Oregon still in BCS title game

The Kansas State Wildcats and Notre Dame Fighting Irish both scored big wins on Saturday and remain very much in the mix to make the BCS National Championship Game.

However, I'm still sticking with my title game projection of Alabama and Oregon this week. A loss by the Crimson Tide or Ducks either this week or in future weeks would obviously open the door for the Wildcats and Irish. But if all four of those teams finish undefeated, I think we'll be seeing a Bama-Oregon final.

Check out my explanation as to why, as I go through my current BCS bowl projections and lists of the next teams in line for each bid.

Discover BCS National Championship Game

Current prediction: Alabama Crimson Tide vs. Oregon Ducks

Next up for BCS No. 1 and No. 2 spots: Kansas State, Notre Dame, LSU, Georgia

Basically, as long as Oregon continues to have the majority of the second-place votes in both polls, the Ducks are the odds-on favorites to finish second at season's end. They'll need to keep some separation between them and K-State in the polls, but if they can do that, they should be good.

Of course, it will depend upon how they play going forward. They have an opportunity this week against USC to really beat up on the Trojans and impress a lot of voters. If the Ducks barely win, it might be time for Oregon fans to start worrying a little bit, because some of the factors outside of the Ducks' control (USC and Oregon State both losing this weekend, for example) could continue to work against them. But as of right now, heading into the USC game, Oregon is my pick to finish second. (And yes, I'm predicting Alabama will beat LSU this season and finish unbeaten and No. 1 in the BCS standings.)

To see BCS expert Brad Edwards' take on which teams are in line to grab BCS bids, you must be an ESPN Insider.

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Brad Edwards

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• Analyzes college football and the BCS as part of ESPN's Stats & Information Group
• Analyst for both College GameDay on ESPN Radio and the ESPN College Football app