It is interesting that parity is least evident in college football than any other major sport. Consider that, since 1992, only 13 different schools have played for the national title in major college football. (This is not counting Arizona State in 96, which should have been allowed to play for it but was not.)

That number in other sports is 18 for the World Series and NBA Finals (even with the Yankee-Bull effect), 19 for the NCAA basketball title game and 20 each for the Super Bowl and Stanley Cup Finals.

The BCS/Bowl Alliance title has been in the hands of the very few elite in the mega-conference era (i.e. when conference championships began), and that makes tomorrow's Texas Tech game that much more vital for the Red Raiders.

They are not likely to get many chances to break through in the Big 12 South, which has been won by Texas or Oklahoma every year but two (Texas A&M won it in 1997 and was Big 12 champ in 1998). This division, like the SEC East, is tough to break through from the bottom tier, and this is a potentially once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the Red Raiders.

If Texas Tech gets beat tonight, it could very easily find itself at 11-1 and playing in the Cotton Bowl. There the Raiders could face an SEC team as bad as Vanderbilt, depending on how things break in that league.

It would be an unfortunate fate for a team that has had a terrific season so far, so here's hoping Texas Tech gets it done against a tough Oklahoma squad.