BCS Standings 2011: Oklahoma Sooners Still Favored to Reach Title Game

The Oklahoma Sooners (6-1) are coming off the worst loss in the Bob Stoops era from a betting odds perspective, but not all is lost in Norman.

In the most recent BCS standings, the Sooners landed in the No. 9 spot, directly behind their opponent in Saturday's Big 12 Conference showdown.

Kansas State has rattled off seven straight wins to start the 2011 campaign, including an unheard of four consecutive victories as an underdog before last Saturday's 59-21 blowout win over the Kansas Jayhawks as 10.5-point road favorites.

Fans may have lost hope of a potential national title, but the betting market suggests otherwise.

Let's take a look at how the Sooners can potentially reach the BCS Championship Game on Jan. 9, 2012, in New Orleans.

Kansas State Wildcats

Kansas State is drawing plenty of wagers as a 13.5-point home underdog against the Oklahoma Sooners Saturday, but the line has held steady at the opening number.

The casual bettor will not think twice about getting nearly two touchdowns on a team that is a spot higher than its opponent in the current BCS standings.

A decision that likely will prove costly.

Oklahoma Sooners off a Loss

Few teams are better to back in college football off a straight-up loss than the Oklahoma Sooners, tallying a 19-7 ATS mark in that situation.

Playing away from home has never been a disadvantage in this series, due to the road team tallying a 7-2-1 ATS record in the past 10 meetings.

The Sooners have been here before, dropping a 36-27 contest a year ago against the Missouri Tigers when debuting as the No. 1 team in the BCS standings, only to come back and hand Colorado a convincing 43-10 defeat as 25.5-point home favorites.

Texas Tech Red Raiders Comparison

One of the biggest mistakes a casual bettor can make is simply looking at scores—rather than actually looking inside the box score.

Oklahoma lost the statistical battle against Texas Tech by just 36 total yards.

Kansas State may have come away with a 41-34 win over the Red Raiders as 3.5-point road underdogs on Oct. 15, but it lost the statistical battle by 241 yards.

The Wildcats have actually only out-gained three of their opponents this year—with Eastern Kentucky, Kent State and Kansas not striking fear in many.

Few will simply point to the scoreboard, but Las Vegas always looks inside the numbers.

LSU Tigers vs. Alabama Crimson Tide

The top two teams in the BCS standings will meet up on Nov. 5 in what will likely serve as an elimination game.

Oklahoma lost out on playing in such a contest, as many figured that its season finale against Oklahoma State would offer the same stakes.

It's hard to imagine that college football would allow two teams from the same conference to play each other in the title game.

Stanford Cardinal

The Stanford Cardinal have shown no signs of slipping up, but the schedule really picks up in strength over the final five weeks.

A trip to Southern California against the USC Trojans is never easy, while closing out things at home versus Oregon, California and Notre Dame will definitely present a challenge.

It wouldn't be all that surprising if the current Pac-12 favorites fall flat in one of those contests—losing any national title hopes and quarterback Andrew Luck's Heisman Trophy.

Clemson Tigers

The Clemson Tigers were incredibly underrated at the start of the 2011 season, not even landing in the AP Top 25 preseason poll.

In fact, the ACC representative didn't even receive a single vote.

That's a storyline ready to be written if the youthful squad decides to slip up from its current No. 5 spot in the standings.

The signature win was a 23-3 victory over the Virginia Tech Hokies as seven-point road underdogs on Oct. 1.

Clemson has also enjoyed some luck along the way, including not facing quarterback EJ Manuel, handing Florida State a 35-30 defeat as 2.5-point home favorites in Week 4.

The Hokies would love to get another shot at the Tigers in the ACC Championship Game.

Oklahoma fans will definitely be rooting for the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets to pull off an upset this Saturday.

Boise State Broncos

Boise State's strength of schedule has fallen flat due to TCU's two losses, diminishing its Nov. 12 matchup inside Bronco Stadium.

The No. 4 team in the current BCS standings could present the final hurdle for the Sooners potentially rallying back into the national title picture.

A lot of dominoes may fall—with this one being the toughest to knock down.

Bedlam Rivalry

Pressure would be squarely placed on the Oklahoma State Cowboys if the Bedlam rivalry determined their spot in the BCS National Championship Game.

Normally, such a position in that contest would be on the boys from Norman, but it could work out for the Oklahoma Sooners if things fall into place.

The Cowboys are No. 3 in the BCS standings, but the computer rankings love them even more.

Stoops will be Mike Gundy's biggest fan until they meet on Dec. 3 in Stillwater.

BCS Championship Game Odds

I was quite surprised by the Oklahoma Sooners (+300) still being the second choice to win the 2012 BCS National Championship at two of the sharpest sports books in the industry.

It really cements the fact that the Sooners are the right side in Saturday's contest, but also gives hope in a potential appearance in the title game.

Stoops' squad still has shorter odds than LSU (+500), Clemson (+1000), Oklahoma State (+1000) and Stanford (+1200) to walk away with the crystal ball.