Oregon crushed UCLA in the Pac-12 title game to go to the Rose Bowl, but their win will be irrelevant in the grand scheme of things. Only Georgia upsetting LSU in the SEC Championship will stop an LSU vs Alabama rematch for the BCS National Championship.
Conference Championships
#14 Georgia (10-2) vs #1 LSU (12-0) (SEC Championship) (at the Georgia Dome, Atlanta)
Georgia have gone 10 undefeated after losing their first two, but LSU have looked unbeatable so far this year, and they know that a win will take them 80 miles up the road to the Superdome for the National Championship game. Tryann Mathieu has been a revelation at corner, and Jordan Jefferson has found his form. LSU to go 13-0 and start preparing for January 9th.
Prediction: Georgia 13 LSU 38
#24 Southern Miss (10-2) at #6 Houston (12-0) (Conference-USA Championship)
The other undefeated team, the Cougars of Houston will go to the BCS and play in New Orleans if they win this game, but it will be the Sugar Bowl rather than the National Championship game. This is their first game against ranked opposition, but even at that, the chance to go to a BCS Bowl will be enough for Houston to win again.
Prediction: Southern Miss 17 Houston 24
#15 Wisconsin (10-2) vs #11 Michigan State (10-2) (Big Ten Championship) (at Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis)
The Badgers and the Spartans had an absolute humdinger of a game in late October, that Michigan State came out on top in. Both teams lost their next game before going four undefeated. Expect another close fought, high scoring game between two of the best offences in college football. With a Rose Bowl berth against Oregon on the line, both teams will be going for it, and I fancy the Badgers to avenge thie loss from six weeks ago.
Prediction: Wisconsin 38 Michigan State 35
#5 Virginia Tech (11-1) vs #20 Clemson (9-3) (ACC Championship) (at Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte)
Clemson have lost 3 of their last 4 and destroyed any chance they had of going to the National Championship game. However, a win against a Virginia Tech team they've already beaten this season will still see them go to the BCS and the Orange Bowl. Virginia Tech however, haven't lost since that October 1st loss to the Tigers and have looked the better team since then. The Hokies to win and go to the Orange Bowl.
Prediction: Virginia Tech 41 Clemson 14
Other Top 10 Teams
#10 Oklahoma (9-2) at #3 Oklahoma State (10-1)
It's Bedlam as the Sooners and Cowboys go head to head for the Big 12 Championship. It's not technically a Conference Championship game, but the winner will take the conference and the Fiesta Bowl berth. The Cowboys undefeated season and National Championship contention was destroyed by that double overtime loss to Iowa State a fortnight ago, and the Sooners will take great solace in the fact that they beat that same Iowa State team a week later. With the Cowboys' home advantage however, they will be fired up. This is a game that could go either way, but I do expect the Cowboys to pick up the win.
Prediction: Oklahoma 24 Oklahoma State 30
New Mexico (1-10) at #7 Boise State (10-1)
Despite a better overall record, Boise State will finish behind TCU in the Mountain West as a result of in conference play (unless UNLV stun the Horned Frogs tonight). With their BCS ambitions seemingly gone for another season, the Broncos will just need to go for the win and keep momentum going into whatever bowl game they're selected for. The Lobos pose no threat whatsoever, they've won just three times in three years. This will be a blowout on the blue turf.
Prediction: New Mexico 3 Boise State 58
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