Missouri, West Virginia top BCS

NEW YORK » Missouri and West Virginia hold the top two spots in the Bowl Championship Series standings, leaving them with one more step to take before bumping into each other in New Orleans.

The Tigers play Oklahoma (10-2) in the Big 12 championship game at San Antonio on Saturday and the Mountaineers face rival Pittsburgh (4-7) at home. If both win, it'll be Missouri-West Virginia in a most unlikely BCS championship game Jan. 7 at the Superdome.

A month ago, neither team was even in the top five of the BCS standings, but a string of upsets have left Chase Daniel and the Tigers, and Pat White and the Mountaineers in control of their own destinies.

"I've been telling the guys, the more you win, the more that's at stake," West Virginia coach Rich Rodriguez said yesterday in a conference call with reporters.

Hawaii moved up to 12th in the Bowl Championship Series standings released yesterday after beating Boise State 39-27 and winning the Western Athletic Conference.

Hawaii's rise from 15th last week puts Colt Brennan and the Warriors in position to earn an automatic BCS bid.

The Warriors, the last remaining unbeaten team in the nation, finish the season at home against Washington and need to be in the top 12 when the final standings come out Sunday.

The new WAC champions can also earn a berth by finishing in the top 16 and have a higher ranking than one of the champions of the BCS conferences.

The Warriors also moved up three spots to No. 11 in the Associated Press poll.