, 3:30/12:30 PM, ABC* UCLA at Arizona, 3:30/12:30 PM, ABC* #3 LSU at #17 Alabama, 5:00/2:00 PM, CBS #9 Missouri at Colorado, 6:30/3:30 PM, FSN #4 Arizona State at #5 Oregon, 6:45/3:45 PM, ESPN Florida State at #2 Boston College, 8:00/5:00 PM, ABC* Oregon State at #19 USC, 8:00/5:00 PM, ABC* Texas A&M at #6 Oklahoma, 8:00/5:00 PM, ABC* South Carolina at Arkansas, 8:00/5:00 PM, ESPN2 Washington State at California, 10:00/7:00 PM, FSN SUNDAY SMU at Houston, 8:00/5:00 PM, ESPN Basic Cable/Satellite/Gameplan Schedule FRIDAY Akron at Bowling Green, 7:30/4:30 PM, ESPNU SATURDAY N.C. State at Miami, Noon/9:00 AM, ESPNU #21 Wisconsin at #1 Ohio State, Noon/9:00 AM, BTN* Ball State at Indiana, Noon/9:00 AM, BTN* #24 Wake Forest at #23 Virginia, Noon/9:00 AM, LFS*/GP #25 Clemson at Duke, Noon/9:00 AM, GP Syracuse at Pittsburgh, Noon/9:00 AM, GP Vanderbilt at #20 Florida, 12:30 PM/9:30 AM, LFS*/GP Colorado State at BYU, 2:00 PM/11:00 AM, Mtn. FIU at Arkansas State, 3:00 PM/Noon, GP San Jose State at #22 Boise State, 3:00 PM/Noon, GP Buffalo at Miami of Ohio, 3:00 PM/Noon, GP Army at Air Force, 3:30/12:30 PM, CSTV Maryland at North Carolina, 3:45/12:45 PM, ESPNU New Mexico at TCU, 5:30/2:30 PM, Mtn. Washington at Stanford, 6:30/3:30 PM, FCS Pacific Rutgers at #13 Connecticut, 7:15/4:15 PM, ESPNU Tulsa at Tulane, 7:30/4:30 PM, CSTV Illinois at Minnesota, 8:00/5:00 PM, BTN Wyoming at San Diego State, 9:00/6:00 PM, Mtn. All Other Div. I-A Games FRIDAY Temple at Ohio SATURDAY Troy at #10 Georgia Northwestern State at Mississippi East Carolina at Memphis Tennessee Tech at #16 Auburn Texas Tech at Baylor UTEP at Rice Marshall at UCF Louisiana-Lafayette at Tennessee Louisiana Tech at Idaho Utah State at Fresno State Southern Miss at UAB Middle Tennessee at Louisiana-Monroe Eastern Michigan at Toledo

I decided to give up on doing a Top 25 since my Top 10 wouldn't be a whole lot different from the BCS Top 10 at this point. So instead I'm going to go conference by conference to see what teams are on the bubble to make it to a bowl game. Any BCS conference team with seven wins at this time is a lock and some with six wins are as well although it all depends on if their conference is going to have too many or too few bowl eligible teams. There are no preset open bids this year although a couple may open if a conferece can't fill it. If any bids do open up something to keep in mind is if there is an available 7-5 team, that bowl take them over a 6-6 team which is how Middle Tennessee got to the Motor City Bowl (Big Ten didn't couldn't fill their bid) last year over a few a BCS conference 6-6 teams. Of course no one should feel sorry for any team who didn't finish with a winning record being left home this holiday season. ACC Bowls: BCS/Orange, Chick-Fil-A, Gator, Champs Sports, Music City, Meineke Car Care, Emerald, Humanitarian Locks: Boston College, Clemson, Florida State, Virginia, Virginia Tech Near Locks: Georgia Tech, Wake Forest On the Bubble: Maryland, Miami, North Carolina, N.C. State Now even though they both have six wins the reason why I have FSU as a lock and Wake Forest as a near lock is purely because of FSU's brand name. If the ACC were to end up with more than eight bowl eligible teams a 6-6 Wake Forest team could get left out but Bobby Bowden and company would definitley get an invite at 6-6. Georgia Tech has Duke and North Carolina the next two weeks so they should be fine. N.C. State has come out of no where to have a realistic shot at getting to six wins with home games against UNC and Maryland left. Maryland is reeling and I think they'll come up short. Miami is in big trouble after their loss to N.C. State as their last three games are against Virginia, Virginia Tech, and Boston College. UNC has to run the table to have a shot. Big XII Bowls: BCS/Fiesta, Cotton, Holiday, Gator or Sun, Alamo, Insight, Independence, Texas Locks: Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas, Texas Tech Near Locks: Colorado, Oklahoma State, Texas A&M On the Bubble: Kansas State, Nebraska Colorado has Iowa State and Nebraska left so seven wins is very realistic. A&M will end up 6-6 most likely with Missouri and Texas left so there's an oustide chance they could be left without a place to go but the Big XII might end up with two teams in BCS bowls plus the Armed Forces Bowl in Fort Worth is likley to be open (which I'll get to in the Pac-10) so I'd be very surprised if they are staying home. Oklahoma State should pick up win #6 against Baylor in two weeks, if they don't upset Kansas, but again a small chance they might not have an available bid. K-State has Nebraska, Missouri, and Fresno State left and all bets are off after their embarrassing performance against Iowa State. Nebraska is likely toast although beating K-State could provide a glimmer of hope. Big East Bowls: BCS, Gator or Sun, Meineke Car Care, International, PapaJohns.com Locks: Cincinnati, Connecticut, West Virginia Near Locks: Rutgers, South Florida On the Bubble: Louisville, Pittsburgh Again the great purge of the Big East leaves the conference with by far the most pathetic line up of bowl games of any BCS conferece. It'll get worse this year as there's a 99% chance that the Gator Bowl will excercise it's option to grab the Big XII #2 team this year. USF will get win #7 at Syracuse this week but left them out of the locks just in case the roof caves in, literally. Rutgers has Army and Pittsburgh in the next two weeks so seven wins is expected. Louisville has a tough final three games at West Virginia, at USF, and vs. Rutgers so getting that 6th win is far from guarenteed. On top of that a 6-6 Big East team without an available in conference bid is very likely to be staying home. Pitt is only alive in the most clinical of terms. Big Ten Bowls: BCS/Rose, Capital One, Outback, Alamo, Champs Sports, Insight, Motor City Locks: Illinois, Michigan, Ohio State, Penn State, Purdue, Ohio State Near Locks: Iowa On the Bubble: Indiana, Michigan State, Northwestern Now here's a conference where it's almost a lock a 6-6 team will stay home. The mediocrity of the middle of the conference and everyone getting to beat up on sorry ass Minnesota has allowed a lot of teams to near bowl eligibility. They'll get helped out if Ohio State and Michigan both get in the BCS. Iowa looked awful most of the season but like N.C. State has turned it around and with Minnesota and Western Michigan left there's no reason they shouldn't get seven wins. Indiana could get left out in the cold if they can't pick up a 7th win and it's not a lock with a road trip to Northwestern and then at home against Purdue. They haven't been to a bowl game since 1993 so they have to be rooting for two teams from the conference to get into the BCS. Northwestern has Indiana and Illinois left while Michigan State has Purdue and Penn State left so both are longshots at this point if they don't win both games. Conference USA Bowls: Liberty, GMAC, Texas, PapaJohns.com, Hawaii, New Orleans Locks: East Carolina, Houston, Tulsa, UCF Near Locks: Southern Miss On the Bubble: Memphis, UTEP Reason #712 There are Way Too Many Fucking Bowl Games: Conference USA has six bids. This is a conference where half the teams aren't in the BCS Top 100. Memphis is ranked 103rd in the country yet they still have a shot at a bowl game. So since ECU, Houston, Tulsa, and UCF have six they are locks as it would be next to impossible for them not to get in that this point even if any of them lost out. Southern Miss still needs to get win #6 but they should pick it up against Memphis this week. UTEP only has four more wins and after Tulane this week they have Southern Miss and UCF left so the odds are against them which would be good news for those teams hoping for another open bid. MAC Bowls: Motor City, GMAC, International Locks: None Near Locks: Bowling Green, Central Michigan On the Bubble: Ball State, Buffalo, Miami of Ohio, Ohio, Toledo Awful, awful year for this conference as BGSU and CMU are the only two teams with winning records at the moment but both should win at least two of thier last three games to get to seven wins. After that it is anyone's guess as two gets the 3rd bid although Miami of Ohio does control their own destiny to win the East division to get to the title game but they better win their last two regular season games against Akron and Ohio or otherwise they'll be 6-6 and in a must win situation for the conference championship to remain bowl eligible. Mountain West Bowls: Las Vegas, Poinsettia, Armed Forces, New Mexico Locks: Air Force Near Locks: BYU, New Mexico, Utah On the Bubble: San Diego State, TCU, Wyoming BYU would have seven wins already if their game against SDSU wasn't postponed and they are a good bet to run the table in the conference. We could actually end up with more than four seven win teams in this conference which could create some problems for 6-6 BCS conference teams hanging their hat on grabbing an open bid. On the other hand one of the open bids will very likely be the Armed Forces Bowl (which again I'll get to) which will already have a Mountain West team so that will eliminate one option for this conference. There should end up being at least four seven plus win teams so any 6-6 team will definitely not be bowling. Pac-10 Bowls: BCS/Rose, Holiday, Sun, Las Vegas, Emerald, Armed Forces Locks: Arizona State, California, Oregon, USC Near Locks: Oregon State On the Bubble: Arizona, Stanford, UCLA, Washington, Washington State With the conference being so top heavy this year and with the odds being very good at the moment that they will get two teams in the BCS, it is highly unlikely the Pac-10 will be able to fill all their bids. As previously mentioned the Armed Forces Bowl is pretty much a given to be open but the Emerald Bowl might also be available if UCLA fails to become bowl eligible. The Bruins have ASU, Oregon, and USC so it is looking bleak, although given their propensity to play to their competition watch them win two out of three. Oregon State has the Washington schools the next two weeks so they should win at least one of those games to become bowl eligible. The rest of the schools all need to run the table but it is unlikely any will do so. SEC Bowls: BCS/Sugar, Capital One, Cotton, Outback, Chick-Fil-A, Music City, Liberty, Independence Locks: Alabama, Auburn, Florida, Georgia, LSU, Tennessee Near Locks: Arkansas, Kentucky, South Carolina On the Bubble: Mississippi State, Vanderbilt Picking the locks and near locks are tough here as it is possible we could get 11 bowl eligible teams here which would obviously leave some 6 win teams without a SEC tie in bowl to go to. I went with Alabama and Tennessee as locks even though they still need that important win #7 over the other three as those two would be more attractive to bowls than the other three. Of the near locks South Carolina has the toughest road to get win #7 as they have Florida and Clemson left although both games are at home. Mississippi State will at least get win #6 when they play Ole Miss but the next two weeks are huge for them against Alabama and Arkansas as they must win one of them or otherwise they are very likely staying home. Vanderbilt also has the odds stacked against them while trying to end their 24 year bowl drought as they will definitely need to get seven wins to have a shot but they have Kentucky, Tennessee, and Wake Forest left on their schedule. Sun Belt Bowls: New Orleans Locks: None Near Locks: Troy On the Bubble: Arkansas State, Florida Atlantic, Middle Tennessee Don't look now but the Sun Belt finally has a good team in their conference, that being Troy. I only have them as a near locks simply because they have to beat MTSU and FAU still to wrap up the conference but I expect they will. It's a real shame that Troy gets stuck going to the New Orleans Bowl as they would easily be the best team in both the MAC and Conference USA. FAU and MTSU could still win the conference if they upset Troy. WAC Bowls: BCS?, Humanitarian, Hawaii, New Mexico Locks: Boise State, Hawaii Near Locks: Fresno State On the Bubble: Louisiana Tech, New Mexico State, Nevada, San Jose State Pretty much in the same boat as last year with this conference as a lot will depend on whether they get a team in the BCS or not. Fresno has Hawaii and Kansas State the next two weeks so their season finale against New Mexico State may have to be where they get win #7. The rest all need to become bowl eligible and hope either Hawaii or Boise gets into the BCS.