There is plenty at stake in these games as this is the last chance for teams to audition in front of a national audience for a better spot in the bowl pecking order. #3Florida and #5 Virginia Tech are both hoping that great showings in their respective games will allow them to jump over #2 Oklahoma who is off this week and can only sit at home and hope that does not happen.
It is shaping up to be a wild week as we head down the stretch of Season 27 here in the NDL. Below iare our thoughts on how the BCS conference games will shape up and who we think will end up in the title game this year.
ACC Championship Game:
#5 Virginia Tech (11-1) vs. #14 Wake Forest (11-1)
This game is the surprise match-up out of the entire lineup of conference championships. While Virginia Tech has become a mainstay in this game throughout the years, the inclusion of Wake Forest is a surprise to most. I don’t think there were many that expected Coach Ice to take his upstart Deacons squad through a loaded ACC schedule that featured games against Florida State and Miami. However Coach Ice did the unthinkable and managed to win both those games and many more. Only a last second lost to North Carolina State was his only blemish on his near perfect record.
Despite his record, he is still struggling for respect as he checked in at #14 in the latest coaches poll behind five teams that had two or more losses. It’s safe to say that the voters are still a little leery of his success. The Deacs will be fired up and looking to prove themselves in this game and hopefully knock off the champ.
Virginia Tech will not be a pushover. They own this game and will not back down from the upstart Deacons squad. Coach VT knows what it takes to win and will give it his all to make sure that they have a shot at playing for the National Title again. They ran through the regular season ACC slate unblemished and have no intentions of losing that perfect mark in this one.
We look for a defensive struggle as both coaches are known for their play on that side of the ball. Tech however has the #1 scoring defense by only giving up 10.75 ppg. The speed and strength of the Virginia Tech defense will prove to be too much in the second half for Wake Forest and the Deacons will see their bid for the schools second BCS berth come to an end.
Virginia Tech – 24
Wake Forest – 13
Big Ten Championship Game:
#1 Ohio State (12-0) vs. #19 Nebraska (10-2)
This is another great matchup and has direct implications on the title game. Ohio State raced through the regular season and just needs a victory in this game to lock up a spot in the BCSCG for Coach Talented. This squad is a direct reflection of the coach’s name in that it is very, very talented and deserving of the #1 ranking. The Buckeyes rank in the top 15 nationally in both Point For and Points Against. They definitely have the capabilities of getting a very solid Nebraska squad off of their game plan and moving in to the national championship game.
Nebraska, much like Wake Forest, is another one of those teams that is not getting much love from the voters. This despite their very impressive undefeated run through the Big Ten which saw them knock off perennial power Michigan State on their way to the division title. The Cornhuskers had two losses out of conference which has put them behind the eight ball. One was actually an impressive loss to #2 Oklahoma in a game where most thought they would lose but they managed to have a shot at pulling off the victory. However, a loss to unranked USF is what seems to have done them in the pollsters. What looks to be on paper a national title contender will only be able to get in to a BCS bowl if they knock off undefeated Ohio State.
As mentioned before, Ohio State comes in ranked high on both sides of the ball but Nebraska is no pushover either. The Cornhuskers themselves boast top 20 rankings in both Points For and Points against as well as featuring the #5 rushing offense in the country. This game could go either way but we see Ohio State maintaining their run and wrapping up one of the spots in the title game.
Ohio State – 27
Nebraska – 24
Pac 12 Championship Game:
#7 Oregon (11-1) vs. #12 USC (10-2)
The #7 Oregon Ducks enter this game with an outside shot at the National Title Game. It would take a lot of breaks in their favor but if anyone can do it this season it would be them. The Ducks enter this game as one of the hottest teams in the nation. Their lone blemish on the season came in week two versus the OIe Miss Rebels and it looks like they have been a completely different team then. They haven’t had a close game since including a 38-13 victory over then top 15 UCLA. A big showing here and some key losses in the other title games might give Oregon the window they need to sneak in to the big game for the second time in their history.
The team standing in their way is Coach Dealer’s USC Trojans. The Trojans earned their way in to this game by virtue of a tiebreaker over the #10 Arizona State Devils. The game against the Sun Devils may have been one of the most exciting games of the season in hindsight considering it became the tie break for a shot at a BCS game. That one was one by the Trojans 66-64 on a stop at the one inch line in the fourth overtime! Southern Cal has been paced all season long by their defense which is currently ranked #9 in the country. That unit will be tasked with slowing down the high powered Oregon offense. The Ducks boast the #8 total offense in the country as well as the #3 rushing team.
This game will definitely come down to who wins the battle between the Trojans defense and the Oregon offense. The Ducks are on fire as we head down the home stretch and it doesn’t seem like anything can slow them down. We look for that trend to continue in this one as the Ducks will wear out USC and pull away in the fourth quarter.
Oregon – 38
USC - 27
SEC Championship Game:
#3 Florida (12-0) vs. #8 Texas A&M (10-2)
This is the matchup that the entire country will have their eyes on. This game can wraps things up nice and easy or it can lead to utter chaos in the BCS. The logic is simple as Florida is the only other unbeaten team in the country besides Ohio State. Should they win they will have the best case to jump over one loss Oklahoma and in to a guaranteed spot in the title game. If they lose then all sorts of scenarios begin to play out. Ohio State may still be able to stay in the title game with a loss but Florida would be done. They didn’t get enough votes down the stretch to get them in to one of those top two slots.
The team standing in the way of their ultimate goal is the #8 Texas A&M Aggies. The Ags are making their first ever appearance in the SEC title game and look to shake up the standing with the upset bid. The Gators are the prohibitive favorites but the Aggies are no slouch themselves as they proved in knocking both of the preseason West favorites Alabama and Arkansas early in the season. Coach Sinacol is a newer coach to the league and would like nothing more than to vault himself up in to the top tier of coaches with this victory. The Ags are paced by RB Ben Malena who heads up the nations #17 rushing attack. If Malena can have a big day then the Aggies are very capable of pulling out the upset.
However, this won’t be the first big game that Florida has faced this season. The Gators have run through the gauntlet this season with what must have been the #1 SOS. The Gators have faced and beaten the #5, #9, #18, #21 and #23 teams in the country. At this point in the season they know what it takes to get it done and have nothing less than a National Championship in their sites.
The Gators are the best team statistically speaking out of all of the teams in the championship games this week and will use both units to eventually over power the Aggies. Texas A&M has made a nice run in only their second year in the SEC but Florida is the king of the SEC right now and will move on to face the voters decision on whether or not they deserve one of the two spots in the title game.
Florida – 42
Texas A&M - 28
