Oklahoma jumps Texas in BCS, earns Big 12 title game berth

Posted By Eddie Griffin on Sunday, November 30th 2008 under: NCAA Football Tags: BCS, Big 12, Big 12 South, Colt McCoy, Heisman, Missouri, Oklahoma, Sam Bradford, Texas, Texas Tech

Oh BCS, you’ve gone and done it again!

By virtue of being #2 in the new BCS standings, Oklahoma has a place in the Big 12 title game against Missouri and a chance to tie up a berth in the national title game against either Florida or Alabama. On the outside looking in is Texas, who is now in need of help.

You can’t really pin this one on the BCS, however. The Big 12’s tiebreaker stipulates that in the event of a three-way tie, which there was between Oklahoma, Texas, and Texas Tech (all 11-1, 7-1), the team highest in the BCS standings gets the berth to the Big 12 title game.

Texas has the win over Oklahoma, but their loss to Texas Tech in the first week of November set them up to be the odd man out. Had Texas been able to stop Texas Tech on that last drive in Lubbock four weeks ago, they‘d be #1, and neither Tech or OU would have any reason to complain.

The Longhorns have a great argument to be in the title game (conference and national). Save for that final drive against Texas Tech, Colt McCoy and the ‘Horns have been terrific, and after their lone loss, dominated Baylor, Kansas, and Texas A&M.

However, in that same span, Oklahoma has wins over teams ranked #2 and #12, and that’s helped them overtake Texas in the Harris Poll, the USA Today poll, and the computer polls that are thrown in to come up with the BCS standings.

Oklahoma’s jump to #2 might also have an effect on the Heisman race. Sam Bradford, who’s been tossing touchdowns for fun all season, might win the Heisman regardless, but had Texas remained ahead in the BCS, Colt McCoy would have had a final chance to prove he’s the man for the award.

But, as fairly or as unfairly as it may be, it’s Oklahoma in the Big 12 title game, and Texas are going to be the world’s biggest Mizzou fans, for a week at least.