Not-so-perfect ending

In the wacky world of college football, sometimes a win is more than that -- it's the defining moment in a season. Yet, sometimes it turns out to be less than that, not quite as beneficial as everyone first anticipated.

Take the cases of Texas and Penn State. Both won huge games Saturday. Both should have been more than satisfied. But . . .

Let's start with coach Mack Brown's Longhorns.

It should have been a perfect day for Texas. Nice weather. No serious injuries, and another impressive victory, this time 45-12 over Oklahoma in the Red River Rivalry, which had belonged to the Sooners the past five seasons. So why isn't Brown smiling as much as he should be this morning? Because by the time Brown and the Longhorns got back to Austin Saturday night, then No. 6 Ohio State was in the process of dropping a 17-10 decision to Penn State. Normally, there would be no connection there, but one of Texas's five victories this season was a 25-22 win over the Buckeyes.

With the Buckeyes' loss to Penn State, the quality of Texas's win over Ohio State was damaged in the computer rankings that determine the Bowl Championship Series standings, which decide who plays in the BCS title game in the Rose Bowl Jan. 3.

But there was more bad news for the Longhorns. Texas A&M, whom the Longhorns play in their last regular-season game of the season, was crushed by Colorado, 41-20. The Aggies now have two losses.

Why is that important? Because right now, there are no high-caliber teams (in the Big 12) remaining on the Longhorns' schedule. Which means that if Texas, which is No. 2 in the polls, finishes unbeaten, and Virginia Tech and Alabama or Florida State finish unbeaten, the Longhorns could be overtaken in the BCS standings.

Each of the Longhorns' BCS competition has Top 10 teams remaining.

It is not inconceivable that the Longhorns could be unbeaten and ranked No. 2 entering the final weekend of the season and come out with a victory and a drop in the rankings because their schedule is deemed not as worthy as some other unbeaten.

The irony is that a year ago Texas lobbied itself into a BCS game instead of California, largely on the basis of strength of schedule.

As for Penn State and coach Joe Paterno, not only did the Lions beat Ohio State, which solidified their credentials, but with six victories, they became bowl eligible, and they control their destiny regarding the Big Ten's automatic BCS berth.

Of course, next week is a road trip to Michigan, a team that is desperate for a victory after losing to Minnesota, 23-20, Saturday for its third loss.

Two teams, two wins, two story lines. In the playoff-challenged world of college football, there is nothing quite like it during the regular season.

The LA way

Los Angeles has become the college football capital of the world. With No. 1 Southern California reeling off another win with its 42-21 victory over Arizona, the Trojans claimed their 23d triumph in a row at home. Coach Pete Carroll's team is 5-0 as it gets ready for Saturday's huge battle against once-beaten Notre Dame in South Bend. Not to be outdone, UCLA is also 5-0 following its wild 47-40 win over Cal. That's 10-0 for the Los Angeles schools, with a meeting scheduled for Dec. 3 at USC . . . University of Connecticut quarterback Matt Bonislawski will miss 6-8 weeks because of a broken collarbone suffered in Friday night's 26-7 win over Syracuse . . . Tennessee cornerback Jason Allen could miss the rest of the season after injuring his left hip in the No. 17 Volunteers' loss to Georgia.

Wild one for Wildcats

Northwestern knocked Wisconsin from the ranks of the unbeaten with a wild 51-48 victory over the Badgers. ''We made some mistakes to get this thing where it was," Northwestern coach Randy Walker said. ''But last time I looked, we had more points on the scoreboard, and we were playing a top-15 football team in the country. That's no small achievement." Were it not for a final-drive collapse against Penn State last month, the Wildcats would have only one loss. Of the Wildcats' five games, three were decided in the final quarter . . . In the hard-to-believe department, Baylor beat Iowa State, 23-13. It was the Bears' first road win in Big 12 history, dating back 37 games. ''Another gorilla off our back," said Baylor coach Guy Morriss, who has his team sizzling with a 4-1 record . . . A year ago, Nebraska was embarrassed by Texas Tech, 70-10, and had no explanations or excuses. Saturday, Tech won again, taking a 21-0 lead and then holding off a wild Cornhusker comeback, 34-31. At 5-0, Texas Tech is off to its best start since 1998 . . . Tough day: Division 3 Northwestern of Minnesota beat Trinity Bible College, 59-0, Saturday morning, went home for lunch and a short rest, and then traveled 6 1/2 miles and beat Macalaster College, 47-14, Saturday night. Northwestern agreed to the doubleheader because it was having trouble finding a 10th opponent without dramatically extending its season or going over its travel budget.

Material from wire services was used in this report.