The Oregon Ducks remained atop the BCS rankings with a win over the California Golden Bears this week, widening the gap over No. 2 Auburn. The Ducks lead over Auburn now sits at .0066, up from last week’s .0027. TCU and Boise State are locked in a close battle for the No. 3 spot, well behind the Ducks and Tigers. Auburn held the top spot in all but one computer, Richard Billingsley’s algorithm, and Oregon held the No. 2 ranking in all but one, as well — the Collie Matrix formula that still hates the Ducks had Oregon at No. 4.
TCU took a hit in the rankings this week after Utah fell to Notre Dame, hurting the Horned Frogs in the computers. The Utes are the best win on TCU’s schedule and a second loss in as many weeks hurts the Horned Frogs strength. LSU rounded out the top 5 as the top-ranked one-loss team. As a whole, the top 10 remained unchanged this week.
The Pac-10 still has three teams in the rankings, though Arizona continues to free fall after back-to-back losses. Stanford stayed at No. 6 this week after a tough road win over the Arizona State Sun Devils. Arizona fell four spots to No. 22 with a loss to USC this Saturday. If USC were eligible, there’s little doubt the Trojans would also be in the top 25.
In all, the rankings are still great news for the Oregon Ducks. The Ducks are firmly in the drivers seat and control their own destiny going forward. Win out and Oregon will be headed to Glendale for the BCS National Championship game in January. With games against Arizona and Oregon State — two teams that are sputtering down the stretch — a title game is looking like a real possibility as it stands right now.