SPOKANE, Wash. -- The University of Oregon should be playing for the national championship in the Rose Bowl, Washington State coach Mike Price says.

Price -- the Pacific-10 Conference coach of the year whose No. 13 Cougars are headed to the Sun Bowl -- said during a telephone conference call Monday that he was disappointed the Ducks won't have an opportunity to play for the national championship.

No. 2 Oregon remained at No. 4 in the final Bowl Championship Series rankings, behind Colorado, Nebraska and Miami.

Nebraska (11-1) will play undefeated Miami in the Rose Bowl for the national championship on Jan. 3. Oregon will play Colorado in the Fiesta Bowl, but Price thinks the Ducks should have been in the Rose Bowl.

"They only lost one game and barely lost that one," he said. "Stanford is a top quality team that had to score 21 points and block two punts to win. Oregon played flawlessly all year."

Price knows how well the Ducks played this season. Oregon beat Washington State 24-17 in Pullman Oct. 17. The Cougars were scheduled to play Colorado -- which routed Nebraska -- in a game that was canceled by the Sept. 11 terror attacks.

"I think Colorado might be the best team in the nation right now," Price said. "They're hot. They're like a hot basketball team going into a tournament."

Despite his misgivings about the BCS, Price said he doesn't have any changes to recommend. "It's the best we're going to have for a while," he said.

The Cougars climbed to No. 12 in Monday's BCS rankings. It's a moot point because WSU already has committed to play Purdue in the Sun Bowl in El Paso on Dec. 31.

Price will face his former offensive coordinator Joe Tiller, the Boilermakers' head coach.

The Cougars will begin practicing for Purdue on Thursday, when offensive and defensive coordinators will begin fine-tuning plays for the Sun Bowl.

Price said he has not had much chance to review films of Purdue, but he's impressed with the play of Boilermakers freshman quarterback Kyle Orton.

"I think this young quarterback of theirs looks like he is going to be a great one," Price said. "Not a good one. A great one."

Price said Orton, who made his first start Nov. 24 against Indiana, has a strong arm and a fluid throw, "what I look for in a quarterback."

"He can get a little confused. He's got some things to learn," Price said. "We want to confuse him and get after him."

The Boilermakers lost four of their last five games to finish the regular season 6-5.

Although Purdue was struggling offensively, "I think their defense is solid," Price said.

"Their defense is very good. Their offense is getting better," he said. "They will be better in this game than they were."