Jury's still out on a rigged BCS system
CHRIS DUFRESNE ON COLLEGE FOOTBALL
The list of BCS bowl contenders from non-BCS conferences appears longer and stronger than ever, which may only lead to more disappointment for also-rans.
The race for important bowl berths involving ragtag independents out of South Bend and lesser-known conference schools with cool nicknames, such as Red Wolves and Horned Frogs, could be the secondsecond-most exciting campaign this fall.
All the little guys ever asked for was a fair shake in a rigged system.
Now look:
East Carolina, Rice, Tulsa, Utah, Fresno State, Brigham Young, Ball State, Air Force, Texas Christian, Arkansas State, Troy and mighty-mite Notre Dame are a combined 22-0 out of the tunnel.
The champions of the six major conferences get automatic bids to the Rose, Fiesta, Sugar or Orange bowls and it doesn't matter if the Atlantic Coast Conference champion this year is 7-6 Duke.
Like we said, it's a rigged game.
(Warning: high-cholesterol sentence approaching.)
Champions of the five "other" conferences earn an automatic bid only if they finish in the top 12 of the final Bowl Championship Series standings, or if said champions finish in the top 16 ahead of a major conference champion.
There is no margin for error for these schools -- one loss and you're out.
Remember, too, only one at-large berth per non-BCS customer, so if BYU finishes No. 9 to East Carolina's No. 10, the Pirates walk the plank.
The Mountain West and Western Athletic are the only "non-BCS" conferences to have advanced schools to BCS bowls -- Utah made the Fiesta in 2004, and Boise State (Fiesta) and Hawaii (Sugar) went back-to-back for the WAC.
This year, Conference USA has a soapbox derby entry in East Carolina, which rose to No. 14 in Sunday's Associated Press poll after consecutive wins against Virginia Tech and West Virginia.
The problem is the AP isn't involved in the BCS anymore, and the dunderhead coaches saw fit to rank East Carolina only No. 19, four spots behind No. 15 BYU.
This could lead to poll acrimony should both schools keep winning.
Even the Mid-American and Sun Belt conferences have longshot hopefuls.
And as hide-the-kids horrible as Notre Dame looked in victory against San Diego State, the Irish can get to a BCS bowl if they go 9-3.
Did we say the game is rigged?
Notre Dame actually must go to a major bowl it finishes in the BCS top eight and is a likely at-large pick if it wins nine games.
Gentlemen, start your at-large engines:
- Names in the News Nov 11, 1988
- Names in the News May 02, 1990
- In Brief - U. of Cincinnati Gets New A.D. Dec 21, 1988
