Rarely has there been so much to be decided so late in the season. Only the Big Ten, which wrapped up regular-season play last week, has determined its representative to the Bowl Championship Series. The ACC and SEC each have one open spot in their conference title games, while both spots in the Big 12 championship remain up for grabs. From Charlottesville to Honolulu, and all points in between, there are enormous stakes in games that will play out Friday and Saturday and serve as a perfect excuse for turkey-stuffed football fans to remain on the couch all weekend.

What follows is a conference-by-conference guide to the weekend (all rankings BCS).

ACC

Boston College won the Atlantic and will play in the ACC title game next week in Jacksonville. Virginia and Virginia Tech will meet to decide the Coastal Division Saturday.

GAME TO WATCH: No. 8 Virginia Tech at No. 16 Virginia
Saturday, 12 p.m., ESPN

Virginia has had a surprising 9–2 season, but only raised eyebrows nationally when it thumped Miami, 48–0, in its last outing. The Cavaliers have otherwise been living on the edge all year, escaping with a series of narrow victories. Virginia Tech should have too much on both sides of the ball as it seeks to earn a rematch with Boston College in the ACC championship.

BIG EAST

The Big East, too, is down to a single, winner-take-all contest.

GAME TO WATCH: No. 20 Connecticut at No. 3 West Virginia
Saturday, 3:30 p.m., ABC

In a season of surprises, the development of Connecticut into a legitimate top-25 team is as shocking an outcome as any. While almost nobody believes the Huskies can go into Morgantown and emerge with the Big East trophy and a BCS bid, this team has been berating expectations all year. UConn does have the defensive speed to run with West Virginia Stars Pat White and Steve Slaton, but may not have enough offensive firepower to keep the game close.

BIG 12

The Big 12, along with the Pac-10, is the conference with the most still at stake. In the North, there is what amounts to a one-game playoff to get to the league title game. In the South, Oklahoma controls its destiny, with Texas lurking.

GAMES TO WATCH:

No. 13 Texas at Texas A&M Friday, 3:30 p.m., ABC
Oklahoma State at No. 10 Oklahoma Saturday, 3:30 p.m., FSNY
No. 4 Missouri vs. No. 2 Kansas Saturday, 8 p.m., ABC

Oklahoma may know its Big 12 fate by the time it takes the field Saturday. If Texas loses Friday, the Sooners win the South. If Texas wins, Oklahoma must beat Oklahoma State. In the North, Missouri and Kansas meet at a neutral venue, Kansas City’s Arrowhead Stadium, in a game that has turned into a de facto national quarterfinal. If either team wins its final two games, it will almost certainly play for the national championship.

PAC-10

Arizona State entered its game against USC last night in control of the conference race, but USC, Oregon, Oregon State, and UCLA all remained alive for the league title entering the weekend.

GAME TO WATCH: No. 9 Oregon at UCLA
Saturday, 3:30 p.m., GamePlan

An Arizona State loss to USC (the game ended too late for this edition) puts control of the Pac-10 back in the Ducks’ hands if they can beat UCLA and Oregon State in their final two games. They’ll have to do it without quarterback Dennis Dixon, lost for the year to a knee injury a week ago. Despite up-and-down seasons, UCLA — along with Oregon State — remains alive for at least a share of the conference title.

SEC

LSU has wrapped up the SEC West but still must beat Arkansas to remain alive in the national-title picture. Tennessee is in the driver’s seat in the East.

GAMES TO WATCH:

Arkansas at No. 1 LSU Friday, 2:30 p.m., CBS
No. 18 Tennessee at Kentucky Saturday, 1:30 p.m., CBS

There’s nothing at stake for LSU in the conference race against Arkansas, but a loss would knock the top-ranked Tigers out of the national-title picture, and might send coach Les Miles packing for Ann Arbor and the Michigan job earlier than he’d like. Miles, a Michigan alum, appears to be a top candidate to replace the retired Lloyd Carr, and will be dealing with the distractions of questions about that job opening until he either accepts, or the Wolverines hire somebody else.

In the SEC East, Tennessee will reach the conference title game if it can beat Kentucky. If the Vols lose, Georgia will head to Atlanta and a date with LSU.

NON-BCS LEAGUES

GAME TO WATCH: No. 19 Boise State at No. 15 Hawaii
Friday, 9 p.m., ESPN

These are the only two teams from non-BCS conferences that remain alive for an at-large berth. Although a bid is far from guaranteed, should either team win out, there would be plenty of sentiment for both. Boise State proved it belonged last year by beating Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl, while Hawaii would be 12–0 if it wins twice, having finished the year with victories over its two toughest opponents.

NATIONAL TITLE PICTURE

Realistically, there are six teams in the hunt for the two spots in the championship game. LSU and the Kansas-Missouri winner almost certainly control their own destiny. Other teams still alive (in descending order of likelihood to reach the title game) are West Virginia, Ohio State, and Arizona State — pending the outcome of its game against USC.

Mr. Levine is a writer for FootballOutsiders.com.