BCS Rankings 2011: 2 Non-AQ Teams That Could Play in a BCS Game

Utah, Boise State, Hawaii and TCU.

These are the schools from non-BCS automatic qualifying conferences that have played in a BCS game since the inception of the BCS rankings.

In 2010, a record two non-AQ teams played in BCS bowls, with Boise State getting a victory over TCU in the Fiesta Bowl.

Can two more crash the party again this year?

With the recent unveiling of the BCS rankings, Boise State and the University of Houston find themselves in good position to play in one of the big money bowls at the end of the season.

Boise State is ranked fifth and the University of Houston is ranked No. 19.

The BCS rules state that a non-AQ team gets an automatic bid to a BCS game if they are either ranked in the Top 12 of the final BCS rankings or ranked in the Top 16 of the final BCS rankings and ranked higher than a champion of a conference that has an annual automatic berth in one of the BCS bowls.

If two or more teams from those conferences satisfy the provisions for an automatic berth, then the team with the highest finish in the final BCS standings will receive the automatic berth, and the remaining team or teams will be considered for at-large selection if it meets the criteria.

Pencil in Boise State for the automatic bid.

Having gone undefeated a few times before and having played in two BCS bowls, most notably the Fiesta Bowl victory over Oklahoma in 2007, this is not unfamiliar territory for the Broncos.

Boise State is currently 6-0 and looks to be on pace for another undefeated season. The toughest game remaining on Boise State’s schedule is at home against TCU, which shouldn't be as challenging as it might seem since TCU has already shown it is beatable after losses to SMU and Baylor.

I don’t see Boise State losing a game this season, and even though they won’t be fully content being left out of the national championship game, the Broncos will find themselves playing in another BCS game after getting the automatic berth.

On the flip side of the coin, Kevin Sumlin’s Cougars are in uncharted territory.

Although the University of Houston fought their way into the Top 15 of the BCS rankings a few years ago, they couldn't finish strong and were beaten a few times en route to a season-ending loss in the conference championship game.

But this season’s team is different.

With Case Keenum leading a team that has the top-ranked passing offense in the NCAA and averages 47 points per game, the Cougars will have little difficulty winning the rest of their games against opponents that have a combined record of 12-19.

They will make it to the C-USA championship game unblemished, and since they would have the highest winning percentage in the conference, they should win a home game against the winner of the East division for the conference championship.

That should be enough to get them into the Top 12 of the BCS standings.

But will it be enough to get them into a BCS game?

With good teams like Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, LSU, Alabama, Stanford, Wisconsin and many others from powerful conferences in a position to end the season with one loss or less and a much more challenging schedule on their resume, the Cougars have their competition set out for them.

But if the right chips fall into play and they continue to play good football, know that a 13-0 Cougars team will also have a claw in the BCS discussion.