BCS National Championship - Alabama (13-0) vs. Notre Dame (12-0) - OK, these are not what I actually think will happen this season. If you put a gun to my head - and please don't do that - I would say the NCG will be Oregon vs. Alabama. But what do I know? Instead, I want to start from one simple premise, and then follow out what the bowl implications might be. This week: 10-1 Oregon State beats 11-0 Oregon in the Civil War. The Beavers jump out to a quick 28-10 lead. The Ducks put on a furious comeback, and tie it 31-31, forcing overtime. Oregon State hits a field goal, and then, on the next possession, De'Anthony Thomas and Marcus Mariota screw up a simple hand off, turning the ball over, and the Beavers win, 34-31. The fans storm the field. Oregon State then stomps on USC 28-7 and wins the Pac-12.
Alabama rolls. The Irish win out, and edge K-State in the rankings. The two teams meet in one of the most hyped college football games of all time; four horsemen, the ghost of Bear Bryant. Lou Holtz literally has to be committed to an insane asylum he's so excited. When the game starts, Alabama quickly builds a 17-0 lead, and then Saban spends the rest of the game taking a knee. Because he can, that's why. Tide win, 17-0.
Rose - Oregon State (12-1) vs. Nebraska (10-3) - The Beavers last went to the Rose Bowl in 1957, a 35-19 loss to Iowa. They last won the Rose Bowl in 1942, when they beat Duke 20-16 and the game was played in North Carolina because the Japanese had bombed Pearl Harbor three weeks earlier. They have never won a Rose Bowl game played in Pasadena. Nebraska is 0-2 in the Rose Bowl, their last appearance being the 2002 Championship, when the bastards stole the spot from Oregon and lost to Miami 37-14. I would pick the Beavers in this game, since they beat UCLA 27-20 and UCLA beat Nebraska 36-30. Beavers win, 28-17.
Fiesta - Kansas State (12-0) vs. Oregon (11-1) - Somewhere, there is an alternate universe where Oregon and Kansas State hadn't cancelled their scheduled home-and-home, and we saw this game played in September. In another universe, college football has a sane post season system, and the winner of this game gets to play the winner of Alabama-ND a week after New Year's. And then there's this universe, where the Fiesta Bowl grabs the one-loss Ducks and sets them up against the stingy defense of Kansas State. Ducks win, 39-31.
Sugar - Georgia (11-2) vs. Clemson (10-2) - Who, hypothetically, would the Sugar Bowl pick to match-up against the SEC? First pick would be Notre Dame, unless they get grabbed by the BCS or the Fiesta. Second would be Oklahoma, unless they finish with three or more losses. Third would be a Big Ten team, but Michigan and Wisconsin already have 3 losses. (And not Northwestern.) So I'll go with ACC runner-up Clemson. That or 11-1 MWC champ Boise State. Bulldogs win, 35-7.
Orange - Florida State (11-2) vs. Rutgers (11-1) - Somebody's got to pick the Big East champ. As long as the Orange Bowl gets FSU, they could match them up with Tennessee Technical College and be happy. Anything to put butts in the seats. Seminoles win, 48-7.
Cotton - Oklahoma vs. Florida
Capital One - Michigan vs. LSU
Outback - Wisconsin vs. South Carolina
Gator - Michigan St. vs. Texas A&M
Peach - North Carolina vs. Mississippi St.
Alamo - Stanford vs. Texas
Russell Athletic - Louisville vs. Virginia Tech
Insight - Northwestern vs. West Virginia - I wonder if the Mountaineers are starting to regret their shift to the Big 12 because of the costs of travel. Two trips to Texas, one to Iowa, one to Oklahoma. A bowl trip to Arizona might just break the bank.
Holiday - USC vs. Texas Tech - The Disappointment Bowl. Seriously, going back five years, the Holiday Bowl always has somebody who thought they were going to a BCS bowl, and is all pissed that they have to settle for some second tier December bowl in San Diego.
Sun - UCLA vs. Miami (FL) - Kaching! Maybe not as big of a payday as when the Sun Bowl got Miami v Notre Dame, but a 7-5 Hurricanes team is a team that any bowl would jump for.
Belk - Cincinnati vs. North Carolina St.
Las Vegas - Boise St. vs. Arizona - Boise State is currently 19th in the AP Poll. If they win the Mountain West and finish in the Top 12, they could have a shot at a BCS bowl.
Texas - Oklahoma St. vs. Minnesota - Minnesota hasn't been to a bowl since 2009, and haven't won one since the 2004 Music City Bowl against ... Alabama. In 2003, they won the Sun Bowl against Oregon.
Poinsettia - BYU vs. Nevada
Kraft Fight Hunger - Navy vs. Arizona St.
Pinstripe - Syracuse vs. Iowa St. - Hypothetically, the Orange could still win the Big East at 7-5, and get an auto bid to the BCS. They could also finish 4-8, with games against Cincinnati, Louisville, and Missouri still ahead.
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