Bowl Predictions 2012: Projecting the 10 Teams That Will Make It to a BCS Bowl

College Football fans, November is officially upon us, and you know what that means.

Yup, the big SEC showdown between No. 1 LSU and No. 2 Alabama is only a few more days away.

As we enter the stretch run of the 2011 season, there are still six undefeated teams remaining in college football, and the BCS bowl picture isn’t even close to developed just yet.

As we continue to separate the contenders from the pretenders during these final five weeks of the season, it should be interesting to see which ten teams separate themselves from the pack and lay claim to the highly coveted BCS bowl bids.

We’ve still got a long way to go, and a lot of football left to be played, but at this point, here’s a look at the ten teams that I think will ultimately be battling it out in college football’s five biggest bowl games.

1. LSU Tigers

LSU has already survived college football’s toughest schedule and managed to come out 8-0, but that definitely doesn’t mean things are about to get any easier.

If the Tigers can find a way to prevail over No. 2 Alabama in Tuscaloosa on Saturday, they’ll still have to figure out how to beat No. 7 Arkansas on Thanksgiving weekend, and the survive the SEC championship game.

If they can somehow pull all of that off, they’ll be taking the trip down I-10 to New Orleans to play for college football's biggest prize.   

2. Oklahoma State Cowboys

Oklahoma State looks like the team that’s most capable of ending the SEC’s streak of dominance in the national championship game, but first, the Cowboys have to make it through November unscathed and then beat No. 6 Oklahoma in the Bedlam game for the first time since 2002.

With a deadly offensive trio of QB Brandon Weeden, WR Justin Blackmon and RB Joseph Randle, the Cowboys have the high-powered offense to do it. They’re just going to need a consistent and steady effort out of their defense if they want to make it to the national title game.

3. Boise State Broncos

There’s a good chance that the Boise State Broncos could finish undefeated this year and once again get shut out of a BCS bowl game like they were back in 2008 and 2009.

First things first, the Broncos have to take care of business against a TCU team that’s getting increasingly stronger with each passing week.

If the smurfs can survive the matchup with the Horned Frogs on Nov. 12 and finish the year 12-0, they’ll guarantee themselves a BCS bowl invite, but they’re still going to need some help if they want to finally make it to the title game.

4. Alabama Crimson Tide

You can make a case that Alabama is the best team in the country right now, and the Crimson Tide will have a perfect opportunity to prove that this weekend when No. 1 LSU comes to town.

Even if the Tide fail to get the job done against the Tigers, Nick Saban’s squad will still have a strong enough resume and a high enough ranking to make it to a BCS bowl game, as long as they take care of business against Mississippi State and Auburn and finish 11-1.

5. Stanford Cardinal

Stanford survived a wild triple-overtime scare and hung on to beat USC in Los Angeles this past Saturday, a win which kept star quarterback Andrew Luck’s dream season alive.

The Cardinal should now go into the huge Nov.12 matchup with Oregon undefeated, and that game will likely decide which team goes to the Pac-12 championship game and which team ultimately represents the conference in a BCS bowl.

Stanford still has an outside shot of making it into the title game, but even if the Cardinal get shut out, they’ll have the Rose Bowl as a fallback.

6. Oklahoma Sooners

Everyone was ready to throw Oklahoma to the side after the Sooners were shocked by Texas Tech in Week 8, but the boys from Norman came roaring back to make a statement against Kansas State with a dominating 58-17 blowout victory last Saturday.

There’s no getting around the fact that Oklahoma is one of the most talented teams in the country, and they’ve got the star power on both sides of the ball to make a run at a Big 12 title.

The key game for the Sooners will be the Dec. 3 Bedlam battle against in-state rival Oklahoma State.

7. Nebraska Cornhukers

The Big Ten looks wide open right now, as there are currently three teams in each division that look like they will all be competing for a trip to Indianapolis.

In the Legends division, you’ve got Michigan, Nebraska and Michigan State battling it out, while Penn State, Ohio State and Wisconsin will decide things in the Leaders division.

Although Penn State has the best record at this point, the team that I would install as the front-runner is Nebraska, who just dominated No. 17 Michigan State last weekend.

The Cornhuskers may lack a strong passing attack, but they’ve got one of the most potent ground games in the country and their talented defense is finally stepping up.

8. Virginia Tech Hokies

I actually think Florida State is the best team in the ACC, but it’s going to be difficult for the Seminoles to win the Atlantic division, because they’re a game back of Clemson right now and the Tigers hold a tie-breaker.

Although Virginia is still technically alive, the ACC race looks like it’s going to come down to four teams—Wake Forest, Clemson, Virginia Tech and Georgia Tech.

The two big games to watch in the ACC race are the Nov. 10 matchup that pits Virginia Tech against Georgia Tech, which will likely decide the Coastal division, and the Nov. 12 battle between Wake Forest and Clemson, which will likely decide the Atlantic division.

I think, in the end, Virginia Tech will ultimately prevail over Wake Forest in the ACC championship game and make it to a BCS bowl for the sixth time during the Frank Beamer era.  

9. Houston Cougars

Houston is starting to remind me a lot of the 2007 Hawaii team that rode a prolific passer—Colt Brennan—a high-powered offense and a weak schedule all the way to the Sugar Bowl, where the Warriors ended up getting throttled by Georgia.

The 8-0 Cougars have been just steamrolling over teams, and quarterback Case Keenum has now entered the Heisman conversation after a sensational nine-touchdown performance against Rice last Thursday night.

There’s no way to get around the fact that their schedule is just bad. The eight teams that Houston has beaten are a combined 26-38, and none of them have a winning record.

The schedule will toughen up slightly in the coming weeks, though, with matchups against SMU and Tulsa to end the season, and a potential meeting with No. 25 Southern Miss in the Conference-USA championship game.

If Houston can run the table and finish 13-0, it will be interesting to see where the Cougars end up fitting in the final BCS bowl picture.

They’ll need some help and some teams in front of them to fall, but Kevin Sumlin’s team definitely has a chance.

10. West Virginia Mountaineers

West Virginia is the only Big East team that’s really being talked about nationally right now, but the Mountaineers certainly won’t be able to just waltz to a BCS bowl game this year.

Dana Holgorsen’s squad has a tricky test against an underrated Louisville team this weekend, and then three crucial games against Cincinnati, Pittsburgh and South Florida to close out the season.

The Nov. 12 showdown with the Bearcats could turn out to be a de facto conference championship game, and if the Mountaineers can find a way to survive that one, they’ve got a great shot to win the Big East and make it back to a BCS bowl for the first time since 2007.