Poll: Who is college football best 1-loss team?

The two teams in line to compete for the BCS National Championship both took care of business this weekend. #1 Alabama won the Nick Saban Bowl in Baton Rouge in OT 27-21, while #2 Texas Tech maintained in control of the ultra competitive Big 12 South race coming off a 56-20 rout over a then #9 ranked Oklahoma State team. And two teams eliminated themselves from any chance of playing in the title game, Penn State with their shocking loss at Iowa and LSU with their previously mentioned loss to the Tide. That leaves us with only four teams with legitimate claims for consideration outside of squads that reside in Tuscaloosa, AL and Lubbock, TX.

This week’s poll question asks which of these four teams, all with just one lone blemish on their record, is the beast?

Is it Florida? They’re #4 in the BCS rankings and playing as good of football as they have all season. Led by the defending Hesiman Trophy winner Tim Tebow they downed Vanderbilt in Nashville 42-14 this weekend and with the W clinched the SEC East, setting up a showdown with Alabama the first Saturday of December. Will it mean a title show for the Gators? After home games against #25 South Carolina and the Citadel and a trip to Tallahassee to play the ‘Noles, we will see.

Is it Oklahoma? The playoffs start this Saturday for the BCS ranked #5Sooners. They’ll play host to Texas Tech, after that they play in-state rival Oklahoma St. in Stillwater, and if they do that there’s a chance for a potential Big 12 Championship Game and if they can rack up those 3 in a row… a trip to Miami could be there’s. Can Sam Bradford and his offense, which averages 51.4 ppg, lead them there?

Is it Southern California? The Trojans offense did not march on Cal they way they had hoped, but their defense is as good as any. In their last five games, they’ve pitched three shoutouts and while allowing only 13 points total. Will the Pac-10 prove to be strong enough to send its champion to the title game? Coach Pete Carroll hopes so. There’s no doubt USC, ranked just #6 in the BCS, can beat anyone on any given day, but will they get the chance?

Or is it Texas? They’re the highest ranked 1-loss team at #3 in the BCS, with their only loss coming two weeks ago in heartbreak fashion on the road at Texas Tech. The Longhorns, will need to take finish strong over Kansas on the road and win a home game over Texas A&M and hope that Red River Rival Oklahoma can knock off Tech leading to a 3-way tie in the South. The tiebreaker to see who represents division in the conference title game is the BCS Rankings. Can Texas hit BCS lottery twice in one year?