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Huskers, not Hokies, going to Sugar Bowl

I'm sorry, Virginia Tech fans. Your luck is about to run out. Come Dec. 5, the Hokies will find themselves out of the Sugar Bowl, the national championship game, and instead be placed in either the Orange or Fiesta Bowls.

Only 0.63 Bowl Championship Series points separate No. 2 Virginia Tech and No. 3 Nebraska going into this weekend's games. The Hokies play their final game against an above-average Boston College team, but Nebraska has two games left and plenty of room to leap over Virginia Tech.

Unless the Cornhuskers somehow stumble in Boulder against Colorado, a date in the Big 12 Conference championship game awaits them, probably against Texas, who defeated Nebraska 24-20 earlier this year.

Thanks to Virginia Tech's strength of schedule, which included James Madison (a Division I-AA team), Temple and Rutgers. Its top opponents were Syracuse, Miami, Boston College and Clemson - nobody you can shout about.

Meanwhile, the Huskers have defeated Iowa and California, two pathetic teams in their respective conferences, but much better than your average Big East Conference foes. But they've also destroyed Kansas State, No. 6 in the BCS standings, Texas A&M and get another shot at Texas, No. 9.

Nebraska's schedule is rated No. 21 in the country, as opposed to Virginia Tech's 66th.

Think last year was complicated? The final two weeks of the regular season will be just as controversial.

Which leads us to the annual debate about the flaws of the BCS. It's bad enough that losses only count for one point when they should hurt a team more, but how does Richard Billingsley, the Dunkel Index, Kenneth Massey and David Rothman get a say in who is the best college football team in the country. These, along with four other computer polls, help determine who will play in the Sugar Bowl on Jan. 4.

Scream all you want about a playoff system, but it isn't happening for at least two more years. Call me crazy, but I liked it better a couple years ago, when the national champion was settled by arguing for your team over 15 weeks of the season.

At least back then you didn't have some random computer program choosing your destiny,

But one lesson will be learned, despite all the outrage - a team needs to prove itself week in and week out against quality opposition, not cupcakes.