Final 2010 BCS standings: Auburn vs. Oregon for the national crown

It is now official and it is not the usual contenders who will be contesting this season’s Tostitos Bowl Championship Series (BCS) National Championship Game in Arizona. Outsiders Auburn and Oregon broke the run of the traditional giants as they continue their own separate quests for college football’s most elusive prize. 

It is the first time for the Tigers and the Ducks, ranked No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, in the final rankings of the BCS for 2010, to appear in the national title game since the modern ranking system began in 1998. Auburn last won the national title in 1957 while Oregon has yet to win one.

Curiously, last year’s protagonists for the title—Alabama and Texas—did not even figure in this year’s Top 10 rankings. Two-time BCS national champion Florida likewise did not enter the Top 10 whereas Southern California, another two-time winner, was ranked 10th overall.

Amazingly, both Auburn (13-0) and Oregon (12-0) did not even break into the Top 10 of the AP poll at the start of the season, the first of its kind in the history of the BCS title game. The two football programs are scheduled to face off on January 10 next year at the University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Arizona.

Here is a list of the teams selected by the BCS to play in this season’s bowl games:

Rose Bowl: TCU vs. Wisconsin

Tostitos Fiesta Bowl: Oklahoma vs. Connecticut

Discover Orange Bowl: Stanford vs. Virginia Tech

All State Sugar Bowl: Ohio State vs. Arkansas

Tostitos BCS National Championship Game: Auburn vs. Oregon