What happens if UofL and Northern Illinois are the only 2 undefeated teams at the end of the year?

 

It's a very real possibility.

They would meet in a BCS bowl and Alabama and Oregon would play for the title.

They would meet in a BCS bowl and Alabama and Oregon would play for the title.

 

That's what I think.

I think Louisville gets in over them. If nothing else, they'll seem better on basis of last year's BCS win. U of L beat Florida in a BCS game. NIU lost to Florida State in a BCS game. Florida beat Florida State in a regular season game.

 

I think Louisville would be the bigger draw, better team, and better selection for a bowl committee. Depends on what other teams do. Matching them up in a game is just a throw away when you can make a "sexy" match-up with Louisville and someone else and play up the angle that Louisville is a giant killer who won last year and feed NIU to someone else in a throw away game.

 

That's just me.

They would meet in a BCS bowl and Alabama and Oregon would play for the title.

 

This...

 

And it would be big for NIU to get a win the Orange Bowl.

:lol2:

 

He just can't resist.

They would meet in a BCS bowl and Alabama and Oregon would play for the title.

 

Lots of football between now and then but you have to think that no BCS bowl committee is going to willingly match up NIU and Louisville in a BCS bowl... and with the automatic selection procedures in place, that seems like a really tough result to end up with.

 

If the SEC champ plays Oregon in the title game, I have a hard time imagining that it won't be Clemson/FSU vs. Louisville in the Orange Bowl.

:lol2:

 

He just can't resist.

 

Ok, ok I'm just kidding. Trying to add a little humor to this otherwise crappy Monday morning :lol2:

Lots of football between now and then but you have to think that no BCS bowl committee is going to willingly match up NIU and Louisville in a BCS bowl.

 

 

Nothing they do surprises me anymore. I also based my answer on what I would do.

So if the title game is Alabama-Oregon, then the conference-based automatic selections and replacement picks for the bowls that lost teams to the title are next on the list.

 

Orange gets the ACC champ.

Fiesta gets the Big XII champ.

Rose gets the B1G champ and the second selection from the PAC-12.

Sugar gets the SEC second selection.

 

So we're already in a situation where Louisville/NIU isn't likely to happen. The bowls will choose the remaining teams (unaffiliated AAC Champ plus two at-large selections) in the following order this year: Orange, Sugar, Fiesta.

There are a lot of variables at play here. NIU, they have no business going to any bowl outside of their conference tie-in. UL can make it if others have some bad losses and they must put up video game numbers the rest of the way. Can't have another UK game type performance. I think the best hope for teams looking to get in to the title game is for the SEC teams all having two losses.

Even if Northern Illinois were to finish undefeated, they would still have to finish in the top 16 of the BCS Rankings to qualify for a BCS bowl, undefeated or not.

So if the title game is Alabama-Oregon...

 

Rose gets the B1G champ and the second selection from the PAC-12.

Sugar gets the SEC second selection.

 

Technically, if Alabama and Oregon were to go to the national title game, the Rose doesn't have to pick a Pac-12 team and the Sugar doesn't have to pick an SEC team. But you can almost guarantee that they would. The only possible way they wouldn't (and this is about a 1% chance) would be if the Florida State/Clemson loser finished with only 1 loss and dominated all their opponents, but didn't win their division, while the SEC saw everyone beat everyone and they all had 2 or 3 losses. But even then, I'd still suspect the Sugar would pick an SEC team.

Even if Northern Illinois were to finish undefeated, they would still have to finish in the top 16 of the BCS Rankings to qualify for a BCS bowl. Remember last year NIU also went undefeated and finished ranked #16. There is no guarantee they would even qualify.

NIU finished the regular season with one loss. That was why it was such a joke they were invited to a BCS game. I am fine letting in a mid-major, but they have to be super impressive and certainly cannot lose a game en route to the bowl season.

NIU finished the regular season with one loss. That was why it was such a joke they were invited to a BCS game. I am fine letting in a mid-major, but they have to be super impressive and certainly cannot lose a game en route to the bowl season.

 

That's right. I forgot they had lost early in the year to Iowa.