| | Who will Penn State play in the Rose Bowl?November 30, 2008 - Cory GigerOregon State's loss to Oregon on Saturday has made a Penn State versus USC matchup in the Rose Bowl a strong possibility. But nothing is definite yet. If USC beats UCLA next week, the Trojans will win the Pac-10 and earn the conference's bid to the Rose Bowl. However, if USC loses, Oregon State once again would own the conference tiebreaker and would get the Rose Bowl bid. There's also this possibility: USC still could conceivably play in the BCS championship game, though some quirky things would have to occur for things to shake out that way. The winner of Alabama vs. Florida in the SEC championship game will advance to the BCS title game. Either Texas or Oklahoma will play Missouri in the Big 12 championship game. The conference's tiebreaker will be determined by which team is ranked higher in the BCS today. Texas was higher last week. If Texas or Oklahoma wins the Big 12 title game, that team almost certainly will play in the BCS championship. If Missouri were to upset the Sooners or Longhorns, then USC still may have a shot at the BCS title game. At that point, voters and the computers would have to decide between USC and whichever team -- Texas or Oklahoma -- that didn't play in the Big 12 title game. Yes, a team that didn't even reach its own conference championship game could play in the BCS title game if Missouri were to pull off the upset. If somehow USC were to sneak into the BCS title game, the Rose Bowl would have the option of picking an at-large team as Penn State's opponent. The bowl may stay with a Pac-10 team like Oregon State or Oregon, but there's also a strong chance it would pick a team from another BCS conference. Article CommentsNo comments posted for this article. Post a Comment | |
