BCS Bedlam : With Iowa State’s 37-31 Upset of #2 Oklahoma State, Alabama Crimson Tide And Oregon Ducks The Most To Gain.
In the case of Iowa State, they most likely gained new fans in Tuscaloosa, Alabama and Eugene, Oregon Friday night.
The unranked Cyclones may have given both the Alabama Crimson Tide and the Oregon Ducks new life in their chase of the BCS Championship title game.
The Cyclones were four touchdown underdogs at home against the #2 ranked team in the country in Iowa State who had Heisman Trophy contender Brandon Weeden and the top wide receiver in the country in Justin Blackmon.
Iowa State was also 0-17 and had not won against a #1 or #2 ranked team.
In the case of the Iowa State Cyclones, they had nothing to lose.
Thanks to a clutch defense and a three touchdown, 368-yard performance by Iowa State quarterback Jared Barnett in a 37-31 upset of #2 Oklahoma State in double overtime, the race for the BCS title game has now officially been thrown into complete chaos.
While the LSU Tigers sit all alone undefeated at 10-0, the question can now be asked, which one-loss team deserves to play—most likely—against the Bayou Bengals.
Going into tonight’s game in Ames, the Cowboys appeared to have the inside track to New Orleans with a potent offense and ball-hawking defense, it seemed so easy for the Cowboys.
Oklahoma State—thanks to Brandon Weeden’s two touchdown passes—would jump out to a 24-7 lead in the third quarter, and all appeared to be set for a monumental “Bedlam” rivalry tilt with Oklahoma.
Apparently, the Cyclone’s didn’t get the memo from the BCS football gods.
Behind a fired-up defense and Barnett’s career performance, Iowa State would rally and send the game into overtime.
Thanks in part to Oklahoma State missing a potential 37-yard game-winning field goal by Cowboys kicker Quinn Sharp in regulation—that appeared to sail over the right crossbar—and with that Oklahoma State’s title hopes—and Weeden’s brief Heisman front-runner status.
In the first overtime, Barnett would find running back James White for a 25-yard touchdown and put the Cyclones up 31-24.
Weeden would answer for the Cowboys, finding wide receiver Josh Cooper on a four-yard touchdown to tie the game at 31-31. Weeden would finish the game by going 42-of-58 for 476 yards and three touchdowns.
Weeden would also throw three interceptions–including the eventual interception that would lead to Iowa State’s winning touchdown on running back Jeff Woody’s four yard run.
With the Cyclones upset of the Cowboys in Ames, fans from Alabama and Oregon have the most reason to smile.
While many do not want to see a rematch of LSU-Alabama or LSU-Oregon, unless LSU loses to Arkansas, Alabama loses to Auburn or Oregon loses to either USC or Oregon State, the bane of—non-SEC—college football fans will become reality in the form of a BCS title game rematch.
LSU has defeated both Alabama 9-6 in a tight defensive struggle and Oregon 40-27 in dominating fashion, but with due respect to Oklahoma—who lost to Texas Tech, the Tigers, Crimson Tide and Ducks are the three best teams in the country.
The Ducks may have a long-shot at a rematch against the Tigers, but they are now in control of their own destiny.
Oregon’s game against USC is now a must win and the “Civil War” tilt with the Oregon State Beavers is border-line epic, if the Ducks win their three games including the inaugural Pac-12 Championship Game—most likely vs Arizona State or UCLA and Alabama loses then they will deserve to play the Tigers in New Orleans.
For Alabama, they have a warm-up game with Georgia Southern before playing defending national champion, #24 ranked Auburn on the road. Alabama is still on the outside looking in and must hope that Oregon, Oklahoma State and Oklahoma lose any of their games to set up an all-SEC BCS title game against LSU in New Orleans.
While Oregon fan’s may disagree on the thought of a LSU-Alabama rematch, the Crimson Tide have their strength of schedule and the fact that they play in the best conference in college football as a legit and viable platform to stand on.
In the past week, college football fans have seen the likes of Stanford, Boise State and now Oklahoma State lose, while many may argue over a LSU-Alabama/Oregon rematch, but after the Cyclone’s upset in the Midwest, the BCS title picture just came more into focus.
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LSU would be playing in the SEC title game against Georgia.
Alabama is also from the SEC West, so they couldn’t go
Cnorris,
Thank you for the correction on that, fanned and noted.
Not sure what game you were watching, but LSU did not “dominate” Alabama. The Crimson Tide beat themselves and you can hardly call a 9-6 win (thanks to field goals and of course Bama’s missed field goals) “dominating”.
TJ,
Thanks for the feedback and I watched the entire game actually. I actually mispoke and meant to say “tight defensive clinic” because it was a classic.