Nov
19
2011

Iowa State shakes up BCS race

Iowa — So what happens now? We’ve spent the past few weeks wondering what would happen to the BCS national championship race if No. 2 Oklahoma State lost to No. 5 Oklahoma in the Dec. 3 Bedlam game in Stillwater, Okla. We’ve pondered what would happen if No. 1 LSU lost to No. 6 Arkansas in Baton Rouge, La., on the day after Thanksgiving, or maybe even against No. 14 Georgia a week later in the SEC championship game.

If the Cowboys lost to the Sooners, which they’d done in each of the past eight seasons, would No. 3 Alabama play LSU again in the Jan. 9 Allstate BCS National Championship Game? If not Alabama, then what about No. 4 Oregon? The Ducks lost to the Tigers 40-27 in their Sept. 3 season opener and haven’t lost since.

Or, even better, what would happen if LSU and Oklahoma State both lost? Well, let the debate begin.

Somehow, Bedlam arrived two weeks early, and it was delivered by the most unlikely of teams. Iowa State, which had been 0-56-2 against opponents ranked in the top six of the Associated Press top 25 poll since 1936, stunned the No. 2 Cowboys 37-31 in double overtime at Jack Trice Stadium.

The Cowboys, who only had to win at Iowa State and then beat Oklahoma at home to punch their tickets to the BCS title game, had a chance to defeat the Cyclones in regulation. But after OSU intercepted a tipped pass at the Iowa State 29 with the score tied at 24 with 3:16 to play, Cowboys kicker Quinn Sharp narrowly missed a 37-yard field goal wide right with 1:17 to go.