The Notre Dame Fighting Irish demonstrated Saturday they have the stuff to challenge for a national championship.
But they are not alone.
The Miami Hurricanes, Virginia Tech Hokies, Ohio State Buckeyes and Georgia Bulldogs all remained unbeaten Saturday, creating a potential nightmare scenario for the Bowl Championship Series and its goal of creating a national title game between two undisputed challengers.
And while Notre Dame, Miami, Virginia Tech, Ohio State and Georgia all won again, the Oklahoma Sooners protected their No. 1 ranking in the BCS by taking the day off.
Notre Dame had climbed to the No. 6 ranking in the coaches poll thanks to an outstanding defense and when the first BCS ratings came out last week, the Fighting Irish were a surprising No. 3.
Despite all that, they found themselves a 10-point underdog when they made their trip to Florida State Saturday to take on the 13th-ranked Seminoles.
Notre Dame proved it belonged among the big shots with a 34-24 victory that was more one-sided than the score indicated. The Irish took over the game in the third quarter, forcing turnovers on three consecutive plays late in the period.
The offense converted them into 17 points in a 2 1/2-minute span as Notre Dame pulled away from a 10-10 haltime tie to improve to 8-0 for the first time since 1993 -- the only other year the Fighting Irish had beaten Florida State.
"It is a very difficult thing to come into this place and win," Notre Dame Coach Tyrone Willingham said. "We played a great team with a great coach and we are very fortunate to walk out with a victory."
Notre Dame built a 38-10 lead before Florida State managed two late touchdowns. The Irish now will play Boston College, Navy and Rutgers and will be heavily favored to win all three.
That would set up a season-ending meeting with Southern California.
Virginia Tech and Miami, meanwhile, will meet at season's end to eliminate one of those teams from national championship contention. But Oklahoma, Georgia and Ohio State could all finish their seasons unbeaten, which would touch off a furor as to which two teams should be able to play for the national crown.
Ohio State could complete a perfect regular season and not even qualify for the Rose Bowl. Iowa stayed undefeated in Big Ten play against Michigan Saturday, 34-9, and the Hawkeyes do not meet Ohio State this season. If both Iowa and Ohio State post unblemished conference marks, Iowa would earn the Big Ten's spot in the Rose Bowl.
Although Oklahoma holds the top spot in the BCS, Miami went into this weekend with the No. 1 ranking in the coaches poll and the Hurricanes needed a late surge to fight off West Virginia, 37-23.
Miami owned only a one-point lead late in the third period when Ken Dorsey threw a touchdown pass and Willis McGahee scored on the ground four minutes apart to open a comfortable advantage.
Virginia Tech stayed unbeaten with a 20-10 decision over Temple as Bryan Randall threw for 146 yards and one touchdown Saturday. Fourth in the initial BCS ratings, the Hokies have games against Pittsburgh, West Virginia and Virginia upcoming before facing Miami.
Ohio State's hopes for a national title took a hit when freshman sensation Maurice Clarett suffered a shoulder injury during the first period of the Buckeyes' meeting with Penn State.
But Chris Gamble returned an interception 40 yards for a touchdown early in the third to give Ohio State a 13-7 victory.
Georgia stayed perfect when David Greene and D. J. Shockley combined to throw a team-record six touchdown passes in a 52-24 victory over Kentucky.
