College Football Predictions 2011: Oregon Ducks and 10 Teams to Make BCS Bowls

Summer camp is just around the corner and the top teams in the country will embark on a six-month journey with the hopes of becoming the 2011 National Champions. Preseason rankings have been out for months but it is now time for teams to show if they were overrated or underrated.

Which teams have what it takes to make a BCS bowl? Whose schedule is set up in a way that allows them to win their conference or go undefeated? How many at-large bids will there be in 2011?

Answers to all of those questions and more right here, as we predict who will be playing in each BCS bowl game.

Rose Bowl: Wisconsin Badgers vs. Stanford Cardinal

The Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California features two teams from new-look conferences. The Big Ten will include the Nebraska Cornhuskers and Pac-12 will include the Utah Utes and Colorado Buffaloes.

The road will be a bit tougher for the Wisconsin Badgers in 2011, but they should be able to successfully navigate through their schedule and reach another BCS bowl game. The Stanford Cardinal will benefit from the USC Trojans facing sanctions for another year and reach another Rose Bowl.

Wisconsin seemingly always has the biggest and best offensive line in the conference (country?) every year, and it is loaded again up front in 2011. You know your team is loaded with running backs when Zach Brown decides to transfer to Pitt for more carries.

The addition of transfer QB Russell Wilson from NC State immediately makes the Badgers the favorite to win the first-ever Big Ten Conference Championship Game.

Wilson will give Wisconsin a dual-threat quarterback with a cannon for an arm, and he will make this offense more dominant than ever.

Wisconsin will still be known as a team that loves to pound the football, but the days of teams loading up the box are over with the arrival of Wilson.

Andrew Luck was the consensus No. 1 pick in the 2010 NFL draft, but he instead chose to return to Stanford for his junior season. He will lead the Cardinal back to California for another Rose Bowl.

Luck had a tremendous sophomore campaign when he threw 32 touchdowns and only eight INTs. He nearly completed 71 percent of his passes and threw for over 3,300 yards.

His QB rating was over 170.0 for the season, and the Cardinal will rely even more on the broad shoulders of Luck than they did in 2010.

Many think that Luck returning to school for another season was not a good choice, but if he wins the Heisman, will those same people be calling his decision a mistake? How about a victory in the Rose Bowl?

This game should be a good one with Wisconsin's ground-and-pound approach vs. Stanford's air-it-out attack.

Fiesta Bowl: Oklahoma St. Cowboys vs. Alabama Crimson Tide

The Oklahoma St. Cowboys will receive an at-large bid into the Fiesta Bowl, which will be their first ever BCS appearance. The Alabama Crimson Tide are in familiar territory under Nick Saban and will settle for a Fiesta Bowl appearance instead of another national championship.

This game has the potential to be an absolute shootout and you'd be hard-pressed to find anyone who would take the under in this game. Oklahoma State has been on the verge of national glory for quite some time and a trip to the Fiesta Bowl will go a long way towards becoming a national powerhouse.

The Cowboys will be led by Justin Blackmon again this season. He had an absolutely spectacular 2010 campaign as he had 111 receptions, 1,782 yards receiving and 20 touchdowns. Video game-type numbers for sure.

Quarterback Brandon Weeden will also be returning along with 10 starters from a team that was 11-2 in 2010. The Cowboys will need to sure up their defense however, if they wish to stay with the powerful Crimson Tide.

Can Trent Richardson become the second Alabama running back to win the Heisman Trophy in three years? Richardson is every bit as talented as Mark Ingram and may be a bit faster and stronger.

The Crimson Tide will return four of five starters among the offensive line, with two of them being All-Conference selections. With the departure of Greg McElroy, Nick Saban and Alabama will depend on the running game more than ever.

Trent Richardson is a beast and will be able to carry a heavy load. Good thing too, as he will be carrying the Heisman Trophy out of New York City after the season he has.

This game could feature two top-10 picks in the 2012 NFL draft in Trent Richardson and Justin Blackmon.

Orange Bowl: Florida St. Seminoles vs. Michigan St. Spartans

This one has the potential to be a great one. Two storied programs that have huge expectations on them in 2011 will not disappoint.

For Florida State, the Jimbo Fisher Era has officially begun in Tallahassee. The Florida State Seminoles burst back onto the national stage in 2010 with a 10-win season.

ESPN.com has the Seminoles ranked at No. 3, and About.com has them at No. 13.

Jimbo Fisher was able to bring in the highest-ranked recruiting class in the country, and has a load of talent returning from last season. They did lose Christian Ponder, but many "experts" obviously do not think that losing the first-round pick will stop the Seminoles.

Florida State faces the mighty Oklahoma Sooners early in the season, and that test may prove to be the only blemish on the Seminole's radar.

The Michigan State Spartans are hoping that Kirk Cousins can improve upon an impressive 2010 campaign and lead his team to glory.

Cousins has a bevy of talent returning to East Lansing, including First Team All-Big Ten selection Edwin Baker at running back.

Cousins may be the most underrated player in the country. He is undoubtedly the best returning quarterback in the Big Ten, and he completed a solid 67 percent of his passes while throwing for 20 touchdowns.

Cousins started every game for Michigan State and averaged over 210 passing yards per game.

Michigan State has a real shot of going undefeated in 2011, and Kirk Cousins is a huge reason why.

Sugar Bowl: LSU Tigers vs. Boise State Broncos

The Boise State Broncos and LSU Tigers will both return to a BCS bowl game in 2011.

What a storyline this game would be. Chris Pederson declined the Stanford job and Les Miles said no to the mighty Michigan Wolverines and their teams go to the Sugar Bowl.

Many will claim that Boise State and QB Kellen Moore do not play against top talent, but it's hard to argue against his career numbers.

Over his three-year career, Moore owns a 68 percent completion percentage, 97 touchdowns and just 18 interceptions. Absolutely ridiculous numbers even if he was playing the Little Giants.

In 2010, Moore finished fourth in the Heisman voting after throwing 35 TDs and just six INTs. His completion percentage would have made Peyton Manning drool at over 71 percent.

Boise State may have lost Austin Pettis and Titus Young, but the Broncos reload every year and 2011 will be no different. They will earn another much deserved BCS at-large bid.

2011 is a "national championship or bust" year for Les Miles and his team.

The team is loaded on offense with 10 starters returning, but who is their quarterback? Jordan Jefferson has shown that he is about as consistent as a craps table, evidenced by his seven TDs and 10 INTs in 2010.

The Tigers are so deep and talented that even shaky QB play will not keep them out of a BCS bowl.

The defense lost top-five pick Patrick Peterson to the NFL draft, but they return eight starters as well. Can they really run the table in the ultra-competitive SEC West?

If new offensive coordinator Steve Kragthorpe can get transfer quarterback Zach Mettenberger playing at a high-level, the Tigers may very well be the team to beat.

A victory for Boise St. against LSU might be more Cinderella than their victory against Oklahoma.

BCS National Championship Game: Oregon Ducks vs. Oklahoma Sooners

This one will be for all the marbles. The consensus top teams in the country heading into 2011 will not disappoint.

The Oregon Ducks will be out to avenge their loss in the 2010 National Championship game against Auburn.

Oregon will be led by Heisman Trophy candidate LaMichael James. He finished third in the voting in 2010, but many feel that he was the most deserving player.

James is the most explosive player in college football and is a complete running back. He led the nation in rushing yards with 1,731 yards on 294 attempts for an average of six yards per carry.

Many thought James would enter the NFL draft, but his return to the Ducks offense, along with QB Darren Thomas, have many picking Oregon to win it all in 2011.

James had an amazing 21 rushing touchdowns and three receiving touchdowns and will be the main reason Oregon returns to the BCS national championship game.

James has already provided college football fans with two amazing seasons full of highlight reel plays, but 2011 will be his finest as a collegiate player.

Enjoy, Oregon fans, because 2011 will be James' last as a Duck.

The Oklahoma Sooners have 18 starters returning from a team that went 12-2 and blew out the University of Connecticut in the Fiesta Bowl. 

And 2011 will be no different, as they are led by quarterback Landry Jones, who averaged over 330 passing yards per game last season.

Landry is just a junior who, if he stays on his current pace, will break all of the school's passing records. He threw for over 4,700 yards in 2010 with 38 TDs and only 12 INTs.

Oklahoma is one of the favorites to win the national championship, and Landry Jones may be taking home the Heisman Trophy as well.

This game will be loaded with NFL talent and looks to be another shoot-out. College football fans can only hope that they see a championship game featuring the Oregon Ducks and Oklahoma Sooners.