In case you were being dragged around the malls into the afternoon, we had two more titles handed out over the last 24 hours or so, and the BCS picture isn’t getting any better for Boise State. Here’s what we know, and what we think:
- Ohio 35, Temple 17- Ohio is you MAC East Champion and will go on to play Central Michigan on Friday night. Both teams end their seasons at 9-3, as Temple’s 9 game streak comes to an end.
- Boise State 44, Nevada 33- The Wolf Pack gave the Broncos all they could, but BSU got out to a big lead early and Nevada couldn’t get caught up. Boise State repeats as WAC champion, and will look to go 8-0 in the league for 2 years running next week.
- Texas survived a good game from Texas A&M to stay in the driver seat for a BCS slot.
- Alabama did the same against Auburn, to keep the SEC Championship locked in as a play-in game, unless UF loses to FSU today.
- Pitt lost to West Virginia last night, which essentially eliminates them from BCS consideration unless they beat Cincinnati next week, and could mean that Cincy will not be rewarded with a BCS bowl if they lose to Pitt next week.
All this means is that as long as Cincinnati beats Pitt next week, it’s still a three way dance between Boise State, Oklahoma State (if they win today, and that’s a pretty big if), and Penn State/Iowa for two remaining places. If Oklahoma wins today, then a pretty clear path opens for BSU’s inclusion, especially if Cincinnati does beat Pitt next week.
Games I’ll be watching or keeping an eye on today:
- Okie Lite at Oklahoma is on Fox Sports Net, 12:30, so no telling if I’ll be able to find it. But that’s a big one for everyone involved.
- New Mexico at TCU is at 1 on the Mtn. I’ll keep an eye on the scoreboard on that one.
- Southern Miss at ECU, 1:30, CBSC- CUSA East Championship
- Florida State at Florida is 3:30 on CBS- FSU is our last hope for a rivalry weekend upset to shake up the standings.
- Utah at BYU is at 5 on CBSC & Mtn, big game but without too much meaning this year.
A few key games in the CUSA Championship & Bowl picture are not on national TV:
- Houston plays Rice at noon, win and they’re in the title game. Rice has been bad, but they’re on a 2 game win streak and this is a cross-town rivalry.
- UCF is at UAB but not on TV, 1:30, UAB is playing for bowl eligibility
- Marshall is playing at UTEP, 3:00, Marshall is hunting an important 7th win, they’d rather not be stuck at 6-6 especially if UAB gets there.
- Tulane at SMU is also at 3, SMU needs a Houston loss and a win here to back into the game. They should know by the end of the 1st quarter what the deal is.