CFN.com: WVU has easiest road to BCS Championship

[SoFlaEer]

Trumpetbeast - if WVU & USF finish 6-1, they are co-champions.  The tie-breaker for the BE's automatic BCS game would go to USF, but WVU would still have a split BE title with the Bulls.

[Sunil]

It would be interesting if we both ran the table. Wish the head to head matchup accounted for a tie-breaker in that situation, but what do I know  :

[smazza]

West Virginia is big BCS winner

Pete Fiutak / CollegeFootballNews.com

Posted: 11 hours ago

It's still all about the humans.

Remember, that while the computers have their say, they're only one-third of the entire equation. For the second straight week, the computers like someone else more than Ohio State, with only one of the six computer polls ranking the Buckeyes No. 1, while three of the six like BC better. Even so, OSU is the unquestioned number one at the moment because of the humans. Watch the Coaches and Harris polls (not the AP), because what they say, likely goes.

The big winner, overall, was West Virginia. After South Carolina and Kentucky lost, the Mountaineers moved up to seventh with, arguably, the easiest road ahead. Ohio State, BC, LSU, Arizona State, Oregon and Oklahoma all have nasty tests to deal with.

Also keep an eye on Hawaii at 17. All the Warriors need to do is finish in the top 12 to get an automatic berth, or finish in the top 16 and have a BCS conference champion finish lower. Boise State is up to 29th, and could keep creeping up over the next month. A win over Hawaii in a few weeks might make the Broncos a possibility to get into an automatic BCS spot.

Don't forget that the BCS takes the entire season into account, so there will be wild changes from the computers as the year goes on, but once again, the two polls will be the biggest factors.

The Big Winners: Arizona State (4th), Oregon (5th), West Virginia (7th), Kansas (9th) The Big Losers: Kentucky (14th) South Carolina (16th), California (21st)

1. Ohio State, 0.9759

Lost in the win over Michigan State was how dominant the defense was. It was the offense that gave up the two touchdowns; the Buckeye D only allowed three points. At the moment, OSU is the unquestioned number one team by default, but the computers are still skeptical with four ranking Jim Tressel's club fourth and only one giving a No. 1 nod. A win at Penn State next week would finally start to get everyone fired up about the idea of the Buckeyes in another national title game.

Predicted wins: at Penn State, Wisconsin, Illinois, at Michigan

Predicted losses: None

Predicted record: 12-0

Predicted bowl: BCS Championship

Toughest test: at Michigan

2. Boston College, 0.9501

Three computers have BC ranked first, one second, and two third, but the humans are hardly convinced. That'll change in a big hurry with a win at Virginia Tech this week, but with nasty tests ahead against Maryland and Clemson on the road, and home dates against Florida State and Miami, there's a sense the Eagles are just renting a spot in the penthouse. The great wins haven't been there, but the team is rested after a week off.

Predicted wins: Florida State, at Maryland, Miami

Predicted losses: at Virginia Tech, at Clemson

Predicted record: 10-2

Predicted bowl: Chick-fil-A Bowl

Toughest test: at Virginia Tech

3. LSU, 0.9114

Is there anyone who deep down doesn't believe LSU is the nation's best team? The Tigers have earned their way into shouting distance of a coveted top-two spot with impressive wins over Virginia Tech, Florida and Auburn. The computers are giving the Tigers the love, with five of the six putting them in the top two, and all it'll take is a loss by Ohio State or Boston College to get into the show. Of course, winning is still a must, and that might not be as easy as it appears considering the supposedly nasty defense has struggled a bit lately.

Predicted wins: Louisiana Tech, at Ole Miss, Arkansas, SEC Championship

Predicted losses: at Alabama

Predicted record: 11-2

Predicted bowl: Sugar Bowl

Toughest test: at Alabama (if not the SEC Championship)

4. Arizona State, 0.7629

Talk about having a great week, Arizona State didn't play but it moved up from eighth to fourth. With several tough games ahead, there are plenty of chances to prove it belongs in the national title game. Who's going to keep Dennis Erickson's team out if it beats Cal, UCLA, USC, Oregon and Arizona? One computer has the Sun Devils first, but the others appear to be taking a wait-and-see approach, as are the humans.

Predicted wins: California, at UCLA, USC, Arizona

Predicted losses: at Oregon

Predicted record: 11-1

Predicted bowl: Rose Bowl

Toughest test: at Oregon

5. Oregon, 0.7623

Oregon might turn out to be the biggest winner after this last week, moving up from tenth to fifth. If it can beat USC and Arizona State at home over the next two weeks, and if Boston College loses to Virginia Tech, a spot in the top three will be a given, and a debate over the number two slot will start. The offense is second in the nation in yards and scoring, and the pollsters are taking notice. The computers have yet to come around. Basically, the Ducks are here without any help from the wires and buttons.

Predicted wins: USC, Arizona State, at Arizona, Oregon State

Predicted losses: at UCLA

Predicted record: 10-2

Predicted bowl: Fiesta

Toughest test: USC

6. Oklahoma, 0.7551

An argument could be made that the Sooners actually lost in its win over Iowa State. Struggling so much against one of the nation's worst teams didn't do them any favors in the polls, while the computers have been downright nasty, with one ranking them 17th. Unfortunately, there aren't many chances to improve with the Big 12 schedule, overall, appearing relatively light. At this point, style points count.

Predicted wins: Texas A&M, Baylor, Oklahoma State, Big 12 Championship

Predicted losses: at Texas Tech

Predicted record: 11-2

Predicted bowl: Fiesta Bowl

Toughest test: at Texas Tech (or Big 12 Championship)

7. West Virginia, 0.7076

Shhhhhhhh, watch out for the Mountaineers, who got several huge breaks to keep on moving up. You heard it here first  everything shapes up for a trip to New Orleans if WVU wins out. A lot of help is needed, but they're just going to keep on climbing up the human polls as others keep getting picked off. The computers might start to come around if the other Big East teams stay strong in the polls, and a win at Rutgers, after it beat South Florida, would do wonders.

Predicted wins: at Cincinnati, at Rutgers, Louisville, Connecticut, Pitt

Predicted losses: None

Predicted record: 11-1

Predicted bowl: BCS Championship

Toughest test: at Rutgers

8. Virginia Tech, 0.6779

How fired up are you for a rematch of LSU's 48-7 win over the Hokies on September 8th? If Tech wins out, it's extremely possible with several huge, huge games ahead, including a date with No. 2 Boston College this week that would do wonders with the computers. There might be a ceiling on how high the ranking can get because of the human factor. No way, no how will the pollsters allow Tech to get into the top two if LSU is No. 1. Think Michigan from last year.

Predicted wins: Boston College, Florida State, Miami, at Virginia, ACC Championship

Predicted losses: at Georgia Tech

Predicted record: 12-1

Predicted bowl: Orange Bowl

Toughest test: Boston College

9. Kansas, 0.6479

The computers are never going to love the Jayhawks; the schedule is simply too lousy. However, being unbeaten this year in a BCS conference is impressive no matter what, and the humans will take notice as the season goes on. It'll take a Big 12 championship just to get within striking distance, but the computers might not care. One computer has Mark Mangino's club 20th.

Predicted wins: at Texas A&M, Nebraska, at Oklahoma State, Iowa State

Predicted losses: Missouri

Predicted record: 11-1

Predicted bowl: Cotton Bowl Toughest test: Missouri

10. South Florida, 0.6410

The Bulls might have dropped from the second spot, but the computers are still giving them plenty of respect. As long as they keep on winning, they'll be well within range of an at-large BCS bid. The national title hopes are realistically shot without several wacky things happening, but the loss to Rutgers wasn't a death blow. If they win out, they'll win the Big East title, but, and this is where it might get interesting, West Virginia might end up in the top two if it wins out.

Predicted wins: at Connecticut, Cincinnati, at Syracuse, Louisville, at Pitt

Predicted losses: None

Predicted record: 11-1

Predicted bowl: Orange Bowl

Toughest test: Cincinnati

In Range

11. Florida

12. USC

13. Missouri

14. Kentucky

15. Virginia

16. South Carolina

17. Hawaii

18. Georgia

19. Texas

20. Michigan

BCS Standings

Rk Team W-L Harris Coaches CPU % BCS

   Rk Points % Rk Points %  Prev Avg

1 Ohio State 8-0 1 2847 .9989 1 1498 .9987 .9300 1 .976

2 Boston College 7-0 2 2676 .9389 2 1412 .9413 .9700 3 .950

3 LSU 7-1 3 2550 .8947 3 1319 .8793 .9600 4 .911

4 Arizona State 7-0 8 2003 .7028 7 1089 .7260 .8600 8 .763

5 Oregon 6-1 5 2281 .8004 5 1225 .8167 .6700 10 .762

6 Oklahoma 7-1 4 2521 .8846 4 1306 .8707 .5100 5 .755

7 West Virginia 6-1 6 2157 .7568 6 1134 .7560 .6100 9 .708

8 Virginia Tech 6-1 10 1831 .6425 9 1052 .7013 .6900 11 .678

9 Kansas 7-0 11 1671 .5863 10 911 .6073 .7500 13 .648

10 South Florida 6-1 12 1627 .5709 12 813 .5420 .8100 2 .641

11 Florida 5-2 9 1867 .6551 11 906 .6040 .6100 15 .623

12 USC 6-1 7 2100 .7368 8 1060 .7067 .1700 14 .538

13 Missouri 6-1 13 1568 .5502 13 790 .5267 .5300 16 .536

14 Kentucky 6-2 15 1156 .4056 15 604 .4027 .5500 7 .453

15 Virginia 7-1 20 650 .2281 18 466 .3107 .7600 19 .433

16 South Carolina 6-2 17 1031 .3618 17 474 .3160 .3900 6 .356

17 Hawaii 7-0 14 1265 .4439 14 617 .4113 .0000 18 .285

18 Georgia 5-2 19 711 .2495 19 402 .2680 .2300 20 .249

19 Texas 6-2 16 1054 .3698 16 527 .3513 .0000 22 .240

20 Michigan 6-2 21 643 .2256 21 325 .2167 .2600 25 .234

21 California 5-2 18 873 .3063 20 397 .2647 .0200 12 .197

22 Auburn 5-3 23 333 .1168 23 179 .1193 .3300 17 .189

23 Connecticut 6-1 29 80 .0281 28 75 .0500 .3300 37 .136

24 Alabama 6-2 24 322 .1130 24 177 .1180 .1500 35 .127

25 Penn State 6-2 22 404 .1418 22 294 .1960 .0100 27 .116

http://msn.foxsports.com/cfb/story/7359658?print=true

usf had easier road but couldnt beat unranked rutgers

[PitBull]

i wouldnt mind seeing WVU in the national title.. i think they would represent the conference very well.