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Six wins might not be enough for bowl
By Kelly Whiteside, USA TODAY
Though this season has been defined by prominent upsets, one surprising trend emerging is the number of bowl-eligible teams from the major conferences. With three weekends remaining, there are 60 bowl-eligible teams and 19 five-win teams for 64 spots in the 32 bowls. Only Navy, which accepted a bid to the Poinsettia Bowl, knows where it's headed so far.
In the Southeastern Conference, 10 of 12 teams already have six wins and Vanderbilt has five. In the Big Ten, a record 10 of 11 teams are eligible, with Minnesota being the only exception. The Big Ten's Rose Bowl spot will be decided Saturday when Ohio State faces Michigan in Ann Arbor. (If the Buckeyes win, they still have a chance, though unlikely, at the national championship provided five teams in front of them in the Bowl Championship Series standings lose.)
So what does this mean, say, for the SEC, which has eight spots for possibly 11 teams? Win seven games or likely stay home. "Another win guarantees our chances of being in a bowl," says Mississippi State coach Sylvester Croom, whose 6-4 team plays 6-4 Arkansas in a crucial matchup at Little Rock. The league must include seven-win teams first for its bowl slots. "I don't want to worry about getting help from somewhere else. To me, it's like being in the NFL playoffs. You don't want to sit around and wait for someone to help you, because most times that help never comes."
LSU could help its conference brethren by winning out and making it to the BCS title game Jan. 7, opening an extra slot. Also, if another conference doesn't have enough bowl-eligible teams to fill its contracts, other eligible teams may be selected. However, all seven-win or better teams must be selected to fill those spots before 6-6 teams.
The Big Ten has record number of bowl-eligible teams for seven spots. The league has never produced 10 teams with records of .500 or better. The most number of bowl teams the league has ever had was eight in 2003.
In the Big Ten, the easiest bowl-eligible team to root for is Indiana, which has played with great sadness and purpose following the death of coach Terry Hoeppner. The Hoosiers can assure themselves of their first bowl game since 1993 with a seventh win, against rival Purdue on Saturday.
"This is the biggest yet, the one this week, with a group of guys that I've got a lot of respect for with all they've been through," says Indiana coach Bill Lynch of the battle for the Old Oaken Bucket.
Six wins might not be enough for bowl
By Kelly Whiteside, USA TODAY
Though this season has been defined by prominent upsets, one surprising trend emerging is the number of bowl-eligible teams from the major conferences. With three weekends remaining, there are 60 bowl-eligible teams and 19 five-win teams for 64 spots in the 32 bowls. Only Navy, which accepted a bid to the Poinsettia Bowl, knows where it's headed so far.
In the Southeastern Conference, 10 of 12 teams already have six wins and Vanderbilt has five. In the Big Ten, a record 10 of 11 teams are eligible, with Minnesota being the only exception. The Big Ten's Rose Bowl spot will be decided Saturday when Ohio State faces Michigan in Ann Arbor. (If the Buckeyes win, they still have a chance, though unlikely, at the national championship provided five teams in front of them in the Bowl Championship Series standings lose.)
So what does this mean, say, for the SEC, which has eight spots for possibly 11 teams? Win seven games or likely stay home. "Another win guarantees our chances of being in a bowl," says Mississippi State coach Sylvester Croom, whose 6-4 team plays 6-4 Arkansas in a crucial matchup at Little Rock. The league must include seven-win teams first for its bowl slots. "I don't want to worry about getting help from somewhere else. To me, it's like being in the NFL playoffs. You don't want to sit around and wait for someone to help you, because most times that help never comes."
LSU could help its conference brethren by winning out and making it to the BCS title game Jan. 7, opening an extra slot. Also, if another conference doesn't have enough bowl-eligible teams to fill its contracts, other eligible teams may be selected. However, all seven-win or better teams must be selected to fill those spots before 6-6 teams.
The Big Ten has record number of bowl-eligible teams for seven spots. The league has never produced 10 teams with records of .500 or better. The most number of bowl teams the league has ever had was eight in 2003.
In the Big Ten, the easiest bowl-eligible team to root for is Indiana, which has played with great sadness and purpose following the death of coach Terry Hoeppner. The Hoosiers can assure themselves of their first bowl game since 1993 with a seventh win, against rival Purdue on Saturday.
"This is the biggest yet, the one this week, with a group of guys that I've got a lot of respect for with all they've been through," says Indiana coach Bill Lynch of the battle for the Old Oaken Bucket.
