Notre Dame Coach Brian Kelly receives a dousing as other team members celebrate after Notre Dame defeated Southern California 22-13 in an NCAA college football game, Saturday, Nov. 24, 2012, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

College football’s bowl structure will not go over the fiscal and legitimate cliff come December after all.

As of Sunday, 71 teams are eligible to compete for college football’s 70 bowl slots. Two more — UConn and Pittsburgh — could clinch bowl berths this weekend. If there weren’t enough bowl teams eligible, five 5-7 teams with the highest APR (academic progress rates) would have been placed into a selection pool for a bowl needing another team.

Crisis averted, except for Western Kentucky (7-5), Central Michigan (6-6) or possibly Bowling Green (8-4).

A view at the 2011 Pinstripe Bowl from the press box at Yankee Stadium.

Four quality teams are ineligible for the postseason because of current or prospective NCAA sanctions. The Big Ten’s Ohio State (12-0) and Penn State (8-4) are both banned from the postseason. Two of the ACC’s Coastal Division tri-champions — North Carolina (8-4) and Miami (7-5) also will not participate. North Carolina is banned for NCAA violations this year, while Miami self-imposed a bowl ban for the second straight season. The Hurricanes expect a flurry of NCAA sanctions for impermissible benefits provided by a booster to the football program over several years.

There’s little-to-no intrigue for the BCS’ at-large berths this year. Of the fourth spots, Notre Dame and Florida have earned guaranteed access. Oregon also is likely to automatically qualify. The other spot will go to either Oklahoma or Clemson in the Sugar Bowl. With the Sugar Bowl’s new relationship with the Big 12, expect it to honor that, unless Oklahoma loses to TCU this weekend. Oklahoma then would get kicked to the Alamo Bowl and Iowa State would become college football’s most attractive bowl free-agent.

The most interesting potential match-up would involve long-time rivals Texas and Texas A&M in the Cotton Bowl. No other bowl game would be so hotly contested as that one.

BCS BOWLS

BCS Championship — Notre Dame vs. Alabama

• The college football season is survival of the fittest. Notre Dame survived and Alabama plays in the SEC

Rose — Nebraska vs. Stanford

• Huskers’ last BCS bowl was 2001 Rose Bowl against Miami

Fiesta — Kansas State vs. Oregon

• Two weeks ago this match-up was considered a national title game

Sugar — Florida vs. Oklahoma

• Sneak preview into the future champions bowl

Orange — Florida State vs. Louisville

• Could these schools become future ACC classmates?

BIG TEN BOWLS

Capital One — Michigan vs. Georgia

• Michigan gets a shot at redemption vs. SEC defense

Outback — Northwestern vs. LSU

• Wildcats may be the biggest underdog in bowl season

Gator — Wisconsin vs. South Carolina

• Maybe the most eccentric meeting of head coaches in world history

Buffalo Wild Wings — Michigan State vs. Texas Tech

• Spartans have league’s best chance of bowl upset

Meineke Car Care — Minnesota vs. TCU

• Jerry Kill was the best man in Gary Patterson’s wedding

Heart of Dallas — Purdue vs. Iowa State

• New Year’s Day exposure for both programs

BIG 12 BOWLS

Cotton — Texas vs. Texas A&M

• Encore version of football’s most passionate dormant rivalry

Alamo — Oklahoma State vs. UCLA

• Pac-12 championship loser almost certain here

Holiday — West Virginia vs. USC

• In September some predicted this as the BCS title game

Pinstripe — Baylor vs. UConn

• Big Ten will get into the Pinstripe in two years

OTHER BOWLS

• Chick-fil-A — Clemson vs. Mississippi State
• Music City — Vanderbilt vs. Georgia Tech
• Compass — Ole Miss vs. Syracuse
• Liberty — Tulsa vs. Arkansas State (SEC replacement)
• Independence — Louisiana Tech (ACC replacement) vs. Louisiana-Monroe (SEC replacement)
• Sun — Oregon State vs. Virginia Tech
• Las Vegas — Arizona vs. Boise State
• Kraft — Washington vs. Navy
• New Mexico — Arizona State vs. Navy
• Russell Athletic — Rutgers vs. N.C. State
• Belk — Cincinnati vs. Duke
• Military — East Carolina (ACC replacement) vs. Ball State (Army replacement)
• Beef O’Brady — Central Florida vs. Pittsburgh
• Hawaii — Fresno State vs. San Jose State (CUSA replacement)
• New Orleans — Rice vs. Louisiana-Lafayette
• Armed Forces — Air Force vs. SMU
• GoDaddy — Middle Tennessee State vs. Kent State
• Idaho Potato — Utah State vs. Northern Illinois
• Poinsettia — BYU vs San Diego State
• Little Caesar’s — Toledo vs. Ohio (Big Ten replacement — teams did not play this season)