It will be at least Sunday, after weekend games are completed, before Iowa State knows where it is headed for a bowl game.

ISU media relations director Tom Kroeschell said Bowl Championship Series officials decided Tuesday to keep Kansas State and Texas in consideration for spots in one of the four BCS bowls.

The Cyclones’ fate could have been decided Tuesday if either school was released.

Kansas State was eighth and Texas was No. 9 in the latest BCS rankings released Monday.

If either team is eventually selected for a BCS bowl, Iowa State’s bowl standing will improve, Kroeschell said.

“If that happens, everybody moves up in the pecking order,” Kroeschell said.

ISU athletic director Bruce Van De Velde said another Big 12 team in the BCS could land Iowa State in the Dec. 23 Tangerine Bowl in Orlando, Fla.

Iowa State’s other options include the Humanitarian or Motor City Bowls.

If the Tangerine Bowl doesn’t select Iowa State, Van De Velde said he would prefer the Motor City Bowl in Detroit, Mich., because fans and the team would not need to travel as far.

But since the Humanitarian Bowl has a contract with the Big 12 for its No. 8 selection, Big 12 officials and Van De Velde would need to find a team, probably from the Pacific 10 Conference, to fill the Big 12 spot before it could be placed in the Motor City Bowl. If that occurs, the Cyclones would take a spot normally reserved for a Big 10 team and face Toledo in the Motor City Bowl.

Kroeschell said Van De Velde and Big 12 officials are currently looking at their options on that front, and news that financial trouble may force the Seattle and Silicon Valley Bowls to cancel their games this year adds another wrinkle into the plan.

“It has a big impact [on Iowa State], because the Pac-10 has a deal with the Seattle Bowl,” Kroeschell said.

“The bowls have until Friday to demonstrate that they have the financial standing to take place.”

Although there is an outside chance that the bowls will be discontinued, Kroeschell said it would probably leave Pac-10 teams searching for a game. The Humanitarian Bowl could provide that spot, he said.

Saturday’s matchup pitting Washington State against UCLA could also affect Iowa State. If the Cougars win, they would receive an automatic berth in the BCS as the Pac-10 champion and could knock out a Big 12 team from the BCS and eliminate Iowa State’s shot at the Tangerine Bowl.