It was a great weekend for Baylor.
And not just because the Bears reached the 10-win mark for only the third time in school history with their 41-38 victory over TCU on Saturday.
Although the Bears remained at No. 9 in the latest BCS standings, their BCS bowl hopes got a boost with losses by Wisconsin, Clemson and Fresno State. Those teams were putting themselves in position to bump the Bears out of the conversation for an at-large BCS bid before stumbling over the weekend. Now the Sugar Bowl could choose the Bears for an at-large berth.
If the Bears can knock off No. 25 Texas to finish 11-1, the Big 12 could get a second BCS berth alongside No. 6 Oklahoma State, assuming the Cowboys win against No. 17 Oklahoma on Saturday. No. 14 Northern Illinois is playing the role of the main BCS-buster to earn an at-large bid this season and will face Bowling Green in the MAC championship game on Friday.
Oklahoma State, which moved up one spot to No. 6, watched its very slim hopes of finding its way into the BCS title game drift further away when Alabama lost to Auburn. The Crimson Tide dropped from No. 1 to No. 4, meaning it won't matter how much chaos occurs on Championship Saturday because the Pokes are pretty much out of the race to earn a BCS title game berth. Quite simply, nothing has changed for the Cowboys this week, as their loss to West Virginia, which finished 4-8, remains an anchor preventing them from climbing into the conversation of the nation's top one-loss teams.
But it was a good weekend for the Big 12 overall, and Baylor in particular, with the Bears’ at-large BCS chances looking brighter than ever. Now, it’s up to Art Briles’ crew to help make its dreams come true by winning impressively against the Longhorns.