Saturday’s college football games resulted in two more teams getting knocked out of the race for a chance to play for the BCS national championship.
Clemson and Kansas State both got exposed on Saturday, with the Tigers going down to Georgia Tech on the road while the Wildcats got their doors blown off by Oklahoma.
Like every one-loss team, Clemson and Kansas State are going to need major help from other teams if they’re going to get back into the national championship discussion.
There are six undefeated teams in college football, but only five of them have a legitimate shot at being one of the teams that will play for the BCS national championship.
Two of those unbeaten teams will square off on Saturday when LSU faces Alabama in Tuscaloosa. The outcome of that game will likely determine at least one of the teams that will be in New Orleans on January 9, 2012.
The other undefeated teams include Oklahoma State, Boise State, Stanford and Houston.
While the Cougars may complete their regular season unbeaten and win the Conference USA championship, they won’t be ranked high enough to play for the national championship.
Oklahoma State and Stanford are still in the hunt, but both teams have difficult games remaining on their schedules.
The Cowboys have four games left, with two at home and two on the road. They’ll face Kansas State at home on November 5, then they’ll face Texas Tech and Iowa State on the road in consecutive weeks.
If Oklahoma State can remain undefeated, their chance to play for a national championship will come down to their season finale against Oklahoma on December 3.
Stanford won a three overtime thriller against Southern California on Saturday to remain unbeaten. The Cardinal have four games remaining, with three of those at home.
Stanford plays their last road game of the season against Oregon State on November 5, then they’ll face Oregon, California and Notre Dame at home.
The Cardinal have the most difficult road of all the undefeated teams. Even if they beat Oregon, they’ll have to win the Pac-12 championship game to have a shot at the BCS title.
Boise State has the best chance to remain undefeated, but their weaker schedule could very well cost them a chance to play for the national championship.
The Broncos have five games left on their schedule, beginning with UNLV on November 5. The following week will make or break Boise State when they face TCU.
If Boise State can get past the Horned Frogs, then their remaining games against San Diego State, Wyoming and New Mexico shouldn’t present much of a problem.
If the Broncos finish the season unbeaten, their chances of playing for the national championship will boil down to the last BCS standings.
Aside from Oklahoma State, Stanford and Boise State, the teams that have a shot to play for the national championship are Clemson, Kansas State, Oklahoma, Oregon, Arkansas, South Carolina, Nebraska and either LSU or Alabama.
So there it is. Of the 120 teams playing in the Football Bowl Subdivision, 12 have a chance to win the BCS title and only four of those teams control their destiny’s.
