BCS Rankings: Penn State and Teams That Will Fall from Standings This Week

Joe Paterno’s old crew won’t be alone in their fall from relevancy.  The BCS standings are as erratic as a Rajon Rondo jump shot.

A handful of teams will plummet in the rankings after losses in Week 13.  Here are the four squads whose names won’t be announced when ESPN releases the latest standings next Sunday night:

4. Penn State

The Nittany Lions bounced back from their loss to Nebraska to beat bitter rival Ohio State in Columbus.  They may be No. 19 now, but they’ll be knocked out after facing off against Wisconsin.  After starting hot, the Badgers are finishing sloppy, but they’re too talented for Penn State to upset.

A top-notch Nittany Lions defense will be pushed to the limit against Russell Wilson and Montee Ball.  Penn State will gradually bend for much of the matchup, but they’ll eventually break.

3. Georgia Tech

Georgia Tech is slotted in at No. 23 in the nation after barely escaping ACC foe Duke.  The Blue Devils are one of only two wins that the Yellow Jackets have come up with in their last five games.  Going up against in-state rival Georgia, Tech will fall to two out of six.

The Bulldogs are currently ranked No. 13 and deservedly so.  Georgia has won nine straight games after losing to Boise State and South Carolina the first two weeks.  Their run will continue against Georgia Tech.

2. Auburn

The Tigers miss Cam Newton.  Auburn has been forced to play one of the toughest schedules in the entire nation.  Their losses include letdowns to LSU, Arkansas, Georgia and Clemson.

As brutal as that schedule sounds, it only gets worse as they’ll matchup with Alabama this week.  The Crimson Tide’s eyes will be on the prize, but they won’t lose focus.  It would be a miracle if the Tigers pulled the upset over title-hungry Alabama.

1. Notre Dame

Stanford is angry.  They lost their shot at a national championship with a loss to Oregon and their still being disrespected in the polls.  Andrew Luck and the Cardinal will take their frustration out on the Fighting Irish.

No. 22 Notre Dame better enjoy their ranking while it lasts because No. 6 Stanford is coming.  At Stanford Stadium, the Limping Irish will have a long trip back to South Bend.

Here are the updated BCS rankings:

Rank	Team	BCS Average
1	LSU	1.000
2	Alabama	.9491
3	Arkansas	.8985
4	Oklahoma State	.8408
5	Virginia Tech	.7842
6	Stanford	.7711
7	Boise State	.6881
8	Houston	.6684
9	Oklahoma	.6526
10	Oregon	.6469
11	Kansas State	.590
12	South Carolina	.564
13	Georgia	.519
14	Michigan State	.502
15	Michigan	.398
16	Wisconsin	.394
17	Clemson	.363
18	Baylor	.323
19	Penn State	.306
20	TCU	.303
21	Nebraska	.149
22	Notre Dame	.095
23	Georgia Tech	.087
24	Auburn	.075
25	Texas	.0746

David Daniels is a featured columnist at Bleacher Report and a syndicated writer.  Follow him on Twitter.