With the release of the first BCS standings of the season, the path to a national championship game berth is clear for several teams. The LSU Tigers, Alabama Crimson Tide, Oklahoma Sooners and Oklahoma State Cowboys are all in position to control their own destiny. The top teams from the SEC and Big 12 will square off in November, and if the winners don't falter at any other point, the BCS title game participants will be decided in those two games.
But winning out isn't a foregone conclusion for these or any other undefeated teams. The second half of the college football season features upsets every year, and some championship contenders are more susceptible than others. The Big 12 heavyweights are at the top of the list of undefeated teams that could fall flat just as easily as they could win out.
It starts with strength of schedule. At the beginning of the season, and even as recently as a few weeks ago, the SEC contenders appeared more likely to fall victim to the week-in, week-out grind of the conference season. Now LSU and Alabama won't coast the rest of the way, but their respective opposition outside the division looks far less formidable down the stretch, including a potential SEC championship game.