Oklahoma's next stop: BCS title game
Sam Bradford and Oklahoma wanted to drive home one point: They belong in the BCS championship game.
The No. 4 Sooners (12-1) did that with a 62-21 blowout of No. 19 Missouri (9-4) for the Big 12 title Saturday night in Kansas City, Mo.
Taking advantage of an opportunity many felt it didn't deserve, the highest-scoring team in major college football history romped to a third straight conference crown and became the first to reach 60 points in five consecutive games in 89 years.
"We were tired about hearing everyone talking about how we didn't deserve to be in the game," said Bradford, a sophomore quarterback who threw for a Big 12 championship-record 384 yards and 2 touchdowns. "It was a big motivator for us. I don't see how we could not be No. 1 tomorrow."
No need to worry, No. 2 is just as good, and if all goes accordingly today, Oklahoma will be in the top two of the Bowl Championship Series standings, looking at a title-game matchup against No. 2 Florida on Jan. 8 in Miami.
Touted as the best two conferences in college football this season, it seems appropriate their champions will play for the national title.
For Oklahoma and coach Bob Stoops, it'll be their fourth appearance in a BCS national championship game. The Sooners won their first try in 2001 against Florida State but have lost their last two - to LSU after the 2003 season and to Southern California after the 2004 campaign.
The Sooners' losing streak in BCS games overall is four, taking some of the luster off a coach who earned the nickname "Big Game Bob" early in his tenure. No one would argue with Big 12 Bob, though. Stoops improved to 6-1 in the conference title game.
Va. Tech 30, Boston College 12: Tyrod Taylor scored 2 first-half touchdowns, and Darren Evans ran for 114 yards and 1 TD in less than half-full Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Fla., helping Virginia Tech (9-4) become the first two-time winner of the ACC championship game with a victory over No. 18 Boston College (9-4). The Hokies, who have won three titles since leaving the Big East for the ACC in 2004, also beat Eagles for last year's crown and earned their second consecutive trip to the Orange Bowl.
USC 28, UCLA 7: Mark Sanchez passed for 269 yards and 2 touchdowns, USC's hard-hitting defense stuffed UCLA (4-8, 3-6 Pac-10) at every turn, and No. 5 Southern California (11-1, 8-1) won for the ninth time in the last 10 games between the crosstown rivals. The win assured USC of an unprecedented seventh consecutive BCS bid, seven straight 11-win seasons and seven conference championships in a row. The Trojans will also make a fourth straight appearance in the Rose Bowl game, where they will meet No. 6 Penn State .