Bowl Championship Series
For other uses of the abbreviation BCS, please see BCS (disambiguation). |
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The
Bowl Championship Series (
BCS) is a system which selects the
college football matchups for five prestigious
bowl games, called the BCS bowl games. The teams selected include the conference champion from each of the six
BCS conferences plus two others ("at-large" selections). The top-ranked and second-ranked teams are pitted in the
BCS National Championship Game in order to crown an unofficial
NCAA Division I-A national football champion. It has been in place since the
1998 season; it replaced the
Bowl Alliance (in place from
1995-
1997), which followed the
Bowl Coalition (in place from
1992-
1994). As of the 2006-07 season, the BCS will air primarily on
Fox while only the Rose Bowl will continue to be aired on
ABC.
For the portions of the formulas that are determined by polls and computer-generated rankings, the BCS uses a series of
borda counts to arrive at its overall rankings. This is an example of using a
voting system to generate a complete ordered list of winners from both human and computer-constructed votes.
2003-04 formula
The BCS formula calculated the top 25 teams in poll format. After combining a number of factors, a final point total was created and the teams who received the 25 lowest scores were ranked in descending order. The factors were:
* Poll average: Both the
AP and
ESPN-
USA Today coaches polls were averaged to make a number which is the poll average.
* Computer average: An average of the rankings of a team in seven different
computer polls were gathered, with the poll in which the team was lowest ranked being dropped. This created the computer average.
* Strength of Schedule: This was the team's NCAA rank in strength of schedule divided by 25. A teams strength of schedule was calculated by win/loss record of opponents (66.6%) and cumulative win/loss record of team's opponents (33.3%). The team who played the toughest schedule was given .04 points, second toughest .08 points, and so on.
* Losses: One point was added for every loss the team has suffered during the season.
* Quality win component: If a team beat a team which was in the top 10 in the BCS standings, a range of 1 to .1 points was subtracted from their total. Beating the #1 ranked team resulted in a subtrction of 1 point (remember, losing points was a good thing), beating the #2 team resulted in a deduction of .9 points, and so on. Beating the #10 ranked team would have resulted in a deduction of .1 points. A team would only be awarded for a quality win once if it beat a Top 10 team more than once (such as in the regular season and a conference championship game), and quality wins were determined using a team's current ranking, not the ranking when the game was played.
A team's poll average, computer average, strength of schedule points, and losses were added to create a subtotal. The subtotal ranks were used to determine quality win deductions to create a team's final score.
2004-05 formula
After the 2003-04 controversy (see
BCS Controversies) in which the top team in the human polls, the
University of Southern California (USC) was denied a place in the title game, the formula was revamped. Schedule strength, losses, and quality wins were no longer to be considered as distinct components in the formula, though of course the human voters remain free to consider whatever factors they wish. Also, the exact formula was made public information, and shown to consist of an arithmetic average of the following three numbers:
*AP Poll: A team's AP Poll number is the percentage of the possible points it could receive in the poll. As an example, in the final regular-season poll of 2003, LSU received a total of 1,580 out of a possible 1,625 points from the voters, giving them an AP Poll percentage of 97.2.
*Coaches' Poll: This is calculated in the same manner as the AP Poll number. For LSU, their final regular-season number in this poll would have been 96.3 (1,516 out of 1,575 possible points).
*Computer Average: The BCS now uses six
computer rating systems (Anderson-Hester, Billingsley, Colley, Massey[
1], Sagarin, and Wolfe) (See here for more information about each computer system: [
2]), dropping the highest and lowest ranking for each team. Then, it will give a team 25 points for a Number 1 ranking in an individual system, 24 points for Number 2, and so on down to 1 point for Number 25. Each team's set of numbers is then added, conveniently making the number compatible with the percentages from the two polls. For USC, dropping their highest and lowest computer rankings would have left them with four third-place finishes, worth 23 points each for a total of 92, while LSU would have had four second-place finishes for a total of 96.
The BCS
averaged the three numbers obtained above, divided the result by 100, and converted it to a decimal fraction.
This formula made it highly unlikely that the top team in both human polls would be denied a place in the title game, as it happened in 2003-04.
2005-06 formula
The BCS formula for 2005-06 was the same as in the 04-05, except that the
Harris Interactive College Football Poll replaced the AP poll.
2006-07 formula
There was no change to the formula for this season.
For a complete list of bowl games for the 2006-2007 season, see NCAA football bowl games, 2006-07.In the current BCS format, four bowl games outside of the National Championship Game are considered "BCS bowl games". They are the
Rose Bowl Game in
Pasadena, the
Sugar Bowl in
New Orleans, the
Fiesta Bowl in
Arizona, and the
Orange Bowl in
Miami. The championship was rotated among the different bowls; for example, the Sugar Bowl would have the national championship "weight" once every four years. Starting with the 2007 BCS, the site of that game that served as the last game on
January 1 (or if January 1 fell on a Sunday,
January 2) in the BCS will now serve as the host facility of the new stand-alone BCS Championship Game played on
January 8 of that year, one week following the playing of the traditional bowl game which would follow the Rose Bowl with the exception of the games to be played in 2010. There are also twenty-six
non-BCS bowls.
The BCS National Championship Game pairs the top two BCS-ranked teams. The winners of the six major conferences (
Big East,
ACC,
SEC,
Big 12,
Big Ten,
Pac-10) are guaranteed automatic BCS bowl appearances. Independent teams not affiliated with a conference receive an automatic bid (displacing one of the at-large berths) if they meet certain criteria. There are currently four
independents;
Army,
Navy,
Notre Dame and
Temple. In 2007, Temple will leave the independent ranks and become a football-only member of the non-BCS
Mid-American Conference.
There were two "at-large" berths which can be granted either to teams in those conferences who did not win their championship or to teams belonging to other conferences. The procedure for selecting at-large berths is, in this order:
*A team finishing first or second in the final BCS rankings as an at-large receives an automatic bid;
*A team finishing in the top six of the final BCS rankings from an independent school or from a non-BCS conference receives an automatic bid; if a team qualifies in this manner, then Notre Dame would also qualify by winning at least nine games or finishing in the top ten in the BCS standings;
*A team finishing either third or fourth in the final BCS rankings and finishes higher than any other at-large team receives an automatic bid.If at any step, the two berths are filled, the process stops. If there are not two teams by this point, any other team from the top 12 of the final BCS rankings with at least nine wins is eligible. Starting in 2006, the number of at-large berths will be increased to four.
Initial plans were for the additional BCS bowl game to be held at the site of that year's championship game, such that the additional, non-championship bowl be named after the original bowl (e.g. the Sugar Bowl when the championship is in New Orleans), and have the extra game just be called "The National Championship Game". Later, the BCS considered having cities bid to be the permanent site of the new BCS game, and to place the new game in the title rotation. In the end, the BCS opted for its original plan.
Despite the possibility of an "at-large" berth being granted to a "mid-major" conference team, this didn't happen until the 2004-05 season, when
Utah received a BCS bid to play in the Fiesta Bowl, in which the Utes convincingly defeated
Pittsburgh 35-7. The extra BCS game will at least theoretically give mid-majors better access to a BCS bowl game, possibly ahead of a higher ranked school from a major conference.
Unless their champion is involved in the BCS Championship Game, the conference tie-ins are as follows:
* Rose Bowl - Big Ten vs. Pac-10.
* Fiesta Bowl - Big 12.
* Orange Bowl - ACC.
* Sugar Bowl - SEC.
The Big East Champions are in the pool with the four at-large teams.
Using the 2005 BCS standings and the above tie-ins as an example, here is what the new system could have looked like had it been in effect:
* BCS Championship: Southern California (Pac 10) vs. Texas (Big 12).
* Rose Bowl Game: Penn State (Big Ten) vs. At-Large (replacing USC).
* Fiesta Bowl: West Virginia (Big East) vs. At Large (replacing Texas).
* Orange Bowl: Florida State(ACC) vs. At Large.
* Sugar Bowl: Georgia (SEC) vs. At Large.
The pool of "At Large" teams would have included Miami (FL) and Virginia Tech from the ACC, Oregon from the Pac-10, Ohio State from the Big Ten, LSU and Auburn from the SEC, TCU from the MWC, and Notre Dame. Ohio State, TCU, and Notre Dame would have locked up 3 of the at-large berths, with the last spot likely to have gone to either Oregon(BCS #5) or Miami(BCS #8)
There were talks of having a fifth bowl game being put in, with the choices being the Chick-fil-A Bowl (formerly the Peach Bowl), Gator, or Capital One.
Among the criticisms of the BCS (and the bowl system in general) is the fact that the final ranking of Division I-A NCAA football teams is decided by arbitrary and subjective standards. Opponents of the current system believe that the "champion" of the largest and most popular collegiate sport should be decided on the field, in a head-to-head matchup. The BCS was especially criticized and deemed controversial in both the
2003-
2004 and 2004-
2005 seasons. In 2004, five teams (three from
BCS conferences) finished the regular season with one loss, with no unbeaten team, while in the following season, the same number of teams (again with three from BCS conferences) finished the regular season unbeaten. In both seasons, the three teams from BCS conferences had legitimate cases for playing in the
BCS title game. Most recently, additional controversy has come from the decison by the
Associated Press to prohibit the BCS from using their rankings in the BCS formula, and by
ESPN choosing to remove itself from the
USA Today coaches poll.
Much of the controversy stirred by the BCS arises simply from the fact that there is a single national championship game. As such, the formulas must be used to determine which
two (and only two) nationwide teams are the most deserving teams to play for the national championship. In some minds, the 2 top teams in the nation are not always clear-cut choices . The most recent year in which there were only two undefeated Division I-A teams at the end of the regular season was
2005, when
Southern California and
Texas both finished the regular season undefeated.
The first year of the BCS ended in controversy when
Kansas State finished third in the final BCS standings but was passed over for participation in BCS bowl games in favor of
Ohio State (ranked 4th) and
Florida (ranked 8th). The following season, the BCS adopted the "Kansas State Rule," which provides that any team ranked in the top four in the final BCS poll is ensured of an invitation to a BCS bowl game.
The following season, Kansas State finished 6th in the BCS standings but again received no invitation, this time being passed over in favor of
Michigan (ranked 8th). Kansas State's predicament demonstrated early on the arbitrary nature of invitations to BCS bowl games.
In yet another controversial season for the BCS, #4 Nebraska was chosen as the national title opponent despite not having even played in the Big 12 championship game. The Huskers went into their last regularly scheduled game at Colorado undefeated, but left Boulder with a 62-36 loss. The Buffaloes went on to win the Big 12 championship game. However, the BCS computers don't take into account time of loss, so one-loss Nebraska came out ahead of two-loss Colorado and one-loss, second-ranked Oregon. Nebraska beat Colorado for the #2 spot in the BCS poll by .05 points.
2001 BCS Poll Results Chants of #4 were heard throughout the title game held at the Rose Bowl. Nebraska was routed in the game, 37-14, by the Miami Hurricanes.
The 2003-2004 season consisted of much controversy, when three schools from BCS conferences finished the season with one loss (in fact, no I-A Division team finished the season undefeated, something that hadn't happened since
1996, the year before the advent of the BCS). The three schools in question were:
*
Oklahoma*
LSU*
USCTwo non-BCS schools also finished with one loss:
*
Miami University (Ohio)*
Boise StateUSC was rated #1 in both the AP and ESPN-USA Today Coaches poll, but they were burdened by a collective 2.67 computer ranking due to a relatively weak opponents (and opponents' opponents) ranking (i.e. a weak schedule). This incident has been considered an embarrassment for college football and the BCS in particular
[Tim Layden, Embarrassing moments in College Football (#10), SportsIllustrated.com, Aug. 2, 2006 , Accessed Aug. 2, 2006.].
The 2004-2005 regular season finished with five undefeated teams for the first time since 1979. Despite having perfect records, the
Auburn Tigers,
Utah Utes, and
Boise State Broncos were denied an opportunity to play for the BCS championship. Utah did become the first school outside the BCS conferences to play in a BCS bowl game.
These BCS bowl games were played following the 1998 regular season
* Friday, January 1, 1999 -
Rose Bowl Game presented by
PlayStation:
Wisconsin (Big 10 champion) 38,
UCLA (Pac-10 champion) 31
* Friday, January 1, 1999 -
Nokia Sugar Bowl:
Ohio State (at-large) 24,
Texas A&M (Big 12 champion) 14
* Saturday, Jannuary 2, 1999 -
FedEx Orange Bowl:
Florida (at-large) 31,
Syracuse (Big East champion) 10
* Monday, January 4, 1999 -
Tostitos Fiesta Bowl, (
National Championship):
Tennessee (BCS #1, SEC champion) 23,
Florida State (BCS #2, ACC champion) 16
These BCS bowl games were played following the 1999 regular season:
* Saturday, January 1, 2000 - Rose Bowl Game presented by
PlayStation 2: Wisconsin (Big 10 champion) 17,
Stanford (Pac-10 champion) 9
* Saturday, January 1, 2000 - FedEx Orange Bowl:
Michigan (at-large) 35,
Alabama (SEC champion) 34 (OT)
* Sunday, January 2, 2000 - Tostitos Fiesta Bowl:
Nebraska (Big 12 champion) 31, Tennessee (at-large) 21
* Tuesday, January 4, 2000 - Nokia Sugar Bowl, (National Championship): Florida State (BCS #1, ACC champion) 46,
Virginia Tech (BCS #2, Big East champion) 29
These BCS bowl games were played following the 2000 regular season
* Monday, January 1, 2001 - Rose Bowl Game presented by PS2:
Washington (Pac-10 champion) 34,
Purdue (Big 10 champion) 24
* Monday, January 1, 2001 - Tostitos Fiesta Bowl:
Oregon State (at-large) 41,
Notre Dame (at-large) 9
* Tuesday, January 2, 2001 - Nokia Sugar Bowl:
Miami (FL) (Big East champion) 37, Florida (SEC champion) 20
* Wednesday, January 3, 2001 - FedEx Orange Bowl, (National Championship):
Oklahoma (BCS #1, Big 12 champion) 13, Florida State (BCS #2, ACC champion) 2
These BCS bowl games were played following the 2001 regular season
* Tuesday, January 1, 2002 - Tostitos Fiesta Bowl:
Oregon (Pac-10 champion) 38,
Colorado (Big 12 champion) 16
* Tuesday, January 1, 2002 - Nokia Sugar Bowl:
LSU (SEC champion) 47,
Illinois (Big 10 champion) 34
* Wednesday, January 2, 2002 - FedEx Orange Bowl, Florida (at-large) 56,
Maryland (ACC champion) 23
* Thursday, January 3, 2002 - Rose Bowl Game presented by AT&T (National Championship): Miami (FL) (BCS #1, Big East champion) 37, Nebraska (BCS #2) 14
These BCS bowl games were played following the 2002 regular season
* Wednesday, January 1, 2003 - Rose Bowl Game presented by citi: Oklahoma (Big 12 champion) 34,
Washington State (Pac-10 champion) 14
* Wednesday, January 1, 2003 - Nokia Sugar Bowl:
Georgia (SEC champion) 26, Florida State (ACC champion) 13
* Thursday, January 2, 2003 - FedEx Orange Bowl:
USC (at-large) 38,
Iowa (at-large) 17
* Friday, January 3, 2003 - Tostitos Fiesta Bowl (National Championship): Ohio State (BCS #2, Big 10 champion) 31, Miami (FL) (BCS #1, Big East champion) 24 (2 OT)NOTE 1: USC and Washington State tied for the Pac-10 championship, but due to the Cougars' victory over the Trojans during the season, Washington St. was extended the automatic berth to the Rose Bowl as league champion.
NOTE 2: Iowa and Ohio State did not play each other during the season, and both finished at 8-0 in Big 10 conference play. As the higher-rated team in the final BCS standings, Ohio State was extended the league's automatic bid to the BCS.
These BCS bowl games were played following the 2003 regular season
* Thursday, January 1, 2004 - Rose Bowl Game presented by citi: USC (Pac-10 champion) 28, Michigan (Big 10 champion) 14
* Thursday, January 1, 2004 - FedEx Orange Bowl: Miami (Big East champion) 16, Florida State (ACC champion) 14
* Friday, January 2, 2004 - Tostitos Fiesta Bowl: Ohio State (at-large) 35,
Kansas State (Big 12 champion) 28
* Sunday, January 4, 2004 - Nokia Sugar Bowl (National Championship) LSU (BCS #2, SEC champion) 21, Oklahoma (BCS #1) 14
These BCS bowl games were played following the 2004 regular season:
* Saturday, January 1, 2005 - Rose Bowl presented by citi:
Texas (at-large) 38, Michigan (Big 10 champion) 37
* Saturday, January 1, 2005 - Tostitos Fiesta Bowl:
Utah (at-large*) 35,
Pittsburgh (Big East champion) 7
* Monday, January 3, 2005 - Nokia Sugar Bowl:
Auburn (SEC champion) 16, Virginia Tech (ACC champion) 13
* Tuesday, January 4, 2005 - FedEx Orange Bowl (National Championship): USC (BCS #1, Pac-10 champion) 55, Oklahoma (BCS #2, Big 12 champion) 19NOTE: Utah was an automatic at-large selection as it was champion of the Mountain West Conference and ranked #6 in the final BCS standings.
These BCS bowl games were played following the 2005 regular season in chronological order:
* Monday, January 2, 2006 - Tostitos Fiesta Bowl: Ohio State (at-large) 34, Notre Dame (at-large) 20
* Monday, January 2, 2006 - Nokia Sugar Bowl:
West Virginia (Big East champion) 38, Georgia (SEC champion) 35
(NOTE: Due to damage to the Louisiana Superdome because of Hurricane Katrina, the game was played at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, Georgia.)* Tuesday, January 3, 2006 - FedEx Orange Bowl:
Penn State (Big 10 champion) 26, Florida State (ACC champion) 23 (3 OT)
* Wednesday, January 4, 2006 - Rose Bowl Game presented by Citi (National Championship): Texas (BCS #2, Big 12 champion) 41, Southern California (BCS #1, Pac-10 champion) 38
Changes for 2006-07
There will be major changes in store for the 2006-07 BCS.First, television rights will shift to
FOX, while
ABC will continue telecasting the Rose Bowl. Second, the addition of a BCS National Championship Game separate from the games already in the BCS will match the top two teams in the BCS rankings at the site of one of the BCS games one week after these games have been played. (For example, the new
Cardinals Stadium in
Glendale, Arizona, which is the site of the Fiesta Bowl, will serve as the host of the 2006 championship game.) As such, the addition of two more "at large" teams will take place.Another new rule states:
"...one conference champion from among Conference USA, Mid-American, Mountain West, Sun Belt, and Western Athletic Conferences will automatically qualify to play in a BCS bowl if it is: (1) ranked among the top 12 teams in the final BCS Standings; or (2) ranked among the top 16 teams in the final BCS Standings and ranked higher than the champion of one of the conferences whose champion has an annual automatic berth in a BCS bowl."2007 schedule
To be played following 2006 season.* Monday, January 1 - Rose Bowl Game presented by Citi
* Monday, January 1 - Tostitos Fiesta Bowl
* Tuesday, January 2 - Fed Ex Orange Bowl
* Wednesday, January 3 - Allstate Sugar Bowl
* Monday, January 8 - BCS National Championship (
Glendale, Arizona)
2008 schedule
To be played following 2007 season.* Tuesday, January 1 - Rose Bowl Game
* Tuesday, January 1 - Sugar Bowl
* Wednesday, January 2 - Fiesta Bowl
* Thursday, January 3 - Orange Bowl
* Tuesday, January 8 - BCS National Championship (
New Orleans)
2009 schedule
To be played following 2008 season.* Thursday, January 1 - Rose Bowl Game
* Thursday, January 1 - Orange Bowl
* Friday, January 2 - Sugar Bowl
* Saturday, January 3 - Fiesta Bowl
* Thursday, January 8 - BCS National Championship (
Miami Gardens, Florida)
2010 schedule
To be played following 2009 season.* Friday, January 1 - Rose Bowl Game
* Friday, January 1 - Sugar Bowl
* Saturday, January 2 - Fiesta Bowl
* Monday, January 4 or Tuesday, January 5 - Orange Bowl
(NOTE: Date will depend on 2009 NFL scheduling.)* Friday, January 8 - BCS National Championship (
Pasadena, California)
The term BCS Buster refers to any team not from a BCS conference that manages to earn a spot in a BCS bowl game. Even though there have been a number of worthy teams, only one team has actually been good enough to become a BCS Buster. The
University of Utah football program became the first and only BCS Buster in 2004 after an undefeated season. The
Utah Utes played in the 2004 Tostito's
Fiesta Bowl, and beat their opponent, the
Pittsburgh Panthers, 35-7. Since it is considerably more difficult for a non-BCS team to reach a BCS bowl than for a BCS conference team (see rules above), becoming a BCS Buster is noteworthy. Each season, among all the preseason picks and predictions, media members will pick their most likely BCS Buster(s). A number of teams have very nearly become BCS Busters.
Image:20041129_phpF8eiVe.gif|1998-2005 BCS logo#
BCS Football Official Website #
Harris Interactive Poll replaces AP Poll in BCS rankings# Harmonson, Todd "Texas ascends to No. 1 in BCS ahead of USC" October 25, 2005
San Diego Union Tribune pD1.# Schecter, B. J.
Trojan fans, stay calm October 24, 2005
Sports Illustrated.com#Fiutak, Pete.
Formula and Calculations for All-Time Greatest Football Teams College Football News
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Mythical National Championship*
Home page of the Bowl Championship Series*
Comprehensive FAQ about the BCS*
The "Notre Dame" clause in the BCS contract*
BCS plans to incorporate fifth BCS bowlBCS controversies
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Congress to look into 'deeply flawed' BCS system
