2012 BCS Rankings, Week 8: Stanford sitting at No. 20 in initial standings

The Stanford Cardinal's controversial 20-13 overtime loss to Notre Dame may have stung but being ranked No. 20 in the initial BCS rankings Sunday has to ease the pain a little.

Stanford is one of three two-loss teams in the top-25 with Iowa State and Texas being the other two. The Fighting Irish come in at No. 5 after handing the Cardinal the devastating defeat.

The other three Pac-12 schools in the BCS rankings are in the Top-10. Oregon was beat out by the two SEC schools and had to settle for No. 3 overall instead. As for the other two, Oregon State was rewarded for their surprising season with a No. 8 ranking and USC slipped in at No. 10.

The Cardinal won't have many opportunities to build their resume over the next three weeks with matchups against Cal, Washington State and Colorado. But after that trio of games, Stanford draws Oregon State and Oregon meaning they'll have a prime chance to still crack the top-10.