Michigan. The flip side of an Ohio State win (which keeps Michigan out of that undefeated team-versus-already-vanquished-at-home-opponent rematch) is, obviously, a Michigan loss. A lot of people are clambering for a rematch of this showdown (usually with the caveat that it must be a "great game") and while that might make for good television and may very well pit the two best teams against each other (although honestly, how in the world do we know that?), it creates the perverse scenario described above. And while that scenario is mitigated if Michigan is the losing team (because if they turn around and beat OSU on a neutral field after losing on the road, you can make a more convincing case that they deserve the title for reasons beyond "winning second instead of first"), it is also a whole lot more likely.

I'm not sure if anyone else has tried to figure this out yet, but Michigan seems far more likely to snag a rematch should they lose. For starters, they are going on the road, so a loss won't cause as big of a hit in the eyes of voters. The loser here will probably be in the #2 spot in the human polls, but it is possible that Ohio State could drop an additional spot or two for losing at home, especially if a team like USC or Florida runs the table in dominant fashion. Not only that, Ohio State is already the lower of the two teams in the computer average and in fact, the Buckeyes rank behind Rutgers and sit in the #3 spot. I'm not a math major, but if OSU finishes #3 in the human polls and #3 in the computer rankings, I'm guessing they won't finish #2 in the BCS. So while a Michigan win is dicey for reasons we've already discussed, it may very well prevent a dubious rematch, since Ohio State is less likely to survive such a loss. The Wolverines are #1 in the computer rankings and would probably remain #2 in the human polls after losing to the top ranked team on the road.

To recap: A Michigan win opens the door for BCS Armageddon to occur, but while a Michigan loss prevents the absolute worst, it also substantially increases the likelihood that we could get the second worst result. This is exhausting.

USC. The Trojans are probably the sexiest of the number two options. While their matchup with Cal has been dampened by the Bears' loss to Arizona, they still get a couple of high profile games that will help their strength of schedule (and therefore their computer ranking, which is currently #4) and the big showdown with Notre Dame on the 25th. It is amazing that USC is back in the mix so quickly after that catastrophic game at Oregon State three weeks ago, but that is the way of things this year. Because of USC's recent success, storied history, and conference affiliation (providing an old-fashioned Pac-10 and Big-10 showdown), I can see voters moving them right up and slotting them against the Michigan-Ohio State winner. (Again, this all seems more likely if Michigan wins on Saturday.) The flip side to all this is that the Trojans must play three more games and they come against a pissed off Cal, highly rated Notre Dame, and enigmatic UCLA. It won't be easy to run the table.