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At the Big Ten meetings, commissioner Jim Delany voiced his preference that only the four highest-ranked conference champions be included in a possible four-team playoff, which could begin in 2014.

He also expressed his preference that the games be played using the current bowl structure instead of the home stadiums of the top two seeds, mostly because of the conference’s desire to preserve the Rose Bowl.

Since the inception of the BCS in 1998, the Big Ten has failed to place a team in the top four of the final BCS standings in eight of 14 seasons. In other words, if there had been a four-team playoff using the BCS standings to select the top teams, the Big Ten would have been left out 57 percent of the time. In the last four seasons, the highest-ranked Big Ten team was Wisconsin in 2010 at No. 5.

The Big Ten is afraid of a possible SEC monopoly on the four-team playoff. However, history suggests Delany’s proposal could work against his conference.

In half of the 14 seasons under the BCS, at least one conference placed two teams in the top four of the BCS Standings – including each of the last two years and three of the last four. In two of those instances, the Big Ten was the conference with two top-four teams.

In 2006 and 2008, two conferences produced the BCS’ final top four teams. In 2006, the top four were No. 1 Ohio State and No. 3 Michigan of the Big Ten, and No. 2 Florida and No. 4 LSU of the SEC. In 2008, it was No. 1 Oklahoma and No. 3 Texas of the Big 12, and No. 2 Florida and No. 4 Alabama of the SEC.

The two plans are vastly different. How so? Take a look at the table to the right, which shows the different matchups using the 2011 season as an example.

Under Delany’s plan, the 10th- and fifth-ranked teams would have reached the national semifinals and the second- and fourth-ranked teams would have been left out.

Even after Alabama won the BCS Championship Game, the question of whether a team that failed to win its conference championship is worthy to play for the national title still divides fans. In the next few weeks, we’ll have an answer which could change college football.

Spring is a time for renewal. In college football, spring is also the time to look ahead to fall and the upcoming season. Saturday, Alabama holds its annual Golden Flake A-Day Game (ESPN3, 3 ET), which will give its fans a first look at the defending national champions.

Alabama captured its record-breaking ninth national championship of the major poll era in January. Once again, the Crimson Tide are expected to be one of the best teams in the country in 2012. But the Tide have been here before. Will history repeat?

In 2010, Alabama was preseason No. 1 in both The Associated Press and Coaches polls with 11 combined offensive and defensive starters returning from the team that had won the 2009 national title. The problem was the retention breakdown. Bama lost eight starters from a defense that allowed the second-fewest yards (244.1) and points (11.7) per game in the bowl subdivision. With QB Greg McElroy, the RB tandem of Heisman Trophy winner Mark Ingram and Trent Richardson and WR Julio Jones, the belief was that the Tide would score points and win games through their offense while buying enough time for their defense to jell.

However, all did not go as planned. The defense allowed slightly more PPG than in 2009 (13.5 in 2010, 11.7 in 2009). The Tide allowed more plays of 20-plus yards (13) in 2010 than it did in 2009 (7). They also blew a 24-point lead in a loss to archrival and eventual national champion Auburn in the regular-season finale, the biggest collapse in Alabama’s storied history. That was one of three losses for the Tide that season.

Like in 2010, this Alabama team has a quarterback returning for his second season as a starter (A.J. McCarron), along with a strong running back (Eddie Lacy). Also like the 2010 team, the Tide will lose several starters on defense including four likely first-round picks (CB Dre Kirkpatrick, OLB/DE Courtney Upshaw, LB Dont’a Hightower, S Mark Barron).

So how good will Alabama be in 2012? History suggests the Tide will be one of the best teams in college football, but not good enough to win a second straight national championship. Just like 2010.

Let’s get you warmed up for the College GameDay road show (live on Saturday from Nashville, Tenn. at 11 a.m. ET on ESPN) by taking a look at some notes and nuggets from our college hoops advanced stats research team (a group we call the "Stats in the Paint" team).

(1) Kentucky at Vanderbilt, 9 ET on ESPN

When Kentucky has the ball: Kentucky leads the SEC and ranks third among all Big Six conference schools in paint points per game (37.6) this season. More than 48 percent of the Wildcats’ points have come in the paint, the second-highest percentage by any school from a Big Six conference.

Kentucky averages 1.2 points per possession in SEC games this season, which leads all teams from Big Six Conferences.

The Wildcats are shooting 59.1 percent in transition, second in the SEC, but in conference games, their transition offense has struggled on the road.

When Vanderbilt has the ball: Vanderbilt has an effective field goal percentage of 56.1 and is shooting 42.1 percent from 3-point range during SEC play this season, which are both first in the conference.

In its last three games, Vanderbilt is shooting 31.8 percent (21-66) from 3-point range and is 10-for-40 (25.0 percent) on catch-and-shoot field goal attempts.

Kentucky averages 9.2 blocks per game and has a block percentage of 15.7, both of which are first in the nation.

Saturday’s Other Matchups

(12) Michigan State at (3) Ohio State, 6 ET on ESPN

Key stat: Ohio State averages 35.5 paint points per game this season, which leads the Big Ten. Michigan State averages 35.3 points in the paint, which is the second-most in the Big Ten.

The Buckeyes allow just 21.8 paint points per game, third-fewest by any team in a Big Six conference.

(6) Baylor at (4) Missouri, 1:30 ET on ESPN3
Key stat: Missouri scored 46 points in the paint against Baylor on Jan. 21, its most in conference play this season. In that game, the Tigers made 16-of-18 field goals attempted inside of 5 feet.

(20) Virginia at (5) North Carolina, 1 ET on ESPN3

Key stat: The Tar Heels have scored 498 points in transition this season, fourth-most in the nation. Virginia’s defense has allowed just 130 points in transition, fourth-fewest in Division I.

(14) San Diego State at (16) UNLV, 4 ET
Key stat: San Diego State scored 18 points on 14 transition plays in its win against UNLV on Jan. 14. It was the most transition plays and points for the Aztecs in Mountain West play this season.

UNLV ranks second in the nation this season in both transition points (509) and transition plays (437). The Rebels have 288 more transition plays than the Aztecs this season.

Florida State may have had the most impactful National Signing Day, inking No. 10 overall player DT Eddie Goldman and No. 38 overall player CB Ronald Darby on Wednesday. It came in addition to already having top overall player DE Mario Edwards in the fold.

The Seminoles finished with 10 ESPNU150 recruits, including three of the top five defensive line prospects in the nation. They added to a defensive front that has posted the most sacks (88) and the second-fewest yards per rush (2.92) in the nation the past two seasons.

But Florida State’s 2012 class wasn’t the best in the nation.

Alabama took home the honor of 2012’s top recruiting class after finishing second to Florida State last year.

The Crimson Tide addressed their greatest needs, filling holes at defensive back and wide receiver.

Alabama struggled to replace Julio Jones in 2011, with no player catching more than 56 passes or four touchdowns last season. Next year, they'll face a similar problem when they have to again replace their top receiver, Marquis Maze.

But this year they signed four 4-star or 5-star athlete/wide receivers, the most of any school in the nation, adding options for AJ McCarron on offense.

McCarron improved throwing downfield last year, completing nearly 56 percent of his attempts of more than 15 yards in Alabama’s final six games (nearly 41 percent in team’s first seven games), and should have more chances to go vertical in 2012 with a deeper receiving corps.

Alabama also signed the top safety and No. 2 cornerback of the 2012 class to help replace three secondary starters in Dre Kirkpatrick, Mark Barron and DeQuan Menzie. Alabama had a historically stingy secondary in 2011, allowing the same number of completions (seven) as they made interceptions on passes of 20 or more yards.

Recruits Landon Collins and Geno Smith should fill in nicely for the Alabama backs that graduate or enter the draft.

Conversely, Florida State loaded up an already-strong defense but failed to address needs on offense.

The Seminoles’ offensive line was porous in 2011, allowing 41 sacks in 13 games, 14 more than in 2010 and 21 more than in 2009. Florida State signed two offensive tackles from abroad, but did not have a commitment from any offensive line recruits in the US.

Whether any of these recruits have an impact is yet to be known. None of the schools with the top-ranked recruiting class the last four years reached 10 wins in the following season.

Regardless, Florida State’s defensive front is positioned to be formidable for years to come while Alabama filled critical needs while putting together the nation’s top recruiting class.

--Mike Freer and Jonathan McDonald contributed to this report

If LSU had won the BCS Championship Game, one could argue that its season would have gone down as one of the best in college football history. But it was not meant to be. The Tigers are not alone, they have plenty of company among the "what-ifs."

2011 LSU Football
The LSU Tigers took care of business during the regular season, knocking off eight ranked opponents, three of them top-10 teams, including second-ranked Alabama on the road. They wrapped up the SEC Championship with a convincing 42-10 victory over Georgia. However, in the BCS Championship, their offense disappeared and they become the first team to be shut out in a BCS bowl game, with a 21-0 loss to Alabama.

2007 Patriots
Record after record fell as the New England Patriots dismantled their opponents during the regular season. Tom Brady would throw a record 50 touchdown passes, and Randy Moss caught a record 23. However, their dreams of being the first 19-0 team in NFL history ended in Super Bowl XLII with a 17-14 loss to the New York Giants on Eli Manning’s touchdown to Plaxico Burress in the final seconds.

2005 USC Football
The USC Trojans easily went through the regular season undefeated with nine of its 12 wins by at least 17 points. Cases were being made that it could be the greatest team in college football history. However, Vince Young and Texas would not let it happen. In the National Title Game at the Rose Bowl, Young and the Longhorns shocked the Trojans with a 41-38 victory as Young scored the game-winner with 19 seconds to play.

2001 Mariners
The Seattle Mariners set an American League record with 116 wins and looked as though they would go easily to the World Series. They had Ichiro, who won the AL MVP and Rookie of the Year. After a five-game series win over the Cleveland Indians in the ALDS, they faced the New York Yankees in the ALCS, who knocked them out in five games.

1990-91 UNLV Basketball
The UNLV Runnin' Rebels entered the season as the defending national champion and ran through all comers as they easily won the Big West title and went 30-0 entering the NCAA Tournament. However, in the National Semifinals, they would lose 79-77 to Duke, who had lost to UNLV by 30 points in the previous year's championship game.

1990 Athletics
The defending World Series champion Oakland Athletics seemed poised to repeat with a 103-win regular season, most in the majors. They swept the Boston Red Sox in the ALCS and faced the underdog Cincinnati Reds in the World Series. However, Cincinnati turned the tables and swept Oakland.

1988-89 Lakers
While it’s not an undefeated season, the Los Angeles Lakers were 57-25 during the regular season, the top team in the Western Conference and coming off back-to-back titles. They entered the playoffs and did not lose a game through the first three rounds (11-0). However, in the NBA Finals, they would get swept by the Detroit Pistons.

Just one month after the matchup became official and more than two months since the first meeting this season between the Alabama Crimson Tide and LSU Tigers, the Rematch of the Century is almost here.

The No. 1 and No. 2 teams in the country face off for the second time this season on Monday night (8:30 ET on ESPN) with the BCS National Championship on the line.

What’s at stake?
Alabama could be the first team since the Minnesota Gophers in 1936 to finish as national champion without winning its conference title (aside from independents).

Already this season, LSU has beaten No. 3 Oregon, No. 2 Alabama and No. 3 Arkansas. With a win in this game, the Tigers will become only the second team to defeat four top-3 teams along the way, joining the 1943 Notre Dame Fighting Irish.

Alabama offense vs LSU defense
When the Crimson Tide have the ball, the focus will be on Heisman finalist Trent Richardson. Richardson was able to break down the Tigers’ second-ranked defense in the first meeting, totaling 169 yards from scrimmage, which is by far the most by an opposing running back against LSU this season.

However, in that same game, the LSU defense did have success penetrating the Alabama offensive line. Richardson was hit in the backfield on five of his 23 runs (22 percent), the highest percentage of rushes in Richardson’s career in which he was hit behind the line of scrimmage by an SEC opponent.

LSU offense vs Alabama defense
Alabama owns arguably the best defense in FBS this season, leading the nation in scoring, total, rushing and passing defense. Though LSU was not able to reach the end zone against the Tide in November, the Tigers did have success on the ground with 148 rushing yards, the second-most allowed by Alabama this season.

When Jordan Jefferson entered that game, LSU utilized his athleticism by running seven option plays that kept Alabama off balance. The Tigers ran for 54 yards on these plays, including two for 14 and 15 yards by Michael Ford. Ford is the only player with two rushes of 14-plus yards against Alabama this season.

Kickers in the spotlight
In the first meeting, the kicking game proved to be the deciding factor as both teams were kept out of the end zone. Alabama missed four of six field goals; LSU made all three of its attempts in the victory.

LSU has had the better kicking game all season. LSU made 88.9 percent of its field goals this season (3rd in FBS); Alabama made 62.1 percent (93rd in FBS). The Tigers have the clear edge in long-distance kicks and pressure situations.

Alabama missed four of its five field goal attempts from at least 38 yards against LSU and was 2-for-11 on such kicks during the season. LSU was 3-for-4 from that range this season, but its last attempt was September 15 vs Mississippi State.

LSU made all three of its field goal attempts when tied or trailing in the second half or overtime this season, and two of those makes came against Alabama on November 5. The only time this season Alabama attempted a field goal with the score tied or trailing in the second half was against LSU, when it missed one of two kicks.

Stat of the game
This is just the second “national championship” game between teams that had already met in the regular season. In 1996, Florida State beat Florida in November, only to end up having a rematch with the Gators in the Sugar Bowl. Florida routed the Seminoles 52-20 in the second game.

The Florida Gators and Ohio State Buckeyes wrap up disappointing seasons when they meet in the TaxSlayer.com Gator Bowl on Monday (ESPN2, 1 ET).

Don’t Take Offense
The big reason for each team’s rough season has been bad offense. Florida is 102nd in FBS in total offense and was held to zero or one offensive touchdowns in six of its 12 games this season.

Ohio State is 107th in the country in total offense, and the Buckeyes’ 3,837 yards gained this season were the second-fewest by any bowl-eligible team.

Stay Off-Center
There’s something to watch when each team has the ball that involves the center.

Florida running back Jeff Demps has gained nearly 83 percent of his rushing yards outside the tackles. He has 15 runs of 10 yards or more and only two of them have come up the middle.

For the Buckeyes, quarterback Braxton Miller has completed just 40 percent of his passes this season when he takes a snap from under center.

The good news for Ohio State is that when Miller does complete a pass from this formation, it tends to gain big yardage. Seven of his 17 completions after taking a snap under center have gone for at least 20 yards, with three resulting in touchdowns.

Miller has also had much better success as a passer when he gets away from the middle of the field. He hasn’t thrown an interception in 25 attempts from outside the pocket, and nearly doubles his yards-per-attempt average in those limited opportunities.

Numbers to Know
Florida has a turnover margin of minus-11, which is eight-worst in the FBS. The Gators have recovered just four fumbles this season -- only two teams have fewer fumble recoveries.

In terms of wins and losses, these are the worst Ohio State and Florida teams in a while. The Buckeyes have six losses for the first time since 1999, while it’s the first time for the Gators since 1987.

Florida has finished with a winning record every season since 1988. Officially, that’s the longest active streak in the nation due to Florida State’s vacated wins in the 2006 and 2007 seasons.

The loser of this game will finish with seven losses. Florida hasn’t lost that many games since finishing 0-10-1 in 1979. Ohio State’s last seven-loss season was way back in 1897, easily the longest active streak in the nation. Florida State is second on that list -- its last seven-loss season came in 1975.

The South Carolina Gamecocks are on the verge of making history if they can defeat one of the most storied college football programs in the country, the Nebraska Cornhuskers, in the Capital One Bowl on Monday (1 ET on ESPN).

The History
South Carolina is looking for the first 11-win season in school history. This is just the second 10-win season in the program’s history, which dates to 1892 (the other was in 1984).

A win would give Nebraska its third straight 10-win season. It would be the first time the Cornhuskers put together three straight 10-win seasons since 1999-2001.

This will be the second time Steve Spurrier has coached against Nebraska. The first time came in the 1996 Fiesta Bowl when the top-ranked Cornhuskers demolished Spurrier’s second-ranked Florida Gators, 62-24, to win the 1995 national championship.

Nebraska is 3-0 all-time against South Carolina with the two most recent meetings coming in 1986 and ’87.

Nebraska Offense vs South Carolina Defense
A deciding factor in the game will be how well the Nebraska offense can hold up against the South Carolina defense, particularly when running the football.

Cornhuskers running back Rex Burkhead has rushed for 1,268 yards this season, third-most in the Big Ten. Nebraska has won all 11 games over the past three seasons when Burkhead has rushed for at least 100 yards, including seven this year.

One of the other things that Nebraska can feel comfortable about is scoring if it gets into field goal range. ‘Huskers kicker Brett Maher is 16-for-16 from inside 50 yards this season, the most makes without a miss in college football this season.

South Carolina Offense vs Nebraska Defense
The Gamecocks lost All-SEC running back Marcus Lattimore to an injury in the middle of October, but hardly missed a beat. They went 6-1 and rushed for 198 yards per game with Lattimore, the SEC’s second-leading rusher at the time of his injury. South Carolina has won four of its five games since then, while still averaging 198 rushing yards per game.

The Gamecocks also lost starting quarterback Stephen Garcia during the season, who was replaced by Connor Shaw. The sophomore performed well at times, but needs to improve his performance away from the comforts of home if South Carolina is to end the season with a victory. Shaw averaged 107 more passing yards per game at home than in his other games this season.

A big reason for his lack of success away from Columbia is the accuracy of his deep ball. Both of his interceptions thrown on passes at least 15 yards down field this season came on the road or at neutral sites, and eighty percent of such throws fell incomplete.

Nebraska's defense this season ranks just seventh in the Big Ten, allowing 22.8 points per game, but the Blackshirts have traditionally dominated this time of year.

The Cornhuskers have won all four bowl games under Bo Pelini -- either as the interim or the full-time head coach -- allowing just 11 points and 88 rush yards per game.

Both the Michigan State Spartans and Georgia Bulldogs had their eyes on the prize – a BCS Bowl berth – entering their conference championship games in early December. But both teams blew halftime leads in those games and now look to bounce back with a win in the Outback Bowl on January 2 (1 ET on ABC).

Michigan State is in a bowl game for a school-record fifth straight season, but the Spartans have lost five straight bowl games. Their last bowl win came in the 2001 Silicon Valley Classic against Fresno State. Georgia has won four of its last five bowl games, including a 24-12 win over Michigan State in the 2009 Capital One Bowl.

Defense Rules
This is a matchup of two of the best defensive teams in the nation, with both teams allowing fewer than 20 points per game and ranking in the top 10 nationally in total yards per game allowed.

Both the Spartans and Bulldogs thrive on defense by limiting big gains and positive yardage. The two teams have each forced 106 negative plays, tied for sixth-most in FBS. Michigan State has allowed 21 plays of at least 25 yards and Georgia has given up 22 such plays, both ranking among the top 15 in FBS.

Only three times has a player rushed for at least 25 yards against the Spartans defense, tied for the second-fewest such plays in the nation. The Bulldogs have allowed four touchdown passes of 25-plus yards, but haven’t given up one since October 29 at Florida.

Special Teams W2W4
With both teams playing lock-down defense this season, the game could come down to who has the advantage on special teams.

Georgia kicker Blair Walsh is the FBS active scoring leader with 404 points. However, after converting more than 80 percent of his field goals during his first three seasons, he has converted just 61 percent of his kicks this year, ranking 110th out of 159 qualifying FBS kickers.

Bulldogs cornerback Brandon Boykin, who leads the SEC with 780 kickoff return yards this season, is 126 yards shy of becoming the SEC’s all-time leader in that category. He is also one of just four active players to have at least four career kickoff return touchdowns.

Michigan State has not defended kickoffs well this season, ranking 99th out of 120 teams with 23.7 yards per kickoff return allowed. However, the team has blocked four kicks/punts, the most in the Big Ten, including two in its 37-31 win over Wisconsin in October.

Georgia punter Drew Butler ranks ninth in FBS in punting at 44.3 yards per punt, but the Bulldogs have allowed a pair of punt return touchdowns this season, and yielded 16.1 yards per punt return, second-worst in FBS.

This plays into a strength of Michigan State’s. The Spartans average 11.2 yards per punt return, 25th-best in FBS this season, with a pair of punt returns for scores.

Stat of the Game
Michigan State has allowed 29 points in the second quarter, the second-fewest in FBS behind Alabama Crimson Tide (20). Georgia has scored 154 points in the second quarter, the most in the SEC and ranked 14th in the country.

There were 770 games played in the 2011 college football season. We give you the 10 plays that shaped the BCS Championship race.

1. Tyrann Mathieu returns fumble for TD
LSU 40, Oregon 27
Significance: These top-five teams were locked in a 6-3 game. The Tigers went three-and-out and punted, but Kenjon Barner fumbled the return at the three and LSU's playmaker snapped it up and went into the end zone for a momentum-shifting score.

2. Kirk Cousins completes 44-yard Hail Mary to Keith Nichol
Michigan State 37, Wisconsin 31
Significance: Wisconsin had its eyes on a perfect regular season and a spot in the title game. But after a last-second heave, ricochet, catch and then video review, that dream was dashed.

3. Oklahoma misses 28-yard field goal vs Texas Tech
Texas Tech 41, Oklahoma 38
Significance: The Sooners were preseason No. 1 and still undefeated, but trailed 31-7 at home. They mounted a comeback, but after Michael Hunnicutt's missed FG from 28 yards out there wasn't enough time left to overcome a 10-point deficit.

4. Tajh Boyd gets intercepted in the end zone
Georgia Tech 31, Clemson 17
Significance: Down 14 points, Clemson had just intercepted Georgia Tech, getting the ball at Georgia Tech's nine-yard line. But on the first play, Boyd was picked by Jemea Thomas, ending the Tigers' comeback and dashing their national-title hopes.

5. LSU’s Eric Reid intercepts Alabama at the 1-yard line
LSU 9, Alabama 6 (OT)
Significance: In a 6-6 game in the fourth quarter, LSU's Eric Reid wrestled the ball away from Alabama TE Michael Williams at the one-yard line for an interception, preventing what could have been the winning score. LSU would win it in overtime.

6. Boseko Lokombo picks off Andrew Luck and returns it for TD
Oregon 53, Stanford 30
Significance: This was Stanford’s last major obstacle to a perfect regular season. Down 16 points, Luck had Stanford driving. But the pick ended those hopes, putting the game out of reach and handing the Cardinal its only loss of the season.

7. Boise State misses 39-yard field goal as time expires
TCU 36, Boise State 35
Significance: Playing on the home turf where they had been dominant for so long, the Broncos went down a point after TCU made the gutsy call to go for two. But Boise drove down the field before Dan Goodale sailed his kick wide right as time expired and the Broncos were no longer unbeaten.

8. Brandon Weeden's pass intercepted in first play of second overtime
Iowa State 37, Oklahoma State 31 (2 OT)
Significance: The Cyclones came back from a 24-7 deficit to tie the game at 24 heading into overtime. But on the first play of the second overtime, Brandon Weeden was intercepted. Three plays later Iowa State scored to end Oklahoma State's dream.

9. Oregon misses 37-yard field goal as time expires
USC 38, Oregon 35
Significance: Even after their season-opening loss, the Ducks still had a shot at the BCS Championship. But USC, ineligible for postseason play, gave the Ducks a battle at Autzen Stadium. Down three, Oregon had the chance to send it into overtime. But Alejandro Maldonado missed a 37-yarder.

10. Robert Griffin III completes 34-yard TD pass with :08 left
Baylor 45, Oklahoma 38
Significance: Just like Oregon, Oklahoma still had a chance to sneak back into the title picture despite a loss. But Baylor's Heisman candidate Griffin shocked the Sooners with a game-winning touchdown pass with eight seconds left.

To see images of these plays, click here.

On Monday the five finalists invited to New York for the Heisman Trophy ceremony were revealed. This year has featured one of the most interesting races for the Heisman as no one player has stood from the rest.

Here's a look at what a Heisman Trophy win -- or loss -- would mean to these players and their respective schools.

Trent Richardson, Alabama
Two seasons ago Trent Richardson was a part of a National Championship team with a Heisman Trophy winner, when running back Mark Ingram became Alabama's first winner. Richardson has nearly identical numbers to Ingram this season, and has already totaled 23 touchdowns compared to Ingram's 20 TD's.

If Richardson were to win the award it would put him and Ingram in some rare company. In the history of the Heisman Trophy only three times have two different players playing the same position at the same school won the award in a span of three seasons. It last happened when USC QB Matt Leinart won it in 2004 after Carson Palmer had taken home the award in 2002.

Andrew Luck, Stanford
Luck is listed second here as he finished second for the Heisman last season and Stanford has actually had the Heisman runner-up in each of the past two seasons (Toby Gerhart, 2009).

If Luck wins he would be the second player in Stanford history to win the award (Jim Plunkett, 1970) and join 1981 Herschel Walker as the only Heisman runner-ups to win the award the next season.

If Luck finishes second, Stanford would set a record. No school has ever had a Heisman runner-up in three consecutive seasons.

Montee Ball, Wisconsin
Montee Ball earned his invite thanks to his impressive numbers. Ball needs one touchdown in the Rose Bowl to tie Barry Sanders' FBS record for touchdowns in a season (39). Sanders won the Heimsan trophy during that 1988 season.

The last time a Big Ten player had 25 touchdowns was Eddie George during the 1995 season. George went on to win the Heisman trophy that year.

Robert Griffin III, Baylor
RGIII finished off a great regular season in which he threw 36 touchdowns compared to only six interceptions, while also leading Baylor to nine wins, its most since the 1986 season.

Griffin's invite is an accomplishment in its own considering he plays for Baylor. The Bears have only had one player finish in the top five of the Heisman vote in school history. In 1963 Don Trull finished fourth.

If Baylor's Robert Griffin III wins the Heisman Trophy this year, he will be just the third player since the BCS was established in 1998 to win the Heisman without his team playing in a BCS bowl game.

Tyrann Mathieu, LSU
The Honey Badger will take the trip to New York looking to join Charles Woodson as the only defensive backs to win the Heisman trophy.

Despite being a defensive player, recent history is on Mathieu's side to take home the award. Since 2003, seven of the past eight Heisman Trophy winners have come from the team at number one in the BCS standings entering the National Championship Game.

Entering the bowl season the SEC maintains a healthy, but not unreachable lead in ESPN’s Stats & Information’s conference power rankings. For more on how we objectively rank conferences check here.

There are many parallels between the final BCS standings and the conference rankings. Most notably the SEC is ahead of the Big 12 primarily because of its human rankings. The Big 12 is actually a stronger conference in most computer ranking systems, but the AP poll more than makes up for the gap with four SEC teams in the top 10 (the Big 12 has one).

In the BCS Alabama is playing in the national championship primarily because of human voters. Four of the 6 computer rankings that make up the BCS have OSU ahead of Alabama, but the Tide had stronger human numbers.

Conference USA was the biggest loser during championship week as undefeated Houston took a huge slide down the AP rankings after its loss to Southern Miss. The loss is almost entirely the reason Conference USA fell behind the Big East in the conference rankings for the first time in weeks.

Interestingly Houston and Southern Miss are both ahead of the Big East BCS participant West Virginia in the AP poll and in each team’s average computer ranking.

With the exception of the national championship game every bowl game will feature inter-conference matchups, making the final conference rankings standings far from set in stone. Stay tuned.

The final BCS standings were released Sunday along with matchups for the five BCS bowls. With four weeks left until the Rose Bowl on January 2, here are some notes on each of the games to whet your appetite.

Rose Bowl Game Presented by Vizio
10 Wisconsin Badgers vs. 5 Oregon Ducks
January 2, 5 ET on ESPN

• Wisconsin: consecutive Rose Bowl appearances for first time since 1998-99 seasons

• Oregon: lost last four Rose Bowl appearances, last win came in 1917 Rose Bowl


Tostitos Fiesta Bowl
4 Stanford Cardinal vs. 3 Oklahoma State Cowboys
January 2, 8:30 ET on ESPN

• Stanford: consecutive BCS Bowl appearances (def. Virginia Tech in Orange Bowl last season)

• Oklahoma State: first major bowl appearance since 1974 Fiesta Bowl

• First meeting between teams


Allstate Sugar Bowl
13 Michigan Wolverines vs. 11 Virginia Tech Hokies
January 3, 8:30 ET on ESPN

• Michigan: 0-3 in last three BCS bowl appearances; last BCS bowl win was Orange Bowl in 1999 season

• Virginia Tech: first game against a Big Ten school since playing Indiana in 1993

• Virginia Tech: no wins this season against teams that are currently ranked


Discover Orange Bowl
23 West Virginia Mountaineers vs. 15 Clemson Tigers
January 4, 8:30 ET on ESPN

• Clemson: won first conference title since 1991

• Clemson: first BCS game appearance; first appearance in Orange Bowl since 1981 season (won national title)

• West Virginia: first Orange Bowl appearance; third BCS bowl appearance



Allstate BCS National Championship
1 LSU Tigers vs. 2 Alabama Crimson Tide
January 9, 8:30 ET on ESPN

• LSU: 4-0 all-time in BCS Bowl games (all in New Orleans)

• Alabama: Nick Saban looking to become first coach to win three BCS National Championships

• The SEC will win its eighth BCS national championship and sixth straight

• An SEC team will lose the national championship game for the first time

LSU’s win over No. 14 Georgia in the SEC title game was another in a series of wins in a schedule that is national championship worthy.

Consider these accomplishments:

8 wins over AP Top 25 opponents
Since the AP poll began in 1936, no national champion has that many wins against AP Top 25 opponents.

Only three national champs have seven such wins, Oklahoma in 1975, Michigan in 1997 (in a season in which it was a split champ with Nebraska), and LSU in 2007.

If the Tigers win the national title, their nine wins over AP Top 25 teams would be two more than any other champ.

7 double-digit wins over AP Top 25 opponents
The most double-digit wins by a team to win the national championship in the AP Poll era is six, by Florida in 2008.

The Gators are the only one of the 86 teams to win either a BCS, AP or UPI title with that many such wins. LSU already has surpassed that, though it has not yet won the national title.


3 wins over AP Top 5 opponents
The strength of LSU’s victories (including wins over Oregon, Alabama, and Arkansas) is impressive.

Only one national champion has beaten four AP opponents that were ranked in the Top 5.

If LSU wins the national championship, it would have four wins over AP Top 5 opponents, matching Notre Dame in 1943 for the most all-time by any team that won a title

So what does all of this mean?

Though LSU has not yet won the National Championship, it has certainly played a schedule worthy of a champion.

If the Tigers win the BCS Championship, it might not be fair to call this the best team of all time, but it may be the most tested team of all-time.

LSU and Georgia enter Saturday’s SEC Championship Game as two of the hottest teams in college football. LSU holds the FBS’ longest active winning streak at 13 games while Georgia’s 10-game streak is third-longest.

With a win, LSU solidifies its place in the BCS Championship Game and becomes just the fifth team in the BCS era to be a wire-to-wire No. 1 in the BCS Standings. It’s worth noting two of the previous four that went wire-to-wire lost the title game.

As LSU goes after its 11th SEC title, and second under Les Miles, it will be all about defense despite a Tigers offense that leads the conference in scoring at 38.2 points per game.

The Tigers are ranked top six nationally in five major defensive categories: turnover margin (first), total defense (second), scoring defense (second), rush defense (fourth) and pass defense (sixth). LSU has scored seven defensive or special teams touchdowns, which is just five less than their defense has allowed all year (12).

Tyrann Mathieu and Morris Claiborne lead a unit which has allowed just 27 plays of 20 yards or longer, second fewest in FBS. They have held their opponents to a completion percentage of 13.3 on passes of 20 yards or longer and no opposing player has more than one reception on passes 20 yards or longer. In fact the Tigers have more interceptions (eight) than their opponents have receptions (six) on 20-yard throws.

As a result, it takes an average of 10 plays per drive to score a touchdown against LSU, highest average in FBS.

Why has LSU been so successful on defense? One reason has been the blitz.

LSU sends five or more pass rushers on 38.5 percent of its opponents’ dropbacks on third down and is the only team in FBS that has not allowed a touchdown pass on third down this season.

With all the talk focusing on LSU’s defense, it should be noted that Georgia is no slouch on that side of the ball either. They are the only SEC team to force its conference opponents to no gain, or a loss, on at least 40 percent of their plays in every game.

That being said, Georgia has to be successful on offense to crack LSU’s undefeated armor.

Quarterback Aaron Murray leads the SEC and is sixth nationally with 16 touchdown passes on first down this season. However when it comes to the deep ball, Murray has struggled recently.

In his last two games he completed 2 of 12 passes of 20 yards or longer including two interceptions and no touchdowns. For the season, Murray has completed 28.8 percent of these throws with four interceptions.

Murray, who has thrown for a school-record 32 touchdowns, including 14 in his last four games, needs to play well if Georgia hopes to pull off the upset.

Saturday will be the third time these two teams will meet in the conference championship (each has won one). It is interesting that the winner of the last five SEC Championship games has gone on to win the BCS National Championship. Ironically, the last winner that did not win the title was Georgia in 2005. That year, the Bulldogs defeated LSU in the championship game, but lost to West Virginia in the Sugar Bowl.