There will be a much higher degree of earnestness to these projections now that the season is getting down to brass tacks.

Of course, there's plenty of work ahead. Beyond the obvious big games -- say Oregon-UCLA, Oregon-Stanford and UCLA-Arizona State -- the Washington-Oregon State and USC-Utah games loom large.

Some teams are becoming more clear. Some more difficult to measure, most notably Washington.

Obviously, Washington State was dumped this week. As of now, we project the Cougars finishing 5-7. It also wouldn't shock me if they won three of their final four games. The Apple Cup, in fact, might turn out to be very, very important for both programs.

BCS National Championship presented by Vizio (Jan. 6, 2014): Oregon vs. BCS

Rose Bowl Game presented by Vizio (Jan. 1, 2014): Stanford vs. Big Ten

Valero Alamo Bowl (Dec. 30): UCLA vs. Big 12

National University Holiday Bowl (Dec. 30): Arizona State vs. Big 12

Hyundai Sun Bowl (Dec. 31): Oregon State vs. ACC

Las Vegas Bowl (Dec. 21): Washington vs. MWC

Fight Hunger Bowl (Dec. 27): USC vs. BYU

Gildan New Mexico Bowl (Dec. 21): Arizona vs. MWC

Heart of Dallas Bowl (Jan. 1, 2014): Utah vs. Conference USA