Like much of America, I have been consistently amazed by the unique ways in which the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) has failed to identify the best team in the country almost every year since its inception during the 1998 season. In 2008, an undefeated Utah team had a legitimate gripe that they were the best team in college football after the Utes trounced an Alabama squad, ranked #1 in the country just weeks prior, 31-17 in the Sugar Bowl. Unfortunately, Americans were deprived of an opportunity to watch Utah take on a one-loss Florida team that beat a previously one-loss Oklahoma team in the “BCS National Championship Game.”
Similarly, following the 2006 season, an undefeated Boise State team beat all-world running back Adrian Peterson and the Oklahoma Sooners in the Fiesta Bowl 43-42 in what many consider to be the greatest college football game of all time but were denied a shot to play for the national title. Looking at these examples, one could easily make the mistake of thinking that the BCS system merely discriminates against schools from small conferences, which do not play a schedule tough enough to merit consideration anyway. However, following the 2004 season, an undefeated Auburn team, playing in arguably the toughest conference in the land, the Southeastern Conference, was also denied a chance to play for the national title, once again leaving America wondering who the best team in College Football was for that season.
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Posted by Marion Brooks