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Following a 24-17 home win against the Washington State Cougars in Palo Alto, the Stanford Cardinal are ranked No. 14 in the 2012 BCS Standings released on Sunday.
Previously ranked 17th, the Cardinal jumped three spots ahead of Mississippi State, Texas A&M and USC.
The Trojans fell eight spots after being ranked ninth a week ago. They took a disappointing loss to Arizona in Tuscon that helped contribute to making Stanford the third ranked Pac-12 team in the BCS standings behind Oregon and Oregon State.
There's been plenty of reaction over at SB Nation's own Stanford blog, Rule of Tree. A quick look at the front page will reveal that Cardinal fans are relieved that Stanford avoided a major upset against the Cougars that would have cost significant ranking points.
Though the win wasn't pretty, the team still emerges from the contest with a 6-2 overall record and a 4-1 mark in the Pac-12 conference and is poised to play in the championship game.