OSU Finishes No. 3 In BCS, Narrowly Misses Title Game

News9.com

STILLWATER, Oklahoma – The final BCS rankings of the season were released Sunday, and Oklahoma State finished No. 3 and will miss an opportunity to play in its first national championship.

The Cowboys finished behind No. 1 LSU and No. 2 Alabama but significantly closed the gap behind Alabama thanks to their 44-10 blowout of Oklahoma in Bedlam Saturday. Alabama's final BCS average was .942, while Oklahoma State's was .933.

As soon as the final seconds ticked off the clock in Bedlam, OSU began to lobby for its spot in the national championship. Within minutes, the school sent an e-mail entitled "The Case For The Cowboys" to media members that detailed the team's résumé this season.

Head coach Mike Gundy also spent much of his postgame interview after Bedlam stressing why his team deserved to jump to No. 2 in the nation and go to the BCS Championship Game.

"I don't think there's any question Oklahoma State should play in the big game," Gundy said. "After what they accomplished tonight and the way they did it, I don't think there's a question they deserve an opportunity to play for it all."

OSU's efforts were not enough to make up all the ground it needed. The Cowboys jumped Alabama and finished No. 2 in the computer rankings, but were No. 3 in both the coaches and Harris polls.

As a result, conference foes LSU and Alabama will face each other in the national championship game. It will mark a rematch of a Nov. 5 game between the same two teams, which LSU won 9-6 in overtime.

While OSU will not play in the national championship, it will take part in its first BCS bowl in school history. By winning the Big 12, the Cowboys are guaranteed a spot in the Fiesta Bowl, where they will face Stanford, which finished the season ranked No. 4 in the BCS.