FSU Tops BCS Rankings
Virginia Tech is No. 2 and couldn't be happier at least for now.
The Hokies moved into second place in the Bowl Championship Series standings on Monday, behind Florida State and ahead of up-and-coming Nebraska.
A week ago, Tennessee pulled in front of Virginia Tech and into second place even though the Hokies were undefeated and the Volunteers had a loss. Hokie fans were hopping mad about it, too.
But Arkansas knocked off the Vols 28-24 on Saturday, and Virginia Tech (9-0) is second behind Florida State (10-0) in the weekly standings.
The final BCS standings, on Dec. 5, will determine which teams play in college football's designated national title game the Sugar Bowl on Jan. 4. The standings are based on a formula that considers The Associated Press media poll and the USA Today/ESPN coaches' poll, eight computer rankings, strength-of-schedule and losses.
Florida State and Virginia Tech are 1-2 in both polls.
Nebraska (9-1) jumped from sixth to third place with its 41-15 win over Kansas State and trails the Hokies by 2.4 points. Florida State leads Virginia Tech by 3.66 points.
Florida (9-1) is in fourth place, .59 points behind Nebraska, followed by Tennessee, Alabama, Wisconsin, Kansas State, Texas and Michigan.
Florida State, which plays at Florida on Saturday in what becomes a title-elimination game, had the same total as last week, 2.64 points 1 for poll average, 1 for computer rank average, 0.64 for strength-of-schedule, and zero for losses. The Seminoles beat Maryland 49-10 on Saturday.
Virginia Tech, a 43-10 winner over Miami, had 6.30 points 2 for poll average, 2.14 for computer rank average, 2.16 for strength-of-schedule and zero for losses.
Nebraska had 8.70 points 4 for poll average, 2.86 for computer rank average, 0.84 for strength-of-schedule and 1 for losses.
Virginia Tech could be hurt by a weak chedule. The Hokies play the 54th toughest schedule of the 114 I-A teams, while the Seminoles' schedule is rated 16th, the Huskers' 21st and the Gators' 25th.
If Florida State beats Florida, the Seminoles will play in the title game a second year in a row. But if Virginia Tech beats Temple on Saturday and Boston College on Nov. 26, there's a chance the Gators or Huskers, or both, could still slip past the Hokies in the standings.
A Florida win on Saturday, plus a win in the SEC title game might be enough to boost the Gators ahead of Tech; a Nebraska victory over Colorado and in the Big 12 title game against No. 6 Texas, the only team to defeat the Huskers, could move the Big Red ahead.
The Seminoles are first in seven computer ratings; Nebraska is first in the other the Dunkel Index. Virginia Tech is second on six computers; third on one; and fifth on the other the Seattle Times. The BCS considers only the top seven computer ratings.
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