TCU, Boise State set to make BCS history

The final weekend of the regular season for many teams did not bring a lot of upsets -- why should this weekend be any different? But it settled a lot of questions about what this year's BCS will look like.

The SEC Championship Game is set as a battle of unbeaten Florida and unbeaten Alabama for the second year in a row. The Gators beat Florida State 37-10 in Tim Tebow's final home game. They were easily the most impressive team at the top of the standings this week.

Quarterback Andy Dalton and the Horned Frogs plan on playing in a BCS bowl. (AP)

Alabama received a big scare from Auburn, but scored late to win 26-21. The Crimson Tide remain third in the two polls used by the BCS, just behind Texas, but they are second in the BCS ratings due to their strength in the computers.

That means that the SEC champion will play for the BCS championship as the No. 1 team. The loser will almost certainly play in the Sugar Bowl.

The Longhorns also faced a tough battle on Thursday night, but prevailed over Texas A&M 49-39. A win over Nebraska next weekend will put them in the BCS title game. If Texas loses though, things get really interesting.

Texas would certainly be out of the title game, but it's much less definite who would take its place.

It could be No. 4 TCU. The Horned Frogs beat New Mexico 51-10, clinching the at-large berth that goes to the highest-rated non-major conference champion. Technically, that bid isn't clinched until the final ratings are released next week, but there's no chance that Boise State could catch them without some sort of voter rebellion.

It could also be No. 5 Cincinnati. The Bearcats took care of Illinois 49-36. Although they trail TCU in the standings, Cincy still has a game with Pittsburgh, while the Frogs are done. A good result could give the Bearcats a little juice in the polls, and a win of any sort will help in the computers. I would expect Cincinnati to jump TCU in the BCS ratings.

However, if the voters are choosing between those two for the No. 2 spot on their ballot, they may rethink their votes and you may not see the typical voting pattern.

Also, the SEC runner-up could be part of that mix. The SEC is so highly regarded, and voters may have trouble with the concept of a team from a conference that they see as inferior playing for the title, so the SEC runner-up could be the best choice for those voters.

If there is no consensus among the voters, the computers could end up playing a role. That would not bode well for TCU, but could work for Cincinnati.

Boise State is not part of this discussion, but it was still a great week for the Broncos. Not only did they beat Nevada, but Oklahoma State lost to Oklahoma, knocking out the biggest threat to Boise's selection as a BCS at-large team.

Boise State isn't out of the woods yet, though. A Nebraska win over Texas would knock the Longhorns into the at-large pool and they would certainly get a spot -- the spot Boise is hoping for.

Short of that though, it looks like Boise State is the best of the remaining possible choices. The ACC will qualify Virginia Tech, but there really isn't a bowl that could or would take them. The Pac-10 may qualify Oregon if it loses next week, but can you imagine the news conference where someone has to explain why the 9-3 Ducks are in, but the 13-0 Broncos are out even though Boise State defeated Oregon in the season opener.

Cincinnati would have to lose for the Big East to have a team in the at-large pool, but the Bearcats are the least desirable team on the board, even as a conference champion.

So, we're pretty close now to a historic event in the BCS era -- two non-majors getting into the big money games. Maybe that would pacify the various grandstanding senators and congressmen this offseason, but somehow, I doubt it.