MrBCS.com

Our complete Bowl Projections, along with those from our friends at ESPN and CBS Sportsline are now updated.

The Biggest Question left to answer?

Who will be “The Biggest Loser” on Saturday night after the SEC Championship – Florida or Alabama.

We believe it will be Florida emerging victorious.  CBS agrees.  Mark Schlabach from ESPN says Alabama will cause some alligator tears.

Either way, it should be a great one between #1 Florida and #2 Alabama.

Nebraska could cause problems for the Texas Longhorns, who will earn a spot opposite the SEC Champion in the BCS Championship Game with a win.  If the Longhorns lose, can TCU, Cincinnati or Boise State earn a place in the title game?

Surely Texas will roll…..but that’s what keeps this game exciting.

Here’s our current picks:

BCS National Championship: Florida vs. Texas

FedEx Orange Bowl: Georgia Tech vs. TCU

Allstate Sugar Bowl: Alabama vs. Cincinnati

Tostitos Fiesta Bowl: Iowa vs. Boise State

Rose Bowl: Oregon vs. Ohio State

Need to know when your team is playing?  Here’s the complete BCS and college football bowl schedule.

Who do you think will play in the BCS National Championship Game on January 7th in Pasadena?

As we wind down the regular season, this weekend starts with a couple of key College Football rivalry games.

Ohio State at Michigan: Wolverines coach Rich Rodriguez could definitely use this win to close on a high note and earn a bowl bid. Won’t happen as the Buckeyes overpower their interstate rivals who are a year away. Ohio State 28, Michigan 13

Connecticut at Notre Dame: The Huskies have been on the short end if too many losses this season, both on and off the field. Charlie Weis’ fate is sealed at the conclusion of this game. Connecticut 24, Notre Dame 20

Ole miss at LSU: The Tigers were in a stupor last week against Louisiana Tech, trailing at the half before coming back to win. The Rebels wrap up a Cotton Bowl berth with Dexter McCluster running wild. Ole Miss 30, LSU 27

Clemson at Virginia: Two years ago, Clemson was a win away from the ACC Championship game before letting it slip away. C.J. Spiller won’t let that happen on Saturday and solidifies an invitation to New York for the Heisman ceremony. Clemson 41, Virginia 20

Cal at Stanford: Tobey Gerhart is the nation’s best player that fans on the East Coast are just hearing about. Problems at QB for Jeff Tedford and the Golden Bears continue as the Cardinal stay alive for a Rose Bowl berth. Stanford 35, Cal 17

Oregon at Arizona: The winner of this game will emerge as the odds on favorite to earn a Rose Bowl berth versus Ohio State. Jeremiah Masoli gets back on track in Tucson. Oregon 30, Arizona 20

Minnesota at Iowa: Although the Hawkeyes won’t be headed to the Rose Bowl, they still have an opportunity to play in a premier bowl game – likely the Orange Bowl or Tostitos Fiesta Bowl. Kirk Ferentz’s squad makes their case for the BCS. Iowa 24, Minnesota 10

Oklahoma at Texas Tech: Both teams are 6-4 and playing for a “better” bowl position. The Sooners maintain their poise and make it happen against the Red Raiders in Lubbock. Oklahoma 27, Texas Tech 24

Agree or disagree? Let me know – and why – below.

Indiana at Iowa: These two teams have split the last four meetings with the Hawkeyes winning the 2008 contest 45-9. Statistically, this game should be close, but the Hawkeyes finally have a game that doesn’t go down to the wire. Iowa 35, Indiana 17.

Georgia at Florida: The last two times Georgia had a week off before the “World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party”, they won the game. Florida has won 16 of the past 19 contests, with the two most recent circled with controversy. Georgia head coach Mark Richt had his team storm the field in the 2007 victory. Urban Meyer, meanwhile, called two late timeouts at the end of last season’s 49-10 destruction of the Dogs. Although it won’t be the same margin as 2008, the Gators march on towards Atlanta. Florida 31, Georgia 20.

Miami at Wake Forest: With Virginia Tech’s loss on Thursday night, the Hurricanes can earn a spot in the ACC Championship Game should Georgia Tech slip up. With ‘Canes RB Javarris James out for the game, Wake QB Riley Skinner will all but assure the Yellow Jackets the Coastal Division title. Wake Forest 20, Miami 17.

Kansas at Texas Tech: If you’re looking for offense on Saturday, this is your game. Kansas QB Todd Reesing and Red Raiders QB Taylor Potts have combined to throw for 30 touchdowns in 2009. Both of these squads need a victory to get back on track heading down the stretch. Kansas 34, Texas Tech 31.

Kansas State at Oklahoma: Bill Snyder’s return to Manhattan, Kansas was met with a great deal of skepticism, but he has delivered unexpected results so far leading the Wildcats to a 5-3 start. Meanwhile the Sooners have officially begun life after Sam Bradford who announced this week he’s heading to the NFL. Although we expect KSU RB Daniel Thomas to have a big game, Sooners QB Landry Jones will make Synder wish he hadn’t returned to the College Football scene. Oklahoma 42, Kansas State 21.

South Carolina at Tennessee: Every coach has exacted their revenge on Vols head coach Lane Kiffin for his offseason remarks. Watching Spurrier’s offense match up with Monte Kiffin’s defense will be intriguing throughout four quarters. After playing several close games, Jonathan Compton and the Tennessee rushing attack finally get over the hump. Tennessee 20, South Carolina 17.

Texas at Oklahoma State: Cowboys WR Dez Bryant is a difference maker. The problem is he won’t be playing in this game as he continues to serve a suspension for lying to the NCAA. The Longhorns clear their biggest remaining regular season hurdle in Stillwater. Texas 38, Oklahoma State 24.

USC at Oregon: Barring a late season collapse, the winner of this game will play in the Rose Bowl, if not the BCS National Championship Game. The loser likely earns a berth to a BCS game as well. Oregon’s Autzen Stadium is one of the toughest places in the country to play, but after being battle tested at Ohio State, Notre Dame and Cal, the Trojans have the moxie to “fight on” for the win. USC 28, Oregon 20.

I wrote Thursday night in the LeGarrette Blount aftermath about how Oregon coach Chip Kelly, AD Mike Belotti and the Pac-10 were on the clock with how the handled any disciplinary action regarding the Ducks RB.  In case you somehow missed it, the Oregon senior punched Boise State’s Byron Hout, then a teammate, before he went after fans and had to be physically removed by Oregon assistant Scott Frost and several stadium personnel – all captured by ESPN.

On Friday, Oregon announced they would suspend Blount for the remainder of the season, including any bowl game.  As we’ve talked with several people across the country, the reaction has been mixed, ranging from complete agreement to total opposition.

As for the year-long suspension, here’s three reasons why Oregon made their decision on LeGarrette Blount.

#1. It was B-A-D.  No matter how you view it, whether Hout taunted him (he did), Blount was caught up in the moment (I’m sure he was) or the Oregon RB was frustrated over his performance (he should have been), you can’t deny it was a horrible scene.  Certainly, the large TV audience didn’t help as ESPN promoted this extensively as the flagship college football game of opening night…evidenced by the quick reaction to the fight on Twitter.  In the end, this was much more reminiscent of something you’d see in WWE instead of College Football.

#2. Three rookies “made the decision”.  Chip Kelly is in his first year as head coach of the Oregon Ducks.  Mike Belotti is in his first year as Athletic Director of the University of Oregon.  Larry Scott is in his first football season as Pac-10 commissioner.  Ultimately, each of them knew their reaction on this would be widely criticized and, unfortunately for Blount, none of them had the level of political clout to survive a negative reaction.  Do you think the other two rookies left this decision solely up to Kelly as Belotti and the Pac-10 have claimed?  No way.

Lastly, had this happened at Florida State (Bobby Bowden), Alabama (Nick Saban), USC (Pete Carroll) or Ohio State (Jim Tressel), do you think Blount would have been suspended for the remainder of the season?  Not a chance.  The reason?  All of those coaches have significantly more political clout than Kelly, who is in his first season.

#3 The Roger Goodell factor.  The NFL head boss has been cracking down big time on player behavior with the league’s personal conduct policy.  Although initially many people – especially NFL players – didn’t believe this would last, Goodell has commanded the respect of the entire league.  This is clear in the way Goodell has handled some high profile situations, including Eagles QB Mike Vick, Browns WR Donte Stallworth and former NFL CB Adam “Pacman” Jones, who is out of the league largely because of the NFL’s hard line stance.  Unfortunately for Blount, Goodell’s stance is gaining support (and admiration) from other leagues as well as NCAA conference commissioners, such as the Pac-10’s Larry Scott.

What do you think?  Was Blount’s year-long suspension justified or did Oregon and the Pac-10 overreact?

Well, all the talk about sportsmanship this season seemed to go right out the window as Oregon RB LeGarrette Blount went nuts at the end of tonight’s Boise State vs. Oregon game.

Following Boise State’s victory over the Ducks, a lineman for the Broncos clearly said something to Blount that set him off. LeGarrette then sucker punched the player, hit his own teammates, went after fans and had to be dragged off the field by coaches and police. It was clearly one of the more disgraceful scenes I’ve witnessed at a football game in a long, long time.

Maybe if Blount (who had promised to deliver a “butt whipping”) had used some of that intensity during the game, he might have rushed for more than -5 yards. As it is, he disgraced himself, the University of Oregon and College Football.

I’m sure this isn’t how new head coach Chip Kelly envisioned his first game. He needs to get control of Blount and his team before this season spirals out of control.

What should happen to Blount with respect to a suspension? Will charges be pressed by the player, fans or police?

Chip Kelly and the Pac-10, you are on the clock.

Recently, I talked about some teams who are utilizing the 12th game to their advantage by scheduling some non-conference marquee matchups.

But what games – in and out of conference – will have the biggest impact on the perception of the national media, the BCS standings and who plays for the BCS National Championship this season?

Here’s the MrBCS.com Top 10 College Football games for 2009.

September 3rd: Oregon at Boise State. It won’t take long for it to feel like mid-season with these two BCS contenders facing off on opening night. Last year in Eugene, the Ducks fell to Boise State in what some Oregon players called “an embarassment.” They get to do somethig about it on Thursday night. Boise State can, and likely will, make the BCS as an at-large without this win. Oregon will not. This one is huge for the Ducks.

September 5th: Virginia Tech vs. Alabama (Atlanta). Last year, Alabama used this game with Clemson to get their season off to a fast start, eventually running their record to 12-0. The Hokies, who lost their starting running back Darren Evans, will look to do the same and can clear their most significant hurdle between them and the BCS Championship game by emerging victorious at the Georgia Dome.

September 12th: USC at Ohio State. Will it be rout #2 for the Trojans or redemption for the Buckeyes? The winner of this one takes a big, big step in the polls and BCS rankings with a victory in Columbus.

October 3rd: USC at Cal. Will USC’s championship dominance come to an end or will another Pac-10 power emerge in 2009? This game couldn’t come at a worse time for the Bears who will be coming off an emotional road game at Oregon the week before.

October 10th: Florida at LSU. The last time these two teams played in Baton Rouge, the Bengal Tigers won by converting an amazing 5 of 5 fourth downs, all in the 4th quarter. Look for LSU to provide the biggest road test for the Gators in 2009. This one is not for the faint of heart.

October 10th: Alabama at Ole Miss. Houston Nutt always had his teams at Arkansas playing their best when their backs were up against the wall. How will the Rebels fare in their biggest test of the season? The winner of this game will likely play for the SEC Championship.

October 17th: Texas vs. Oklahoma (Dallas). Don’t plan anything on this Saturday. The 2009 Red River Rivalry will be one for the ages. In addition to two top five teams facing off, this one is juiced by the bad blood following the Longhorns exclusion from the Big XII and BCS title game despite having defeated the Sooners 45-35 in 2008. You won’t want to miss this one.

October 31st: USC at Oregon. If the Trojans survive the trip to Berkeley against Cal, this is their last stop between an undefeated season and a shot at the BCS National Championship.

November 7th: Ohio State at Penn State. The belief here is that the undefeated Nittany Lions will be facing a one-loss Buckeyes squad. This should be Joe Paterno’s biggest challenge to another undefeated season. Should the Buckeyes win, look for the Rose Bowl to deal either USC or Ohio State to another BCS game to avoid a rematch of September 12th.

November 28th: Oklahoma State at Oklahoma. Just when you think the Sooners have wrapped up the (fill in the blank here) the OSU Cowboys seem to disrupt the party. If Oklahoma State can defeat the Georgia Bulldogs on opening weekend, they could be in line for a BCS at-large berth -or more – with a victory here.

One final point to consider. If there are more than two undefeated teams (Florida, Penn State, USC and Texas/Oklahoma), who will be shut out? MrBCS.com believes the storyline of the Gators will be too much to ignore, especially given their current poll position. As for their opponent? Look for it to be the Texas Longhorns (provided they are undefeated) or the USC Trojans. If multiple undefeated teams exist again this season, it should really get the momentum recharged for a playoff and plus one plan.

What do you think? Is there a game you’re especially excited about this season?