Undefeated After Week 14

And then there were three.  Before we get to the unbeatens, however, I must rejoice in the Hoosiers' 56-36 dismantling of Purdue to return the Old Oaken Bucket to its rightful home in Southern Indiana.  The score was much closer than the game actually was, as IU was up 49-9 in the third quarter and then took its foot of the gas pedal, much to my chagrin.  I was hoping for 70 points.  That bed-shitting loss against Minnesota a few weeks ago is stinging pretty badly right now.  Maybe next year I'll get to go to Detroit the day after Christmas.  One can dream.

Not long after IU's players were hoisting the Bucket, the nation witnessed one of the most amazing finishes in college football history, as #1 Alabama allowed #4 Auburn to run back a missed field goal 109 yards for a 34-28 win in the Iron Bowl.  I have no affiliation with either team, but I was literally jumping up and down in my living room and yelling "oh my God" over and over as I was watching that.  As you can imagine, Auburn and Alabama fans reacted with even more emotion.  Here are a couple fan reaction compilations, reinforcing my firmly held belief that there is nothing more joyous than when your college wins a big game and nothing more devastating than when your college loses a big game.

Meanwhile, on Friday, previously unbeaten Fresno State got upended by San Jose State, ending its BCS bowl hopes.  Florida State killed Florida.  Ohio State should have lost to Michigan, were it not for a terrible play call on what should have been the game-winning two-point conversion for Michigan.  Personally, I would have kicked the extra point and gone to overtime at home, but I'm okay with Brady Hoke's decision to go for two.  I just think the actual play called on the two-point conversion was not a good one.  And last but not least, Northern Illinois stomped Western Michigan last Tuesday night to remain unbeaten.

To remind you about the rules for non-AQ schools (i.e., schools not from the Big Ten, Big XII, SEC, ACC, Pac-12, or AAC) as far as getting a BCS bowl berth, here again is a refresher:

-The highest-ranked non-AQ conference champion will receive an automatic BCS bowl berth if it is: (1) ranked in the top 12 of the BCS standings; or (2) ranked in the top 16 of the BCS standings and ranked higher than at least one AQ conference champion.

-Only one non-AQ team can earn an automatic bid.

-A second non-AQ team can earn an at-large bid.  To be eligible for an at-large bid, a team must have at least 9 wins and must be in the top 14 of the BCS standings.

Right now, both Northern Illinois is ranked higher than UCF and Louisville, one of which will be the AAC conference champion, so Northern Illinois should get an automatic BCS bid if it beats Bowling Green in this Friday's MAC championship game.

If Florida State and Ohio State both win their respective conference championship games on Saturday (neither of which is a given), we will have our first BCS championship game without an SEC team since Texas's epic 41-38 win over USC in January 2006.

Here is a breakdown of the undefeated teams and each team's remaining game (rankings are BCS rankings):

#1 Florida State (12-0)

12/7 8 p.m. EST (ABC) - ACC championship game (Charlotte) vs. #20 Duke (10-2) (.833)

#2 Ohio State (12-0)

12/7 8 p.m. EST (Fox) – Big Ten championship game (Indianapolis) vs. #10 Michigan State (11-1) (.917)

#14 Northern Illinois (12-0)

12/6 - 8 p.m. EST (ESPN2) - MAC championship game (Detroit) vs. Bowling Green (9-3) (.750)