Amidst the drama of No. 1 Louisiana State (9-0, 6-0 SEC) and No. 2 Alabama (8-1, 5-1 SEC) grinding it out for the top spot in the BCS Standings, Arkansas (8-1, 4-1 SEC) was busy being cheated out of their No. 7 ranking.
After taking care of South Carolina (7-2, 5-2 SEC), the then No. 9 team in the nation, Arkansas got dropped from the seven spot to eight. The Hogs won by a reasonable 16-point margin over the Gamecocks. In turn, Oregon (8-1, 6-0 Pac-12) beat the unranked Washington Huskies (6-3, 4-2 Pac-12) by 17, and moved one spot ahead of the Razorbacks.
Oregon has only played two ranked teams this season, as Arkansas has played four. The Razorbacks have come out on top three of their four ranked games. In their three wins, the Hogs have averaged 15 points over their opponents, while the Ducks have only won once versus number 18, Arizona State (6-3, 4-2 Pac-12), who currently isn’t even ranked. They won by 14.
In addition, the Ducks play in the Pacific-12, as the Razorbacks run in the powerful Southeastern Conference. The Pac-12 only has two ranked teams in the Top 25 (BCS), to five from the SEC.
Although none of this may matter, as Stanford (9-0, 7-0 Pac-12) hosts Oregon this weekend for the top spot in the Pac-12.