College Football Tag

There are just a few weeks left in the college football regular season and things took a crazy turn this past weekend.  I think everyone, including myself, had (4) Alabama penciled in for the BCS Championship game until (8) Texas A&M pulled off the surprising 29-24 upset last Saturday.  This has opened up the field a little bit for spots in the national championship.  So lets take a little time sort of some of this chaos caused by the Alabama loss.

The loss does not eliminate Alabama from BCS contention but it puts them on the outside looking in when it looked like they were a lock.  Here are the current BCS standings as we head into this weekend's games.

BCS Standings

1. Kansas State
2. Oregon
3. Notre Dame
4. Alabama
5. Georgia
6. Florida
7. LSU
8. Texas A&M
9. South Carolina
10. Florida State

BCS Forecast

In the driver's seat:

So at the moment we are looking at a Big XII and Pac 12 showdown in Miami.  Both (1) Kansas State and (2) Oregon control their own destiny.  If Oregon and K-State win out then I believe both would be in the BCS Championship.  Oregon is an absolute no doubter if they win their last 2 regular season games and the Pac 12 Championship.  Kansas State does not have a conference championship game to bolster their resume but an undefeated record should be more than enough to secure a spot in the title game.

So it might be a little early but I think its time to start looking at the legitimate contenders as we have reached the half way point of the college football season.  As for the usual the SEC has a strong presence in the second edition of the BCS standings in 2012.  The SEC currently has 4 teams in the BCS top 10 and 7 in the top 25.  Most college football experts say the path to the national championship is through the SEC and this year is no exception.

Current 2012 BCS Standings

1.  Alabama
2.  Florida
3.  Oregon
4.  Kansas State
5.  Notre Dame
6.  LSU
7.  South Carolina
8.  Oregon State
9.  Oklahoma
10.  USC

Full BCS Standings

Football season is so close I can taste it.  Every year around this time you can feel the excitement in the sports community.  Football is by far the most popular sport in this country and everyone has a favorite pro team and a school that they are passionate about.  In the world of college football there are high expectations right now on many different campuses across the country.  [So called] Experts have already begun making predictions for teams and individual awards.  At this moment everything is up in the air.

Which teams or players will surprise you this season?  Who will win the Heisman?  Which teams will meet in the National Championship game?  These are all questions that everyone, including myself, can take a stab at answering but nothing is certain right now.  We have reached the calm before the storm.  In a few short weeks the thunderous cheers of tens of thousands will echo in college stadium across America.  But before we get to opening weekend,  here is a list of 10 things you should know about college football as we head into the 2012 regular season.

The schedule makers struck gold this year.  This will be the fourth edition of the annual Cowboys Classic and I don't think we could have landed a better match-up.  These two historic programs have combined for over 1,700 wins and both rank in the top 10 all-time in wins and winning percentage (Michigan: 895 - .734, Alabama: 814 - .697).  Alabama (14) and Michigan (11) are also #3 and #4 respectively in national championships won by a college football program.  Needless to say, these are two of the most accomplished athletic programs in the history of collegiate sports.

The Crimson Tide and Wolverines have only met in three previous engagements.  The maize and blue have managed to grab the advantage 2 games to 1 in the limited but eventful all-time series.  The last meeting between these two teams was at the 2000 Orange Bowl.  Turned out to be a great game that needed extra time to decide the winner.  Michigan ended up the victor with a 35-34 victory in what would be the last collegiate game for some guy named Tom Brady.

Hey college football fanatics!  The regular season is over and now all the bowl game match-ups have been set.  This bowl season looks to be a great one.  Not only do we get "The Rematch" in the BCS Championship,  the college bowl schedule features a number of intriguing match-ups.  Four of the major conferences (SEC, Big 10, ACC, & PAC 12) landed 2 teams in a BCS game.  The Big 12 managed only 1 team in a BCS game after being calculated as the toughest conference all year by the computers.  The leader in all-time program wins (Michigan) returns to their first BCS game since 2005 when the Wolverines took on the University of Texas in the Rose Bowl during Vince Young's freshman campaign.

The Cotton Bowl Classic has been a staple of the bowl series since the first annual game in 1937.  On January 6, 2012 this prestigious bowl will return to Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, TX for the third time.  Last year's Cotton Bowl featured a great match-up between the LSU Tigers and the Texas A&M Aggies.  In the end LSU prevailed 41-24 but it was an exciting game throughout.

As the hottest days of summer creep through the midwest this week, the smell of football begins to tickle the nose.  August is just around the corner and with it comes double and triple sessions for college football athletes around the country.  A brand new campaign will be starting soon so let us look ahead to the 2011 college football season and examine a few BCS favorites, strong conferences, and a few Heisman hopefuls. 

The Notre Dame Fighting Irish are set to travel to Dublin, Ireland for a September 1, 2012 game versus the Navy Midshipmen. This will be the first time that Notre Dame will be making this trip to the Emerald Island. Sports Traveler has set up two new Notre Dame Fan trips to help fans get there. Our first two trips sold out in less than 3 months before the summer began. Due to the unbelievable demand, we have been able to secure additional hotel rooms and tickets to this once in a lifetime event.

Below are the itineraries that are now confirmed for Wave 3 and 4 of this historic trip!

On September 3, the LSU Tigers will play the Oregon Ducks at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas. This game will feature a match-up between two of the most elite programs in college football today.

LSU vs. Oregon Travel Packages are now available today to see this great match-up. Start booking your package today with these inclusions:

- Accommodations in Arlington near Cowboys Stadium
- Guaranteed Tickets to the LSU vs. Oregon Game
- Ticket holder and lanyard
- All taxes and services

View Oregon vs. LSU Travel Packages

On November 20, the Northwestern Wildcats will be "hosting" the Univeristy of Illinois Fighting Illini at Wrigley Field in Chicago.  This has been a great Big 10 rivalry for many years, but this may be the biggest yet.  This will mark the first football game played at Wrigley Field since 1970 when the Bears were still calling it home. 

Wrigley Field has been the home to the Cubs since 1914 and has held many other events besides baseball and football.  Most recently, Wrigley Field was the host for the 2009 Winter Classic between the Blackhawks and Red Wings.

Sports Traveler will be offering tickets and travel packages to this great event.  Packages will include hotel accommodations in downtown Chicago, tickets to the game, transportation, and much more.  Check with Sports Traveler for updates on when the packages and game tickets will be available.

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