All Sooners eyes on Texas

Published: November 20, 2006

Big game in Austin Friday.

Big for Texas.

Big for Oklahoma, too, which in these late stages of a wacky season, still dreams big… Big 12 championship big… BCS bowl big.

So OU players will be watching Darrell K Royal-Memorial Stadium, many as fans pulling for Texas A&M, which with a win over the Longhorns could set up OU with a shot to earn a Big 12 title game berth.

"I'm gonna watch the game," said Sooner safety Reggie Smith. "And I'm gonna be rooting for 'em.

"But we've got do what we've got to do first, win our game Saturday."

Actually, that comes second, but what Smith was really getting at is the Sooners must focus first on their own business — winning at Bedlam — which just doesn't seem to ever come easy in Stillwater.

We here in the bowl projection business, however, can look ahead, overlook and surely overanalyze the possibilities.

For the Sooners, a two-loss team, the possibilities are remarkably good.

BCS good.

By winning out, OU is likely headed to a BCS bowl or to the Gator Bowl, which covets the Sooners. Lose a game and the Gator and Cotton become top options, with the Alamo and Holiday bowls still in the mix.

But back to the BCS, a scenario for the Sooners that would be helped by an A&M upset, yet doesn't require one.

An Aggies assist, followed by an OU win over Nebraska in the conference championship game, would send the Sooners to the Fiesta Bowl as Big 12 champ.

But even if Texas wins, OU could be deemed BCS worthy at 10-2.

The BCS basic requirements:

• Nine wins.

• Rank among the top 14 in the BCS standings.

The BCS roll call:

• The top two teams in the final BCS standings.

• The champions of the ACC, Big East, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-10 and Southeastern conferences.

• One champion from a non-BCS conference, provided it ranks in the top 12 of the final BCS standings, or in the top 16 and ahead of a champion with an automatic berth.

• Notre Dame if in the top eight of the final BCS standings.

• An at-large team that ranks either third, or missing that, fourth in the final BCS standings, from a BCS conference that didn't qualify for the title game.

• One or two at-large teams.

Today, the 10 BCS slots forecast like this: Ohio State, Michigan, Southern Cal, Notre Dame, Boise State, four conference champions (Big 12, Big East, ACC and SEC) and one at-large team. Subject, of course, to change.

OU is among several potential two-loss teams (Florida, Arkansas, LSU, Virginia Tech) to be measured against the Big East champ or one-loss West Virginia or Louisville teams as the at-large option.

The Sooners, No. 15 in the latest BCS standings, still need to climb one more spot but are expected to do so.

This we know (don't ask us how, or unkind acts will be required): three-loss teams are excused; the BCS bowls don't consider Louisville or Virginia Tech all that desirable; the Sugar Bowl ranks West Virginia (played in last year's game) and LSU low on its list; the Rose Bowl faces possible regular-season rematch problems with Southern Cal-Notre Dame or Michigan-Notre Dame should the Trojans make the title game; Auburn doesn't rate with the other SEC contenders; and Rutgers has no realistic appeal as an at-large option.

The team that really gets jobbed in all this: Wisconsin, 11-1 and ranked No. 8 in the BCS standings, but ineligible for a BCS bowl since conferences are limited to two teams and Ohio State and Michigan have already checked in.

In the beauty pageant that is the BCS at-large selection, the Sooners would be hot, hot, hot, winners of seven straight and 10-2* (Oregon). They'd have Adrian Peterson, according to Nelson Peterson. And, of course, they are Oklahoma, which still counts for plenty.

All this sets up well for Oklahoma.

IF, and only if, the Sooners survive that familiar stumbling block known as Stillwater.