College Football Predictions: Winner of Each Conference Championship Game

Conference championship games in college football: the great equalizers.

A conference title game is the type of platform where an unranked UCLA Bruins team can steal a BCS berth away from a more-deserving Oregon Ducks squad.

Where a unit like the Wisconsin Badgers can redeem themselves and get revenge on a Michigan State Spartans team that ruined Wisconsin's hopes of a perfect season.

And where an undefeated team like the LSU Tigers can face a ranked opponent for the eighth time in 13 games.

Let's break down every conference championship matchup and pick a winner from each.

ACC: No. 5 Virginia Tech vs. No. 20 Clemson

The Clemson Tigers have crumbled after starting their season 8-0.

The Tigers have dropped three of their last four games, including an embarrassing showing in the "Palmetto Bowl" against the in-state rival South Carolina Gamecocks.

The Virginia Tech Hokies, meanwhile, head into the ACC Championship at an impressive 11-1. Their only blemish? A 23-3 beat down from Clemson.

Will the reeling Tigers go 2-0 against the Hokies this season?

Not if Clemson continues its staggering decline.

Tajh Boyd and the Tigers offense have forgotten how to score, mustering under 20 points in each of the team's losses.

Virginia Tech looked great last week against Virginia in a 38-0 blowout, and quarterback Logan Thomas has come a long way since these teams met up on October 1.

Winner: Virginia Tech

Big Ten: No. 15 Wisconsin vs. No. 13 Michigan State

The inaugural Big Ten Championship Game features a rematch between the Michigan State Spartans and the Wisconsin Badgers.

The Spartans victory in that game came on a Hail Mary pass in the closing seconds as quarterback Kirk Cousins found Keith Nichol to give Michigan State the victory.

That play ruined the Badgers chances at an undefeated season and a possible BCS National Championship berth.

The key to this game will be if Cousins can find the kind of success he had through the air in the first meeting, when he threw for 290 yards and three touchdowns.

The Badgers defense is usually stingy, allowing only 15 points a game. So, if Cousins can move the ball through the air early, it could force the Badgers into catch up mode and make star running back Montee Ball a non-factor.

If not, Wisconsin will utilize the the talents of Ball and quarterback Russel Wilson to control the time of possession and keep the deep Michigan State backfield off the field.

Winner: Wisconsin

Conference USA: No. 24 Southern Miss vs. No. 6 Houston

The Southern Miss Golden Eagles are the first ranked team the Houston Cougars will have played all season.

It is unknown how well the Cougar offense can perform against quality opponents, but their offensive prowess is still a marvel.

Houston is first in the country with 52 points per game and 449 yards passing on average. Accordingly, quarterback Case Keenum has almost 5,000 yards passing and 43 touchdowns.

For the Golden Eagles to win, they will obviously have to stop the aerial assault that is the Cougars offense.

A tall order for a defense that gave up 34 points to the 108th ranked UAB Blazers offense just two weeks ago.

Winner: Houston

MAC: Northern Illinois vs. Ohio

The Northern Illinois Huskies have the eighth-ranked rushing attack in college football, led by dual-threat quarterback Chandler Harnish. 

Harnish has an astounding 1,351 yards rushing to accompany his 2,692 yards passing.

The Huskies head into the MAC Championship Game having won their last seven contests, and they face an Ohio Bobcats team that has won five straight games of their own.

The Bobcats may not have a flashy star like Harnish, but they do have a great receiver in LaVon Brazill, who has five 100-yard receiving games this season, four of which came in wins.

If Ohio gets the ball to Brazill and shuts down Harnish, they win.

I just don't think the Bobcats can stop the multi-dimensional offense of Northern Illinois for four quarters.

Winner: Northern Illinois

Pac 12: UCLA vs. No. 9 Oregon

The UCLA Bruins cannot be fully focused on the task at hand entering their Pac-12 Championship Game with the Oregon Ducks.

Bruins head coach Rick Neuheisel was fired this week, but will still coach in this game.

How will UCLA respond? Rally around Neuheisel, or fall flat and play with no emotion?

The answer is... It doesn't matter.

Oregon is a far superior team to UCLA in nearly every facet of the game.

UCLA does not even belong in this contest. Their 6-6 record is barely bowl eligible and includes a 50-point loss to the USC Trojans and a 36-point loss to the Arizona Wildcats.

The Bruins rank 88th in the country in points for and 87th in points against. Not exactly imposing statistics when compared to a Ducks team that scores 45 points a game.

Winner: Oregon

SEC: No. 14 Georgia vs. No. 1 LSU

The Georgia Bulldogs are a good football team that is lucky enough to be in the weaker half of the SEC.

The Bulldogs won the SEC East and earned their trip to the conference championship game after reeling off 10 straight wins to follow their first two losses.

Quarterback Aaron Murray is poised to emerge into the national spotlight next season after throwing for 2,698 yards and 32 touchdowns already this year.

But Georgia is not on the level of the LSU Tigers.

The Tigers have beaten three teams ranked in the top five already this season and allow only 10 points per game.

The only supposed chink in LSU's armor, the passing game, seems to be coming around after Jordan Jefferson went 18-29 and threw for over 200 yards against Arkansas last week.

Georgia's only hope to win this game is if LSU gets overly pass happy and forgets about their 18th-ranked rushing attack.

Winner: LSU