The Week 14 BCS Bowl projections became a bit more clear thanks to a pair of upsets involving a pair of former top five teams in last week’s BCS Standings. With the Oregon Ducks getting blasted on the road against the unranked Arizona Wildcats and the Baylor Bears suffering a devastating loss at the hands of the Oklahoma State Cowboys, two more teams were all but eliminated from the BCS Championship Game conversation. While they were replaced by a pair of teams from the SEC – what other conference, right – in the Auburn Tigers and Missouri Tigers, the top three teams distanced themselves from the rest of the pack, despite the fact that the trio defeated inferior opponents in Week 13. Although, the Week 14 BCS Standings and BCS Bowl projections only care about the numbers, and not the opponents. That is why, just like in the latest Discover Fan Loyalty Poll, the Alabama Crimson Tide remain No. 1 in the Week 14 BCS Standings, followed by the Florida State Seminoles and Ohio State Buckeyes. While the ‘Noles and ‘Bucks have an easy final regular season game, the Tide will be tested by the Auburn Tigers in the annual Iron Bowl matchup this Thanksgiving weekend.
- My views are my own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Discover Products Inc. and its affiliates.
Before we get to the latest BCS Bowl Game predictions, take a look at some of the other results from the latest Discover Fan Loyalty Poll. The Week five topics related to Thanksgiving, asking college football fans whether or not they would give up their seat at the dinner table this Thursday in exchange for free tickets at the 50-yard-line to watch their favorite team play. Overall, 42 percent of the fans surveyed said that they would rather pass on turkey than pass the pie around the table, opting to accept the free tickets to watch their favorite team play. While that number is high, the majority – at 55 percent – said that they agree with the sentiment that home is where the heart is, and that even free tickets at midfield to watch their favorite college football team play would not be enough to get them to skip Thanksgiving dinner with their family.
It seems that while turkey and football go together, just don’t make fans choose one over the other. The majority will try to find a way to thoroughly enjoy the best of both worlds!
When breaking the data down by conference, fans of an SEC or American Athletic Conference team were most likely to take the free tickets, at 46 percent, which is three percentage points higher than the average fan. On the flip side, fans of Pac-12 teams said that they would not skip the traditional Thanksgiving Day festivities, as 60 percent would pass up the tickets in favor of spending the day with family. This Thanksgiving, only fans of four teams would have to make that decision, as the only two college football games scheduled are the Ole Miss Rebels traveling to take on the Mississippi State Bulldogs and the Texas Longhorns hosting the Texas Tech Red Raiders. Both of these games will have bowl implications, but neither will have any ramifications on any of the five BCS Bowl Games.
What do you think would happen if the Iron Bowl was played on Thanksgiving? I would assume that 42 percent number would rise a bit, while the 46 percent number from SEC fans would skyrocket, especially those from Tuscaloosa or Auburn. I will guarantee that many more fans would consider passing on Thanksgiving with the family in order to take advantage of free tickets at the 50-yard-line to watch a game that may very well decide the participants in this season’s BCS Championship Game!
* Discover Products Inc. sent me a Gift Card for participating as a Blogger in the Discover Fan Loyalty Poll program
What about when it comes to the dinner menu on Thanksgiving? This is certainly more of a personal preference, with many people having such different tastes. In the longstanding debate over which Thanksgiving dinner staple people cannot live without, college football fans weighed in and turkey sits squarely on top, proving that the debate may not be as close as some may feel. Turkey takes the top billing with 48 percent, followed by stuffing at 20 percent, pie at 9 percent, mashed potatoes at 7 percent and cranberry sauce at 2 percent. Surprisingly, 12 percent said that another item of food is No. 1 in their hearts. While stuffing and pie and the top two musts on my Thanksgiving dinner plate, I would love to know what of the rest of you would say – especially the 12 percent who did not choose any of the top five food items as their No. 1 choice. Once again, feel free to weigh in with your own responses below.
With just one more regular season of games in the 2013 college football season as well as the following week’s conference championship games, we grow closer and closer to finding out the pairing for the five BCS Bowl Games. Alabama is still No. 1, as they have been all season long, but they easily have the most difficult remaining schedule among the top teams in the BCS Standings. The Crimson Tide could have to face two top five teams in consecutive games, beginning with Auburn this Saturday and perhaps Missouri the following week, provided they defeat the Texas A&M Aggies this Saturday. A Texas A&M victory would result in the South Carolina Gamecocks advancing to the SEC Championship Game to face the winner of the Iron Bowl.
Can the Tide continue to roll against top teams, or will they finally come up short? Having to face two top five teams in November and December could prove to be too much, thus knocking them from the No. 1 spot as well as out of the BCS Championship Game. While I feel that Ohio State and Florida State are not as good as Alabama, they have a much easier final two games than the Tide. The Buckeyes will face the Michigan Wolverines this Saturday, followed by the Michigan State Spartans in the Big 10 Championship Game. The Seminoles take on the Florida Gators this week and will then advance to play in the ACC Championship Game the following Saturday, although their opponent is yet to be determined. Either way, they will either face the Duke Blue Devils or an unranked team.
So, what would you predict as the five BCS Bowl Games? Sure, the Crimson Tide are the top team in the country, but can they withstand two more difficult opponents while their competition for the BCS Championship game plays much weaker opponents? Or, will we see happen to Alabama what happened to Baylor last weekend? Will the pressure finally get to them and cause them to finally drop a game? When it boils right down to it, I see the Tide falling in one if their final two games, opening the door for the Seminoles and Buckeyes, even though I find them both undeserving in comparison to Alabama. Either way, here is a look at my BCS Bowl Game projections entering Week 14 of the 2013 NCAA Football season:
BCS Championship Game – Florida State Seminoles vs. Ohio State Buckeyes
Orange Bowl – Alabama Crimson Tide vs. Clemson Tigers
Sugar Bowl – Missouri Tigers vs. Fresno State Bulldogs
Fiesta Bowl – Oklahoma State Cowboys vs. Northern Illinois Huskies
Rose Bowl – Stanford Cardinal vs. Baylor Bears
A bit different than the rest? Sure. But what fun is it to simply predict the same matchups as the rest of the country? You can’t just look at Week 14, when the games over the following two weeks will ultimately decide all five BCS Bowl Games. Rivalry weekend takes place over Thanksgiving weekend, while conference championship weekend will have equally as many big games with BCS implications.
Make sure that you stay tuned to Boston Super Blog for all of the latest polls and results from the Discover Fan Loyalty Poll. We have got you covered throughout the remainder of the 2013 college football season, leading all the way up to the BCS Championship Game! Make sure to Like Discover on Facebook and follow them on Twitter!
The Discover Fan Loyalty Poll is conducted twice a month by Rasmussen Reports, a nationally recognized leader in polling, who gathers sentiment by phone from 1500 college football fans who follow games at least once per week on television, radio, in person or online. The Poll leads up to the 2014 Discover Orange Bowl. Discover’s commitment to college football includes relationships with ESPN and Notre Dame Football on NBC.
About Discover
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