Point/Counterpoint: Will an SEC team play in the BCS title game?
YES
Right now, It may not look as if the SEC will have a representative in the BCS national-title game for the first time since 2005 at the moment. But when the December dust settles, the conference will.
The college football world was thrown for a loop after Texas A&M beat No. 1 Alabama in Bryant Denny Stadium. Now, Kansas State sits at No. 1 and in the driver’s seat to make the national-title game, along with No. 2 Oregon. Notre Dame is also in the title hunt.
All it takes is one of those teams to lose, and the winner of the SEC will play for the national title. I would take a one-loss SEC team over Notre Dame. A school that plays the likes of Navy, Purdue, and Boston College has a weak schedule compared with that of an SEC school. Plus, the Irish still have to play USC, which I believe will beat them.
Oregon has a tough road ahead of it if they want to play in Miami come January. The Ducks take on No. 13 Stanford in prime time on Saturday. If they survive that, they take on No. 16 Oregon State in the annual Civil War Game. Not to mention, the Pac-12 title game. One loss takes them out of contention and puts an SEC team in.
That leaves Kansas State. It will take on Baylor, which shouldn’t be much of a test. Then, it finishes with Texas, which is dangerous for K-State. The Longhorns nearly beat West Virginia and took out Texas Tech on the road.
The SEC title game will be Georgia versus (presumably) Alabama, both of which should only have one loss. The eventual SEC champion will need help, but if a few top three teams falter, a one-loss team SEC team can sneak its way into the national championship.
— Kevin Glueck
NO
I know it may be hard to believe, but the SEC will not participate in the 2013 BCS national-championship game. Hello, Sugar Bowl.
And why is it over? Simply put, I don’t foresee any way two of the three 10-0 teams, Kansas State, Oregon, and Notre Dame, pick up a loss in the final weeks.
The Wildcats survived their last obstacle on the road to perfection, overwhelming TCU, 23-10, on Nov. 10. This week, they travel to 4-5 Baylor, which, unless RG3 magically appears under center, remains the team that was whacked at Iowa State last month. They then host Texas, which, of course, is never easy, but remember — Kansas State went to Oklahoma and picked up a victory back in September. Oh, yeah, there’s no Big 12 title game, either. 12-0.
Second-ranked Oregon seems to have the simplest path. The Ducks host Stanford, which couldn’t win a big game even when Andrew Luck was designing cities in Palo Alto. After putting 60 on the Cardinal, most will see the finale at Oregon State as a trap game. Not happening. The Beavers fold in every important Civil War they play against their in-state rivals. Prediction: Oregon scores over 130 points over the last two weeks, then puts 80 on whoever comes out of the North Division in the conference title game. 13-0.
Finally, it’s important to point out that Notre Dame had a joke schedule even when it was bad. Now that it has returned to glory, they have zero chance of losing to Wake Forest on Senior Day and should have little trouble winning at dysfunctional USC (unless the balls are deflated). 12-0.
In the end, Kansas State, Oregon, and Notre Dame will all go undefeated. Notre Dame will suspiciously leap over the Wildcats in the final BCS poll and play Oregon in Miami. The Irish will defeat the Ducks, and Alabama blows out Louisville by 90 in the Sugar Bowl.
— Tom Clos
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