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 Oct. 20 (Bloomberg) -- The University of Texas claimed the top spot in college football's first Bowl Championship Series rankings of the season after handing Missouri a second straight loss.
The Longhorns (7-0) beat the Tigers 56-31 at Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium in Austin on Oct. 18 as quarterback Colt McCoy threw a pair of touchdowns passes and ran for two scores. Alabama is ranked No. 2 after defeating Mississippi 24-20, while Penn State is third. The Nittany Lions snapped a nine-game losing streak to Michigan with a 46-17 win.
``Being ranked No. 1 shows respect for what we've accomplished through seven weeks of the season,'' Texas coach Mack Brown said in a news release. ``Our team continues to get better every week but we have a long way to go and a lot of room to improve.''
Texas hosts sixth-ranked Oklahoma State on Oct. 25 before traveling to Lubbock to play No. 8 Texas Tech on Nov. 1.
The two teams that finish the regular season atop the BCS standings will play for the national championship on Jan. 8 in Miami. The BCS is determined using the USA Today coaches' poll, the Harris Interactive poll and six computer rankings. The final standings will be released Dec. 7.
Texas has a BCS rating of .997, with a possible score of 1.000, Alabama (7-0) is second at .948 and Penn State (8-0) third at .866. Oklahoma (6-1), which lost Oct. 11 to Big 12 Conference rival Texas, is No. 4 in the standings after the Sooners defeated Kansas 45-31. University of Southern California (5-1) is fifth following a 69-0 rout of Washington State, the Trojans' largest shutout victory since 1931.
Seven of the top 10 teams are from the Big 12 and Southeastern conferences.
Rest of Top 10
Oklahoma State (7-0), Georgia (6-1), Texas Tech (7-0), Ohio State (7-1) and Florida (5-1) round out the BCS top 10. Oklahoma State defeated Baylor 34-6, a week after handing Missouri its first loss of the season. Georgia downed Vanderbilt 24-14 as Knowshon Moreno rushed for a season-high 172 yards and a score.
Quarterback Graham Harrell threw for 450 yards and three touchdowns to lead Texas Tech over Texas A&M 43-25. He also ran for two scores. Ohio State defeated Michigan State 45-7 as freshman quarterback Terrell Pryor ran for a touchdown and passed for another. Florida was idle this past weekend.
Texas scored 35 unanswered points in the first half against Missouri, including McCoy's two touchdown passes and a rushing score by the quarterback in the first quarter. The Heisman Trophy hopeful passed Vince Young on the school's all-time list for touchdowns with 82. The Longhorns rolled up 591 yards of offense and held the Tigers to 348 yards.
Alabama scored 24 points in the first half and the Crimson Tide defense withstood a late charge by Mississippi. The Rebels had 359 yards to Alabama's 326. Quarterback John Parker Wilson threw for 219 yards and a pair of touchdowns for the 7-0 Crimson Tide at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
Penn State Undefeated
At State College, Pennsylvania, Penn State (8-0) rallied after being down 17-7 to Michigan (2-5) early in the second quarter. The Nittany Lions ran off 39 unanswered points, including a pair of rushing touchdowns by quarterback Daryll Clark. Penn State running back Evan Royster rushed for 174 yards and a score.
Utah is No. 11 in the BCS standings, followed by Boise State, Louisiana State University, Texas Christian and Missouri. South Florida is 16th, while Pittsburgh, Georgia Tech, Tulsa, Ball State, Brigham Young, Northwestern, Kansas, Minnesota and Florida State round out the top 25.
By Vince Golle
Bloomberg.com
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