With Boise State and Stanford going down on Saturday, the list of possible opponents for the BCS national championship has been pared to five teams.
LSU still has an inside track to play for the national championship, but the Tigers will have to beat Ole Miss and Arkansas before they face Georgia or South Carolina in the SEC championship.
The only way LSU won’t play for the national championship is if the Tigers lose the SEC championship game.
The Tigers could lose to the Rebels or Razorbacks, win the SEC and still find themselves playing in the Superdome on January 9, 2012.
That scenario is possible because of LSU’s strength of schedule. The Tigers have beaten Alabama and Oregon, the #3 and #4 teams in the latest BCS standings.
Oklahoma State has positioned themselves as the team that will face LSU for the BCS national championship.
The Cowboys have to beat Iowa State on the road and then must defeat in-state rival Oklahoma to have a chance at the Tigers.
Unlike LSU, Oklahoma State doesn’t have the benefit of playing a conference championship game that would give the Cowboys a lift in the BCS standings.
If Oklahoma State loses one of their remaining games, they’ll end up playing in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl.
Oregon took a huge step towards a possible rematch against LSU in the national championship game after they defeated Stanford on Saturday.
The Ducks have locked up a berth in the inaugural Pac-12 championship game and are heavy favorites to win the league’s title.
Although Oregon will likely win out, the Ducks will have a hard time moving ahead of Alabama in the BCS standings because of their strength of schedule.
Even if the Ducks don’t play for the national championship, they’ll face the Big Ten champion in the Rose Bowl.
Alabama is still in the hunt for the BCS national championship. The Crimson Tide have to face Georgia Southern on Saturday before closing their season against Auburn on November 26.
If Alabama wins out and Oklahoma State loses one of their remaining games, the Crimson Tide could play the Tigers again for the BCS national championship.
Should Oklahoma State, Oregon or Oklahoma play LSU for the national title, the Crimson Tide will be in position to play in the Allstate Sugar Bowl.
Oklahoma is a contender to play LSU and may have the biggest advantage with the strength of their remaining schedule.
The Sooners play Baylor on the road Saturday and then face Iowa State at home before closing out their season against Oklahoma State on the road.
If the Sooners win out, their wins over Baylor and Oklahoma State may push them to #2 in the final BCS standings.
Oklahoma entered the season as the nation’s top ranked team and could atone for their loss to Texas Tech with an appearance in the BCS national championship game.
Even of the Sooners don’t play LSU in the national championship, they’ll be in line to play in either the Fiesta Bowl or Discover Orange Bowl.
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