BCS Rankings 2011: LSU and More Teams with Big Battles Left

The announcement of the Week 13 BCS Rankings was sure to be a surprise due to eight of the top 25 teams in the nation losing this week.

One team sure to go nowhere after a big win was the LSU Tigers. While winning big over SEC rival Ole Miss 52-3 is nice, it won’t help them next week against No. 3 Arkansas.

It’s not just LSU either. The following teams all have bumps left in the road before they reach their ultimate goals.

LSU

The LSU Tigers have proved the doubters wrong all season, but there is one more hurdle for the team to clear.

When the No. 3 Arkansas Razorbacks travel to Louisiana on Friday for what is the biggest game of each team’s season, it will be two teams giving their all to put their team into the BCS National Championship Game.

LSU has to win to maintain their spot at No. 1, but if they fail, they will be relegated to a Top Five position not bearing the No. 1.

Oklahoma State

As if a loss to Iowa State that broke the hearts of Cowboy fans wasn’t hard enough to deal with, next week’s matchup against the in-state rival Sooners makes things even more complicated.

Oklahoma State is one of the best offensive teams in the country. But if their game against Iowa State taught us anything, it’s that their defense can’t stop a nosebleed.

If the Sooners can slow down the Cowboys offense, there may be a loss coming Oklahoma State’s way next week.

Penn State

After all of the turmoil at Penn State over the past few weeks, the road to success in the Big Ten depends on next week’s regular-season finale against No. 15 Wisconsin.

The Nittany Lions struggled with Nebraska two weeks ago. This meeting with Wisconsin has all of the makings of another battle like the one against the Cornhuskers.

While the game against Wisconsin will push Penn State like never before, they will ride their third-ranked defense to victory.

Check back for more on the NCAA Football as it comes, and check out Bleacher Report’s College Football Page to get your fill of College Football.

Follow @Donald_Wood