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Here’s one final look at the SEC Power Rankings until after the bowl games:

1. Auburn: There’s no debate going into the bowl season on which the best team in the league is, and there hasn’t been for some time. The Tigers (13-0) own six wins over teams that finished in the Top 25 of the final BCS standings. Their 56-17 thrashing of South Carolina Saturday in the SEC championship game punched their ticket to play in the Tostitos BCS National Championship Game.

2. Arkansas: The Hogs’ six-game winning streak down the stretch paid big dividends. They’re going to their first-ever BCS bowl when they face Ohio State in the Allstate Sugar Bowl on Jan. 4. Arkansas (10-2) will get a chance to win 11 games in a season for the first time since 1977, Lou Holtz’s first season in Fayetteville.

3. LSU: The Tigers (10-2) lost out on a BCS bowl bid when they fell to Arkansas in Little Rock on the final day of the regular season. Still, their only two losses were to top-10 teams, and Les Miles’ club can likely a cement a top-10 finish in the polls with a win over Texas A&M in the AT&T Cotton Bowl.

4. South Carolina: The Gamecocks (9-4) didn’t put up much of a fight in their 56-17 SEC championship game loss to Auburn, but there’s still something to be said for making it that far for the first time in school history. Even though the East was down this season, South Carolina did beat Alabama, which keeps the Gamecocks in the No. 4 spot.

5. Alabama: Had the Crimson Tide (9-3) been able to hold onto that 24-point lead over Auburn two weeks ago, they likely would be getting ready to play in the Sugar Bowl. But they didn’t and will have to settle for the Capital One Bowl. It’s one more chance for Alabama to put together a complete game, something that’s been a struggle all season.

6. Mississippi State: The Bulldogs (8-4) got their Jan. 1 bowl date in Florida and deservingly so. They will take on Michigan in the Gator Bowl, although for a while last weekend it looked like they might get squeezed down to the Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl.

7. Florida: When you’ve had a season like the one the Gators have, this is one of those bowl games that could either ease the pain or make it even worse heading into the offseason. Florida (7-5) is still stinging following its 31-7 loss to Florida State and looking for any semblance of offense it can find. The Gators get one last chance to find it in the Outback Bowl.

8. Georgia: The Bulldogs (6-6) kept alive their bowl streak. Their trip to the AutoZone Liberty Bowl to face Central Florida marks the 14^th straight year they’ve played in a bowl game. They get a chance to keep alive another streak if they can win the game. Georgia hasn’t had a losing season since 1996.

9. Tennessee: The Vols (6-6) are one of those .500 teams that can’t wait to play again after finishing the regular season with four consecutive wins. They will take on North Carolina in the Music City Bowl, and most importantly, will get a couple more weeks of practice to continue developing one of the youngest collection of players in college football.

10. Kentucky: There was talk in the Kentucky camp back in the preseason of breaking through to that next level, but the Wildcats (6-6) could never string any quality wins together. They managed just two SEC wins, although one of those came over South Carolina. Still, they’re back in a bowl game for the fifth straight year, one of only five teams in the SEC that can say that.

11. Ole Miss: The third year for Houston Nutt at Ole Miss was anything but a charm. The Rebels (4-8) struggled from the outset when they lost to FCS foe Jacksonville State in the season opener, and it didn’t get any better from there. Nutt has preached patience to the fans after leading the Rebels to consecutive nine-win seasons in his first two years on the job.

12. Vanderbilt: The Commodores (2-10) suffered through their second consecutive 10-loss season, although they did manage to win an SEC game. It wasn’t enough for coach Robbie Caldwell to keep his job after just one season of leading the program, and Vanderbilt is currently searching for a new head coach.

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1. Oklahoma (11-2, 6-2, last week: 1) For all the unpredictability of the Big 12 this year, the Sooners did what plenty of people in August picked them to do: Beat Nebraska for the Big 12 title.

2. Texas A&M (9-3, 6-2, LW: 2) The Aggies are still the last Big 12 team to lose, and should be in for a defensive battle against LSU, who has thrown just seven touchdowns this season. Army is the nation's only team with fewer.

3. Oklahoma State (10-2, 6-2, LW: 4) Oklahoma State probably didn't enjoy watching the Big 12 Championship instead of playing in it, but it drew a good bowl opponent in Arizona.

4. Missouri (10-2, 6-2, LW: 5) Missouri doesn't have a bowl snub to complain about this year, but its fans will have to travel out west to Tempe, Ariz., to prove the Insight Bowl didn't make a mistake by picking the Tigers over the notoriously travel-inclined Huskers fan base.

5. Nebraska (10-3, 6-2, LW: 3) You saw it on Saturday: Without Taylor Martinez playing like his usual self, this team isn't much better than it was in 2009. The Huskers' record shows it too. Meanwhile, all four teams above the Huskers have seen big improvement from 2009 to 2010.

6. Texas Tech (7-5, 3-5, LW: 6) The Red Raiders grabbed the Big 12's last bowl slot, but outside of a lopsided loss to Oklahoma, Texas Tech was playing pretty good football during the last month of the season.

7. Baylor (7-5, 4-4, LW: 7)The Bears' excited fan base will get a chance to storm Houston once more this year. The city hosted Baylor's basketball fans for the NCAA Regional, and nine months later, it'll host the Bears football team in the Texas Bowl.

8. Kansas State (7-5, 3-5, LW: 8) Daniel Thomas began his regular season with a 200-yard rushing day, and ended it with another. If the Wildcats get one more performance like that from the running back, they'll beat Syracuse in its own state.

9. Colorado (5-7, 2-6, LW: 9) The Buffs are one of three Big 12 teams whose season is over, but Colorado looks like its found its man in Jon Embree, a former Buff who wanted this job badly.

10. Texas (5-7, 2-6, LW: 10) Back to the drawing board for the Longhorns, who'll likely be shopping for assistant coaches over the next month.

11. Iowa State (5-7, 3-5, LW: 11) The Cyclones weren't a much better team in 2010 than they were in 2009, but I'd expect Iowa State to be bowling in 2011 with a less brutal schedule. And besides, put this team in the Big East, and it wins eight games.

12. Kansas (3-9, 1-7, LW: 12) Kansas coach Turner Gill wants more speed and explosiveness. That's the right place to start for an offense that had the fewest plays in the conference of longer than 10, 20, 30, 40 and 50-plus yards, and didn't have a single play longer than 60 yards all season. The only other team with that distinction? Texas Tech.

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If you don't like where you are in the power rankings, play better.

1. Oregon: The Ducks spent the entire season here. But will the best season in program history end up with a great big "No. 1" beside it?

2. Stanford: The Cardinal have come a long way under Jim Harbaugh. The biggest stress before the Discover Orange Bowl: Will Harbaugh be back in 2011? (Jim, there's no Pac-10 blog in the NFL, so make your decision carefully).

3. Arizona State: The winner of the Territorial Cup may be the front-runner for Year 1 of the Pac-12 South. Hey, Sun Devils, what are you going to do between now and August to get better?

4. Arizona: That. Was. Excruciating. And now the Wildcats ride a four-game losing streak into the Valero Alamo Bowl against a potent Oklahoma State team. Think Brother Bob might have some notes to give Mike?

5. Washington: The Huskies didn't turn out to be as good as we thought they'd be in the preseason. But they may have been scrappier. First bowl game since 2002 is meaningful. Bad news is those Cornhuskers really did a number on the Dawgs in September.

6. Oregon State: This just wasn't the Beavers' year. The downturn actually started when two defensive starters quit during the offseason and continued with injuries -- James Rodgers! -- and players not living up to expectations. It also might help to not play two top-10 teams in nonconference play.

7. USC: So was Lane Kiffin's first year a success? Under the circumstances, there were more encouraging aspects than worrisome ones. And there's grounds for hope going forward, though fans need to understand there will be no return to 2004 over the next three years.

8. California: The direction of Cal is hard to read. Not much was expected of the Bears in the preseason, and that's what they delivered. When Cal fan's chief hope is seeing Harbaugh no longer on the Farm, that's a bit dreary. At the same time: Find a quarterback, rediscover your mojo.

9. UCLA: There are plenty of valid excuses for the Bruins' flop this season, starting with injuries. But, as every coach says, that's part of the game. Coach Rick Neuheisel has some tough choices to make with his staff this offseason. And he will enter 2011 on the hot seat.

10. Washington State: Athletic director Bill Moos made the right call bringing back coach Paul Wulff for his fourth season. The Cougars should be much improved in 2011. But that means Wulff must deliver.

» Power Rankings: ACC | Big 12 | Big East | Big Ten | Pac-10 | SEC | Non-AQ

The regular season is over. Let's check the leaderboard.

1. Connecticut (8-4, 5-2 Big East): To the victor goes the spoils. The Huskies did everything they had to do, won the final five games and are on the way to the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl. They deserve this top spot.

2. West Virginia (9-3, 5-2): The Mountaineers might be the best team in the Big East. Key word: might. They didn't prove it on the field.

3. Pittsburgh (7-5, 5-2): If Pitt hangs a banner for its Big East co-championship, that banner should be mercilessly mocked. And yet, it's only the second co-championship the Panthers have ever won in this league.

4. South Florida (7-5, 3-4): Imagine how good this team would have been with any kind of consistent passing game. As the St. Petersburg Times' Greg Auman notes, the Bulls were the only team in the country to lose four games in which they held their opponent to less than 20 points.

5. Syracuse (7-4, 4-3): Started great, faded late. Still, it was one heck of a turnaround for the Orange, who are headed to Yankee Stadium.

6. Louisville (6-6, 3-4): It's not too bad to finish sixth in the Big East bowl pecking order. Would you rather spend December in Charlotte, Birmingham or St. Pete? The Cardinals should beat Southern Miss., too.

7. Cincinnati (4-8, 2-5): The Bearcats finished their season in a half-empty, snow-filled stadium when their mascot got kicked out by the cops. And they lost by 18 to Pitt. It was that kind of year.

8. Rutgers (4-8, 1-6): Big East 2010 in a nutshell: the Scarlet Knights were awful and lost their last six games. But their one conference victory was against the league's BCS representative, UConn.

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Here are you final regular-season power rankings for the non-AQs:

1. TCU (12-0). The Horned Frogs cap their second straight undefeated regular season with their second straight BCS appearance, this one against Wisconsin in the Rose Bowl. This is the real deal against a real AQ opponent. Now the Horned Frogs have to go out there and show they can win.

2. Nevada (12-1). The Wolf Pack beat Louisiana Tech to close out their season, the best in school history. They shared the WAC title with Boise State and Hawaii and now play Boston College in the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl.

3. Boise State (11-1). The Broncos rebounded from their loss to Nevada with a win over Utah State to close out the season. Now they get another non-AQ in a bowl game for the fourth straight year, against Utah in the MAACO Bowl in Las Vegas. Still, it’s a great matchup between two of the best outsiders in the BCS era.

4. Utah (10-2). The Utes have the nation’s longest active bowl winning streak at nine straight, but are going to be playing in the bowl game without quarterback Jordan Wynn, who just had shoulder surgery. Still, this season has been another good one for coach Kyle Whittingham, who won 10 games for the third straight season.

5. Hawaii (10-3). The Warriors beat UNLV to close out the season and claim a share of the WAC championship. They also won 10 games for the first time since 2007. Hawaii has a great matchup in the Hawaii Bowl with Tulsa, one of the hottest teams in the country.

6. UCF (10-3). The Knights won their second Conference USA championship over SMU and have posted back-to-back winning season for the first time in the George O’Leary era. They also are in the BCS standings for the first time ever at No. 25.

7. Tulsa (9-3). The Golden Hurricane have won six straight and dip behind UCF because of the all-important conference championship the Knights just won. Still, this team is playing terrific right now and bounced back nicely after a 5-7 season a year ago.

8. Navy (8-3). The Midshipmen face Army on Saturday and have won a series-record eight straight over the Black Knights. Still, both are playing as bowl teams for the first time since 1996.

9. San Diego State (8-4). The Aztecs posted their best season since 1996 and coach Brady Hoke won Mountain West Conference coach of the year honors.

10. Northern Illinois (10-3). Yes, the Huskies lost the MAC title game, but they lost with 33 seconds left and had won nine straight to that point. This is still an excellent football team that has a chance to prove itself against a good WAC team in Fresno State.

» Power Rankings: ACC | Big 12 | Big East | Big Ten | Pac-10 | SEC | Non-AQ

Only one Big Ten team took the field during the weekend, and there's only one change in the final regular-season power rankings.

Enjoy.

1. Wisconsin (11-1, 7-1 Big Ten): Life is good in Madtown as Wisconsin celebrates its first trip to Pasadena in 11 years. The only bad news is the red-hot Badgers must wait until Jan. 1 to play their next game. TCU's defense is the best unit Wisconsin has faced since Oct. 16 against Ohio State, although we know how that one turned out for the Badgers.

2. Ohio State (11-1, 7-1): After another perfect November, the Buckeyes try to end their troublesome slide against the SEC in bowl games as they head to New Orleans to take on Arkansas. The defense has its hands full with Ryan Mallett. Ohio State hopes quarterback Terrelle Pryor can be as good in the Allstate Sugar Bowl as he was in the Rose Bowl in January.

3. Michigan State (11-1, 7-1): Make no mistake: The Spartans got snubbed from the BCS. But the best way they can respond is to beat defending national champion Alabama in the Capital One Bowl. Mark Dantonio is 0-3 in bowls as Spartans coach, so his team can record another milestone in a season filled with them.

4. Penn State (7-5, 4-4): The Nittany Lions are the "hottest" Big Ten squad among the second-tier group, although that isn't saying much. Still, a young Penn State squad has a chance to make some strides before taking on a very beatable Florida team in the Outback Bowl. If Matt McGloin, Evan Royster and Silas Redd get it going against Florida, Penn State should prevail.

5. Iowa (7-5, 4-4): It's time for Iowa to flush a poor finish to the regular season and focus on what it does very well -- win bowl games. The Hawkeyes head back to the state of Arizona, where they lost Sept. 18, to take on Missouri in the Insight Bowl. Quarterback Ricky Stanzi tries to get his mojo back against a Missouri defense that ranks sixth nationally in points allowed (15.2 ppg).

6. Michigan (7-5, 3-5): The bowl game looms large for coach Rich Rodriguez and the Wolverines, who can end an up-and-down season on a good note. Michigan needs its much maligned defense to improve in bowl practice before facing another spread offense in Mississippi State. Denard Robinson and many of his teammates return to their home state on Jan. 1.

7. Illinois (6-6, 4-4): Just when it looked like Illinois would turn the corner, the Illini came out flat against Fresno State and never got out of a 16-point hole. Illinois has enough talent on both defense and offense to beat Baylor in the Texas Bowl, but Ron Zook's squad needs to avoid the inconsistency we saw down the stretch in the regular season.

8. Northwestern (7-5, 3-5): Life without star quarterback Dan Persa hasn't been too much fun for Northwestern, but a month's worth of bowl practices should help. The Wildcats aim for their first postseason victory since the 1949 Rose Bowl as they head to the TicketCity Bowl. The defense really needs to pick up its play against a potent Texas Tech passing offense.

9. Minnesota (3-9, 2-6): The Gophers found their new coach in Jerry Kill from Northern Illinois, and the real rebuilding process can finally begin. There are some good pieces in Minneapolis, namely quarterback/receiver MarQueis Gray, but the Gophers need their young defenders to make significant strides during the offseason.

10. Indiana (5-7, 1-7): A new coach also is on the way in Bloomington, as Indiana has to find a way to get over the hump in what should be an even tougher Big Ten. Losing star quarterback Ben Chappell will sting, but Indiana boasts some talent at the offensive skill positions. The defense remains a mess.

11. Purdue (4-8, 2-6): The Boilers kept playing hard despite a rash of injuries, but they made too many major mistakes for the second consecutive season under coach Danny Hope. While Hope's squad will get several key players back in 2011, it needs to avoid the breakdowns that surfaced too often this season.

» Power Rankings: ACC | Big 12 | Big East | Big Ten | Pac-10 | SEC | Non-AQ

As we head into bowl season, the ACC power rankings remain status quo from last week, with Virginia Tech at the top. Florida State had a chance to change that but couldn’t do it, falling to the Hokies 44-33 in the ACC championship game. The best team in the conference will represent the league against Stanford in the Discover Orange Bowl. Here’s a look at how the rest of the league shakes out heading into bowl season:

1. Virginia Tech (11-2, 8-0 ACC; LW: No. 1): Quarterback Tyrod Taylor, the MVP of the ACC title game, couldn’t be stopped and the Hokies were phenomenal on third downs (13 of 18) against the Florida State defense. They’ll need more of the same against Stanford.

2. Florida State (9-4, 6-2 ACC; LW: No. 2): The Seminoles couldn’t make the stops defensively and lost the turnover battle. Backup quarterback EJ Manuel played a respectable game in place of injured quarterback Christian Ponder, but the Noles only had 53 rushing yards.

3. Maryland (8-4, 5-3; LW: No. 3): The Terps were hoping for a higher bowl than the Military Bowl Presented By Northrop Grumman, but poor home attendance likely outweighed an eight-win season and the second-best turnaround in the FBS. Maryland beat NC State, but the Wolfpack got the better bowl.

4. NC State (8-4, 5-3; LW: No. 4): The Wolfpack will be making their first appearance in the Champs Sports Bowl, where it will face West Virginia (9-3) on Dec. 28 in the Florida Citrus Bowl Stadium. NC State is looking for its first bowl win in four seasons under coach Tom O’Brien.

5. Miami (7-5, 5-3; LW: No. 5): The Hurricanes’ unsettled coaching situation didn’t deter the Hyundai Sun officials from picking them, and despite their struggles, the matchup against Notre Dame will feature two programs with rich tradition.

6. North Carolina (7-5, 4-4; LW: No. 6): UNC will be making its third straight bowl trip under coach Butch Davis, but its first appearance in the Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl, facing Tennessee on Dec. 30. It will be the first meeting between the two teams from neighboring states since 1961 and their first time facing each other in a bowl game.

7. Boston College (7-5, 4-4; LW: No. 7): The Eagles became the first ACC team to follow a five-game losing streak with a five-game winning streak. They’re heading back to San Francisco for the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl, where they’ll face a potent Nevada offense.

8. Clemson (6-6, 4-4; LW: No. 8): The Tigers don’t have to travel far, as they’ll face South Florida in the Meineke Car Care Bowl in Charlotte, N.C. It’s the first meeting between the programs, and Clemson will be able to count on quarterback Kyle Parker, who decided to stick with the team instead of leaving early to prepare for his time with the Colorado Rockies.

9. Georgia Tech (6-6, 4-4; LW: No. 9): The Jackets will face Air Force in the Advocare V100 Independence Bowl in Shreveport, La. The game will feature two of the nation’s top rushing offenses, which means the defenses will make the difference.

10. Wake Forest (3-9, 1-7; LW: No. 10): The Deacs could use the extra bowl practices, but once again are home for the holidays. They at least have a road win over Vanderbilt to build off of heading into the offseason instead of a 10-game losing streak.

11. Duke (3-9, 1-7; LW: No. 11): Fortunately for Blue Devils fans, it’s basketball season, but those within the football program are confident they’re still taking steps in the right direction to make Duke a contender.

12. Virginia (4-8, 1-7; LW: No. 12): Recruiting will be key for the staff in the offseason, as it’s the only way to turn things around in Charlottesville. So far, coach Mike London has that going in the right direction.