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The national title contenders: 18 teams that have a chance to win it all
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Boise St.'s weak schedule will likely find them outside of the national championship even with an undefeated record. (AP Photo/J.D. Pooley)
National Title Contenders (18 Teams)
If every team wins out (Obviously improbable and impossible due to teams that play each other)
* Not including Conference Championship games
1. Florida 12-0*
2. Alabama 12-0*
3. Texas 12-0*
4. Iowa 12-0
5. Cincinnati 12-0
6. USC 11-1
7. Boise St. 13-0
8. LSU 11-1*
9. Miami 11-1*
10. Oklahoma St. 11-1*
11. TCU 12-0
12. Penn St. 11-1
13. Oregon 11-1
14. Georgia Tech 11-1*
15. Kansas 11-1*
16. West Virginia 11-1
17. Pittsburgh 11-1
18. South Florida 11-1
If every team wins their predicted amount of games
* Not including Conference Championship games
1. Florida 12-0*
2. Texas 12-0*
3. Alabama 12-0*
4. USC 11-1
5. Boise St. 13-0
6. Georgia Tech 11-1*
7. Iowa 11-1
8. TCU 12-0
9. Cincinnati 11-1
10. Miami 10-2*
11. LSU 10-2*
12. Penn St. 10-2
13. West Virginia 10-2
14. Oklahoma St. 9-3*
15. Oregon 9-3
16. South Florida 9-3
17. Kansas 8-4*
18. Pittsburgh 8-4
The Contenders
Boise St. 6-0 WAC
Big Wins: Oregon
Losses: None
Remaining Schedule: at Hawaii, vs. San Jose St., at Louisiana Tech, vs. Idaho, at Utah St., vs. Nevada, vs. New Mexico St.
Predicted Record: 13-0
Chances: Florida and Alabama should meet in the SEC Championship game and knock one team out of contention. Boise has to hope for Texas or USC to suffer a loss and it could find itself in the BCS Championship. A big factor will be how other teams perform and if they get jumped by teams with losses.
Florida 6-0 SEC
Big Wins: LSU
Losses: None
Remaining Schedule: at Mississippi St., vs. Georgia, vs. Vanderbilt, at South Carolina, vs. FIU, vs. Florida St., SEC Championship
Predicted Record: 12-0
Chances: Florida should have an undefeated regular season and meet up with Alabama in the SEC Championship game. The winner will likely be headed for the BCS Championship.
Alabama 7-0 SEC
Big Wins: Virginia Tech, Mississippi, South Carolina
Losses: None
Remaining Schedule: vs. Tennessee, vs. LSU, at Mississippi St., vs. Chattanooga, at Auburn, SEC Championship
Predicted Record: 12-0
Chances: Alabama has some tough games remaining with LSU at home and traveling to Auburn. If they remain undefeated in the regular season they will likely face Florida for the right to play in the National Championship.
LSU 5-1 SEC
Big Wins: Georgia
Losses: Florida
Remaining Schedule: vs. Auburn, vs. Tulane, at Alabama, vs. Louisiana Tech, at Mississippi, vs. Arkansas, SEC Championship
Predicted Record: 10-2
Chances: LSU still controls their own destiny if they can go undefeated the rest of the season. Wins at Alabama, at Mississippi, and then vs. Florida in the SEC Championship would all but lock up a spot in the big game.
Oregon 5-1 Pac-10
Big Wins: Utah, California
Losses: Boise St.
Remaining Schedule: at Washington, vs. USC, at Stanford, vs. Arizona St., at Arizona, vs. Oregon St.
Predicted Record: 9-3
Chances: Oregon has momentum but still has some very tough games left on the schedule. A win over USC could be huge but the early loss to Boise will likely keep them out of title contention.
USC 5-1 Pac-10
Big Wins: Ohio St., California, Notre Dame
Losses: Washington
Remaining Schedule: vs. Oregon St., at Oregon, at Arizona St., vs. Stanford, vs. UCLA, vs. Arizona
Predicted Record: 11-1
Chances: USC does this every year, they always win big games but manage to get knocked off by a weaker Pac-10 team. The resume will be very nice if they win the rest of their games and must hope for other teams to start losing.
TCU 6-0 Mountain West
Big Wins: Clemson
Losses: None
Remaining Schedule: at BYU, vs. UNLV, at San Diego St., vs. Utah, at Wyoming, vs. New Mexico
Predicted Record: 12-0
Chances: TCU has a huge game at BYU this week and it will probably be the difference in whether they make a BCS bowl game. An undefeated TCU team will likely not play in the National Championship but if other teams start losing you never know.
Iowa 7-0 Big 10
Big Wins: Penn St.
Losses: None
Remaining Schedule: at Michigan St., vs. Indiana, vs. Northwestern, at Ohio St., vs. Minnesota
Predicted Record: 11-1
Chances: The unlikely dark-horse this season, Iowa looks to remain undefeated but trips to Michigan St. and Ohio St. will make it tough. Sure Iowa seems to know how to win each week but they also come very close to losing. I don't see them going undefeated or going to the National Championship.
Penn St. 6-1 Big 10
Big Wins: None
Losses: Iowa
Remaining Schedule: at Michigan, at Northwestern, vs. Ohio St., vs. Indiana, at Michigan St.
Predicted Record: 10-2
Chances: Right now Penn St. is a very unlikely candidate to make the BCS Championship. The loss to Iowa basically crippled their chances unless teams ahead of them start losing like crazy.
Pittsburgh 6-1 Big East
Big Wins: None
Losses: N.C. State
Remaining Schedule: vs. South Florida, vs. Syracuse, vs. Notre Dame, at West Virginia, vs. Cincinnati
Predicted Record: 8-4
Chances: Don't laugh when I say that Pittsburgh has a chance to win the National Championship. With their remaining schedule they have a chance to make some noise. Although it is unlikely they will make the title game they have an outside chance if they don't lose another game.
Cincinnati 6-0 Big East
Big Wins: South Florida
Losses: None
Remaining Schedule: vs. Louisville, at Syracuse, vs. Connecticut, vs. West Virginia, vs. Illinois, at Pittsburgh
Predicted Record: 11-1
Chances: Everyone is in love with Cincinnati and there is a good reason for it. They are one of the most complete teams in the country. However Pike was injured against South Florida and chances are they will lose at least one game. They must remain undefeated to have a shot at the National Championship.
West Virginia 5-1 Big East
Big Wins: None
Losses: Auburn
Remaining Schedule: vs. Connecticut, at South Florida, vs. Louisville, at Cincinnati, vs. Pittsburgh, at Rutgers
Predicted Record: 10-2
Chances: West Virginia was the better team when it lost to Auburn but shot itself in the foot with turnovers. West Virginia still has the kind of name recognition where an 11-1 record would catch the attention of people around the country. Although it would probably not be enough to give them a shot at the title unless a lot of teams start losing.
South Florida 5-1 Big East
Big Wins: Florida St.
Losses: Cincinnati
Remaining Schedule: at Pittsburgh, vs. West Virginia, at Rutgers, vs. Louisville, vs. Miami, at Connecticut
Predicted Record: 9-3
Chances: The loss to Cincinnati hurts but South Florida can still recover and have a nice season. A big win over Miami at the end of the year would give them a chance to impress the voters but a one loss Big East team will probably not have a chance.
Kansas 5-1 Big 12
Big Wins: None
Losses: Colorado
Remaining Schedule: vs. Oklahoma, at Texas Tech, at Kansas St., vs. Nebraska, at Texas, vs. Missouri, Big 12 Championship
Predicted Record: 8-4
Chances: After losing to a struggling Colorado team their chances are very small. They still have a ton of tough match-ups and with their porous defense I don't see them running the table.
Texas 6-0 Big 12
Big Wins: Oklahoma
Losses: None
Remaining Schedule: at Missouri, at Oklahoma St., vs. UCF, at Baylor, vs. Kansas, at Texas A&M, Big 12 Championship
Predicted Record: 12-0
Chances: The only obstacle I can see is the trip to Stillwater. They will most likely go undefeated and play against the winner of Alabama/Florida in the SEC Championship, but of course college football never goes as planned.
Oklahoma St. 5-1 Big 12
Big Wins: Georgia
Losses: Houston
Remaining Schedule: at Baylor, vs. Texas, at Iowa St., vs. Texas Tech, vs. Colorado, at Oklahoma, Big 12 Championship
Predicted Record: 9-3
Chances: Oklahoma St. still has a lot of hard games left to play but if they can get all their players healthy and eligible they have a chance to win every one. A one loss Oklahoma St. team would be look favorable to voters and the computers.
Georgia Tech 6-1 ACC
Big Wins: Virginia Tech
Losses: Miami
Remaining Schedule: at Virginia, at Vanderbilt, vs. Wake Forest, at Duke, vs. Georgia, ACC Championship
Predicted Record: 11-1
Chances: Georgia Tech has an unbelievable chance at going 11-1 this season. The schedule is incredibly favorable and if other teams start to lose the Yellow Jackets will continue to climb in the rankings. I don't know if a one loss ACC team will get the respect it needs to make the BCS Championship.
Miami 5-1 ACC
Big Wins: Florida St., Georgia Tech, Oklahoma
Losses: Virginia Tech
Remaining Schedule: vs. Clemson, at Wake Forest, vs. Virginia, at North Carolina, vs. Duke, at South Florida
Predicted Record: 10-2
Chances: The schedule becomes much easier for Miami down the road and they have built quite a resume so far. If they win out they have a great chance at jumping teams like Boise St. and even an undefeated Iowa or Cincinnati. However I do think the Canes are too young this year and will likely lose another game.
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