It seemed like it was going to play out just like we hoped — drama, controversy and loud yelling until the day the BCS died. And then Michigan State had to ruin all that.
| Projected BCS Rankings | |
|---|---|
| Rank | Team |
| 1 | Florida State Seminoles |
| 2 | Auburn Tigers |
| 3 | Alabama Crimson Tide |
| 4 | Stanford Cardinal |
| 5 | Michigan State Spartans |
| Scroll down for more | |
When Auburn took the SEC title during its Saturday matinee television spot, the debate started to ratchet up. If Ohio State won the Big Ten title, would they be headed to the BCS title game or could Auburn jump the Buckeyes?
Turns out it didn’t matter. Michigan State surprised the nation, ending Ohio State’s 24-game winning streak and giving Auburn the chance to grab No. 2 in the very last BCS standings. With that, the title game is set. As are a few other of the yearly BCS scenarios we’ve come to love and count on each season.
Here’s what else we know so far:
- Stanford and Michigan State will be headed to the Rose Bowl after winning their respective conference titles
- Baylor will be going to the Fiesta Bowl after winning the Big 12 on a crazy day of conference action
- UCF will automatically claim a BCS bowl bid after winning the regular season AAC title, likely headed to the Fiesta Bowl
- Alabama will likely be automatically qualified for a BCS bowl by finishing third in the final BCS standings, thus eliminating all other possible SEC berths beyond Auburn. For more on this, visit the BCS Bowls page
- Teams likely eligible tomorrow for the at-large pool: Clemson, Oregon, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Missouri, Oklahoma State, South Carolina and possibly LSU
- For more, check out our final slate of projected BCS bowls
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Meanwhile, the BCS standings, after electing Florida State No. 1 and Auburn No. 2, will probably play out as expected. Alabama is likely to end the year at No. 3, followed by conference champions Stanford and Michigan State. Then expect Ohio State to land around No. 6 after its first loss in more than two years, followed by Baylor and Missouri, Oklahoma and South Carolina, and Oregon and Oklahoma State.
As for what to expect for tomorrow: We’ll get the Coaches’ Poll normal time, around noon ET. Then things will be quiet. We expect to have Jeff Sagarin’s BCS computer rankings early, but who knows for sure.
The Harris Poll will be withheld from public viewing until after the BCS pairings are announced to keep some “drama” but since most of the drama is gone, take that as you will.
Then, around 8:30, the numbers will start pouring in and the pairings will be announced and we’ll be on our way to the final BCS season.
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Remember, we’ll be here to take you through all of it, starting with tomorrow’s releases of the human polls, computer rankings and BCS. Follow along all day @BCSKnowHow and here to stay up to the second with projections, mathematical breakdowns of the computers, human polls and everything in between.
Here’s what the BCS standings will likely look like when they are released tonight at 8:30 p.m. ET on ESPN:
Final Projected BCS Standings (December 8th)
| Rank | Team |
|---|---|
| 1 | Florida State Seminoles |
| 2 | Auburn Tigers |
| 3 | Alabama Crimson Tide |
| 4 | Stanford Cardinal |
| 5 | Michigan State Spartans |
| 6 | Ohio State Buckeyes |
| 7 | Baylor Bears |
| 8 | Oklahoma Sooners |
| 9 | Missouri Tigers |
| 10 | South Carolina Gamecocks |
| 11 | Oregon Ducks |
| 12 | Oklahoma State Cowboys |
| 13 | Clemson Tigers |
| 14 | LSU Tigers |
| 15 | UCF Knights |
| 16 | Arizona State Sun Devils |
On a programming note: Obviously things around here are going to change very soon. This has been a ton of fun to do. More on what’s next after the craziness of tomorrow. Thank you all!
BCS Know How 
Thank God Ohio State won’t be coming out here to Pasadena. We have enough criminal activity already.