Boise's BCS hopes take hit while heavyweights face heavyweights

The first release of the BCS ratings is just two days away, but in those two days there are several games that will not only impact this week's ratings, but could have a long-term impact as well.

Two of those games have already happened. On Wednesday night, Boise State escaped at Tulsa 28-21. This was not a good result for the Broncos.

When you play a poor schedule -- and no matter how Oregon finishes, Boise is playing a poor schedule -- you need to lay waste to your opponents to keep the faith of the voters. This makes two soft performances in a row, with this one being worse because it was on national TV. Keep in mind, Oklahoma beat Tulsa 45-0. True, that game was in Norman, but Sam Bradford also didn't play.

Last week, Virginia Tech jumped the Broncos in the Harris poll and USC leaped them in the coaches poll. The Trojans also made up a lot of ground in the Harris. So, even though LSU lost ahead of them, the Broncos didn't gain any ground. Boise State could get windburn this week.

One team that could jump ahead of the Broncos is Cincinnati. The Bearcats handed South Florida its first loss, 34-17 on Thursday. They are three spots behind Boise State in each poll, so whether it's this week or not, it's only a matter of time before they move past the Broncos if they keep winning.

USC is in South Bend to take on Notre Dame in a big game for both teams' BCS hopes. Yes, the Trojans can make a BCS game by winning the Pac-10, but a loss to Notre Dame would bring an early end to their national championship aspirations.

For the Irish, there is no conference to win. They need nine wins and a top 14 finish to have a chance. Weak performances against so-so competition have held them down in the ratings, so beating USC would give them and their embattled coach the signature win they so badly need. In fact, looking at the rest of the schedule, if Notre Dame wins Saturday, you can pencil them in for a BCS game. Emphasis on pencil.

Here's something you don't often hear about the No. 2 team in the country: Texas has been flying under the radar this season. That's because the Longhorns have been putting big dents in a bunch of tomato cans. That won't be the case this week when they play Oklahoma in the Red River Shootout. Bradford's injury ended the Sooners' national title hopes, but the Big 12 title and the BCS berth that goes with it are still out there for them.

Virginia Tech travels to Atlanta to take on Georgia Tech in the last game of the round-robin among the three best teams in the ACC. It is unfortunate that they are all in the same division. If the Hokies win, it should be smooth sailing to the Coastal Division title. If they lose, we could see a situation like we had in the Big 12 last year, where Miami could join the two Techs in a three-way tie atop the standings. That's a race where the tiebreaker favors the Hurricanes.

Two other undefeated teams figure to get tested this week. Alabama needs to avoid a letdown when it hosts 5-1 South Carolina in the SEC. Remember, the Gamecocks are the other team that has a win over Ole Miss.

And finally, Iowa has a chance to make another leap in the BCS standings when it travels to Wisconsin. Voters have been slow to warm up to the Hawkeyes because of close wins over Northern Iowa and Arkansas State. They also don't get much discussion in the national championship chase, but if Iowa does finish undefeated, it will have road wins over Penn State, Ohio State, Michigan State and the Badgers. You'd have a hard time finding too many teams with four better road victories.