BCS Rankings: How the Stanford Cardinal Can Play in BCS Title Game

The Stanford Cardinal enter Week 9 of the college football season ranked No. 6 in the country, one spot above Pac-12 North rival Oregon.

At 7-0 (5-0), the Cardinal have three pivotal games remaining on the schedule against No. 20 USC (AP Poll), No. 7 Oregon and Notre Dame to conclude the regular season.

If Stanford is able to win the Pac-12 North division and represent the conference in the inaugural championship game, the Cardinal will likely play Arizona State for the conference title.

In order for the Cardinal to fulfill their dreams of playing for a national championship, some things will need to fall into place.

Big 12 Winner Can’t Be an Undefeated Oklahoma State

Because of a weak Pac-12 this season, a team from the Big 12 with the same record as Stanford would more than likely make it to the national championship game in New Orleans. Right now there are two teams in the way of the Cardinal’s championship dreams: Oklahoma State and Kansas State.

The Oklahoma State Cowboys and Oklahoma Sooners will face off in the final week of the regular season, making for a game that may decide a spot in the national championship (if there are no BCS undefeateds). I don’t see the Cowboys being undefeated when that game comes around simply because their remaining schedule is too difficult.

The Cowboys have home games against Baylor, No. 8 Kansas State and No. 9 Oklahoma. Their road games include No. 20 Texas Tech (who just knocked off previously undefeated Oklahoma in Norman, OK) and an overlooked Iowa State team.

The other team that is left is Kansas State. Because preseason rankings do mean a lot to the final rankings, an undefeated Kansas State team may or may not be ranked above an undefeated Stanford team.

The Wildcats have arguably the most difficult remaining schedule of any team in the national championship race, playing four ranked teams in their remaining five games. Those teams are No. 9 Oklahoma, No, 3 Oklahoma State, No. 16 Texas A&M, No. 24 Texas and Iowa State to finish the season.

My guess is that the Wildcats will be lucky to win three of those, likely dropping at least three games. The remaining Big 12 teams will beat each other up, and the Cardinal will likely just need an Oklahoma State loss.

Clemson Might Need To Lose a Game

This one is where it gets a little tricky. The Clemson Tigers rank No. 5 in the country, one spot above the Cardinal.

Because of the increased nature of competition for Stanford, the Cardinal will likely jump Clemson if both teams run the table simply because of the increased difficulty of their schedule. The Clemson Tigers have the easiest road to an undefeated season, with only one Top 25 team in their final four regular-season games.

The Tigers play Georgia Tech on the road, then a bye week before they play the Wake Forest Demon Deacons, then two big road games against N.C. State and rival No. 13 South Carolina.

If the Tigers run the table and play in the conference championship game, they would play the winner of the ACC Coastal division, which will likely be No. 12 Virginia Tech (whom they have already beaten, 23-3).

In order to ensure the Cardinal rank higher, Clemson should lose a game.

Stanford Must Run the Table

This is the most important aspect to the Cardinal’s title hopes. Stanford has taken care of business all season long, and they have not even come close to being tested.

Stanford will hop an undefeated Boise State eventually, currently ranked No. 4 in the BCS. If the Cardinal do run the table, they still need a few teams to drop games in order to be certain that they will play for the national title.

It certainly could happen. There is a lot of football left to be played. Root for Oklahoma State, Kansas State and Clemson losses.