BCS National Championship Game | |
---|---|
Stadium | Four-year rotation between: State Farm Stadium Caesars Superdome Hard Rock Stadium Rose Bowl |
Location | Four-year rotation between: Glendale, Arizona New Orleans, Louisiana Miami Gardens, Florida Pasadena, California |
Previous stadiums | Sun Devil Stadium (1999, 2003) |
Previous locations | Tempe, Arizona (1999, 2003) |
Operated | 1999–2014 |
Payout | US$23,900,000 (2014 game [1] ) |
Preceded by | Bowl Alliance (1995–97) Bowl Coalition (1992–94) |
Succeeded by | College Football Playoff National Championship (2015) |
Sponsors | |
The BCS National Championship Game, or BCS National Championship, was a postseason college football bowl game, used to determine a national champion of the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), first played in the 1998 college football season as one of four designated bowl games, and beginning in the 2006 season as a standalone event rotated among the host sites of the aforementioned bowls.
The game was organized by a group known as the Bowl Championship Series, consisting of the Rose Bowl, Sugar Bowl, Fiesta Bowl, and Orange Bowl, which sought to match the two highest-ranked teams in a championship game to determine the best team in the country at the end of the season. The participating teams were determined by averaging the results of the final weekly Coaches' Poll, the Harris Poll of media, former players and coaches, and the average of six computer rankings. The Coaches' Poll was contractually required to name the winner of the game as its No. 1 team on the final postseason ranking; hence, the AFCA National Championship Trophy was presented to the winning team during a post-game ceremony.
The methodologies of the BCS system and its selections proved to be controversial. Although in most years the winner of the BCS National Championship would also be designated as the national champion by other organizations and polls (such as the Associated Press poll), the 2003 season was a major exception, as the BCS rankings chose the AP's No. 3-ranked team, the University of Oklahoma, over the No. 1-ranked team in that poll, the University of Southern California, to participate in the national title game (the Sugar Bowl) despite Oklahoma's loss to Kansas State University in the 2003 Big 12 Championship Game. That was the only season during the BCS era when the national championship was split, with Louisiana State University winning the BCS national championship and the University of Southern California winning the AP national championship, plus the football writers' national championship.
The BCS National Championship Game was played for the final time in 2013 after the same organizing group established a new system, the College Football Playoff, a four-team single elimination tournament, as the successor to the BCS.
This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (November 2010) |
The first BCS Championship was played at the conclusion of the 1998 college football season in accordance with an agreement by the Big Ten Conference, the Pac-10 Conference, and the Rose Bowl Game to join the "Bowl Alliance" system. The expanded format was called the Bowl Championship Series.
The Bowl Alliance and its predecessor, the Bowl Coalition, featured championship games in the 1992–1997 seasons. However, these could not always ensure a matchup between the top two ranked teams because of the lack of participation by the Big Ten and Pac-10.
The BCS National Championship Game was initially rotated among the four participating bowl games: the Fiesta Bowl, Sugar Bowl, Orange Bowl, and Rose Bowl. However, beginning with the 2006 season, the BCS National Championship Game was added as a separate contest, played after New Year's Day. The game rotated its location among the Fiesta, Sugar, Orange, and Rose venues.
Season | Date | Winning Team | Score | Losing Team | Bowl Game | Site | Attendance [2] |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1998 | January 4, 1999 | 1 Tennessee SEC Champions | 23–16 | 2 Florida State ACC Co-Champions | 1999 Fiesta Bowl | Sun Devil Stadium Tempe, Arizona | 80,470 |
1999 | January 4, 2000 | 1 Florida State ACC Champions | 46–29 | 2 Virginia Tech Big East Champions | 2000 Sugar Bowl | Louisiana Superdome New Orleans | 79,280 |
2000 | January 3, 2001 | 1 Oklahoma Big 12 Champions | 13–2 | 2 Florida State ACC Champions | 2001 Orange Bowl | Pro Player Stadium Miami | 76,835 |
2001 | January 3, 2002 | 1 Miami (FL) Big East Champions | 37–14 | 2 Nebraska At-large | 2002 Rose Bowl | Rose Bowl Pasadena, California | 93,781 |
2002 | January 3, 2003 | 2 Ohio State Big Ten Co-Champions | 31–24 (2OT) | 1 Miami (FL) Big East Champions | 2003 Fiesta Bowl | Sun Devil Stadium Tempe, Arizona | 77,502 |
2003 | January 4, 2004 | 2 LSU SEC Champions | 21–14 | 1 Oklahoma At-large | 2004 Sugar Bowl | Louisiana Superdome New Orleans | 79,342 |
2004 | January 4, 2005 | 1 USC Pac-10 Champions* | 55–19 | 2 Oklahoma Big 12 Champions | 2005 Orange Bowl | Pro Player Stadium Miami Gardens, Florida | 77,912 |
2005 | January 4, 2006 | 2 Texas Big 12 Champions | 41–38 | 1 USC Pac-10 Champions | 2006 Rose Bowl | Rose Bowl Stadium Pasadena, California | 93,986 |
2006 | January 8, 2007 | 2 Florida SEC Champions | 41–14 | 1 Ohio State Big Ten Champions | 2007 BCS National Championship Game | University of Phoenix Stadium Glendale, Arizona | 74,628 |
2007 | January 7, 2008 | 2 LSU SEC Champions | 38–24 | 1 Ohio State Big Ten Champions | 2008 BCS National Championship Game | Louisiana Superdome New Orleans | 79,651 |
2008 | January 8, 2009 | 2 Florida SEC Champions | 24–14 | 1 Oklahoma Big 12 Champions | 2009 BCS National Championship Game | Dolphin Stadium Miami Gardens, Florida | 78,468 |
2009 | January 7, 2010 | 1 Alabama SEC Champions | 37–21 | 2 Texas Big 12 Champions | 2010 BCS National Championship Game | Rose Bowl Pasadena, California | 94,906 |
2010 | January 10, 2011 | 1 Auburn SEC Champions | 22–19 | 2 Oregon Pac-10 Champions | 2011 BCS National Championship Game | University of Phoenix Stadium Glendale, Arizona | 78,603 |
2011 | January 9, 2012 | 2 Alabama At-large | 21–0 | 1 LSU SEC Champions | 2012 BCS National Championship Game | Mercedes-Benz Superdome New Orleans, Louisiana | 78,237 |
2012 | January 7, 2013 | 2 Alabama SEC Champions | 42–14 | 1 Notre Dame^ Independent | 2013 BCS National Championship Game | Sun Life Stadium Miami Gardens, Florida | 80,120 |
2013 | January 6, 2014 | 1 Florida State ACC Champions | 34–31 | 2 Auburn SEC Champions | 2014 BCS National Championship Game | Rose Bowl Pasadena, California | 94,208 |
^Notre Dame's loss in the 2012 BCS national title game was later vacated due to the use of Ineligible players
.
Appearances | School | Wins | Losses | Win Pct | Title Season(s) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
4 | [[Florida State Seminoles football|Florida State]] | 2 | 2 | .500 | 1999, 2013 |
4 | [[Oklahoma Sooners football|Oklahoma]] | 1 | 3 | .250 | 2000 |
3 | [[Alabama Crimson Tide football|Alabama]] | 3 | 0 | 1.000 | 2009, 2011, 2012 |
3 | [[LSU Tigers football|LSU]] | 2 | 1 | .667 | 2003, 2007 |
3 | [[Ohio State Buckeyes football|Ohio State]] | 1 | 2 | .333 | 2002 |
2 | [[Florida Gators football|Florida]] | 2 | 0 | 1.000 | 2006, 2008 |
2 | [[Auburn Tigers football|Auburn]] | 1 | 1 | .500 | 2010 |
2 | [[Miami Hurricanes football|Miami]] | 1 | 1 | .500 | 2001 |
2 | [[Texas Longhorns football|Texas]] | 1 | 1 | .500 | 2005 |
2 | [[USC Trojans football|USC]] | 1 | 1 | .500 | 2004 |
1 | [[Tennessee Volunteers football|Tennessee]] | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | 1998 |
1 | [[Nebraska Cornhuskers football|Nebraska]] | 0 | 1 | .000 | - |
1 | [[Notre Dame Fighting Irish football|Notre Dame]] | 0 | 1 | .000 | - |
1 | [[Oregon Ducks football|Oregon]] | 0 | 1 | .000 | - |
1 | [[Virginia Tech Hokies football|Virginia Tech]] | 0 | 1 | .000 | - |
Conference | Appearances | Wins | Losses | Win Pct | # of Schools | School(s) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
SEC | 11 | 9** | 2** | .818 | 5 | Alabama (3-0) LSU (2-1) Florida (2-0) Auburn (1-1) Tennessee (1-0) |
Big 12 | 7 | 2 | 5 | .286 | 3 | Oklahoma (1-3) Texas (1-1) Nebraska (0-1) |
ACC | 4 | 2 | 2 | .500 | 1 | Florida State (2-2) |
Big East* | 3 | 1 | 2 | .333 | 2 | Miami (FL) (1-1) Virginia Tech (0-1) |
Big Ten | 3 | 1 | 2 | .333 | 1 | Ohio State (1-2) |
Pac-12 | 3 | 1 | 2 | .333 | 2 | USC (1-1) Oregon (0-1) |
Independent | 1 | 0 | 1 | .000 | 1 | Notre Dame (0-1) |
Note: Conference affiliations are contemporaneous with the game, which may differ from the current alignment.
* The American Athletic Conference was known as the Big East during the 1991–2012 seasons. Because of a split between the non-FBS schools and FBS schools, the conference adopted its present name for the 2013 season. All sports of the Big East conference were now under the right of the AAC. But with this new agreement the Big East basketball conference can still remain a conference after the collapse of the Big East football conference, and all other Big East sport conference affiliations.
** Alabama defeated fellow SEC member LSU in the 2012 BCS Championship Game, resulting in both a win and loss for the conference.
Team | Performance vs. Opponent | Year |
---|---|---|
Most Points | 55, USC vs. Oklahoma | 2005 |
Most Points Combined | 79, Texas vs. USC | 2006 |
Fewest Points Allowed | 0, Alabama vs. LSU | 2012 |
Fewest Points Combined | 15, Oklahoma vs. Florida State | 2001 |
First downs | 30, Texas vs. USC | 2006 |
Rushing yards | 289, Texas (36 att.) vs. USC | 2006 |
Passing yards | 374, Oregon vs. Auburn | 2011 |
Total yards | 556, Texas (289 rush, 267 pass) vs. USC | 2006 |
Total plays | 85, Auburn vs. Oregon | 2011 |
Largest comeback | 18, Florida State vs. Auburn | 2014 |
Individual | Performance, Team vs. Opponent | Year |
Total offense | 467, Vince Young, Texas (267 pass, 200 rush) vs. USC | 2006 |
Rushing yards | 200, Vince Young (QB), Texas (19 att.) vs. USC | 2006 |
Rushing TDs | 3, Vince Young (QB), Texas vs. USC | 2006 |
Passing yards | 363, Darron Thomas, Oregon vs. Auburn (28-41-2, 2 TD) | 2011 |
Passing TDs | 5, Matt Leinart, USC vs. Oklahoma | 2005 |
Receptions | 11, Kellen Winslow Jr., Miami vs. Ohio State (122 yards, 1 TD) | 2003 |
Receiving yards (tie) | 199, Peerless Price, Tennessee vs. Florida State (4 rec., 1 TD) | 1999 |
Receiving yards (tie) | 199, Andre Johnson, Miami vs. Nebraska (7 rec., 2 TD) | 2002 |
Receiving TDs | 3, Steve Smith, USC vs. Oklahoma | 2005 |
Field goals | 5, Jeremy Shelley, Alabama vs. LSU | 2012 |
Tackles | 18, James Laurinaitis, Ohio State vs. LSU | 2008 |
Sacks | 3, Derrick Harvey, Florida vs. Ohio State | 2007 |
Interceptions | 2, Sean Taylor, Miami vs. Ohio State | 2003 |
Long Plays | Performance, Team vs. Opponent | Year |
Touchdown rush | 65, Chris "Beanie" Wells, Ohio State vs. LSU | 2008 |
Touchdown pass | 79, Tee Martin to Peerless Price, Tennessee vs. Florida State | 1999 |
Pass | 81, Darron Thomas to Jeff Maehl, Oregon vs. Auburn | 2011 |
Kickoff return | 100, Levante Whitfield, Florida State vs. Auburn (TD) | 2014 |
Punt return | 71, DeJuan Groce, Nebraska vs. Miami (TD) | 2002 |
Interception return | 54, Dwayne Goodrich, Tennessee vs. Florida State (TD) | 1999 |
Punt | 63, A.J. Trapasso, Ohio State vs. LSU | 2008 |
Field goal | 46, David Pino, Texas vs. USC | 2006 |
Season | Player | School | Result | Stats | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2000 | Chris Weinke | Florida State | L | 25-52-2 274, 0 TD; 4-7 rush | |
2001 | Eric Crouch | Nebraska | L | 15-5-1 62, 0 TD; 22-114 rush | |
2003 | Jason White | Oklahoma | L | 37-13-2, 102, 0 TD; 7-(-46) rush | |
2004 | Matt Leinart | USC | W | 35-18-0 332, 5 TD; 2-(-11) rush | |
2005 | Reggie Bush | USC | L | 13-82 1 TD; 6-95, 0 TD rec | |
2006 | Troy Smith | Ohio State | L | 14-4-1, 35, 0 TD; 10-(-29) rush | |
2008 | Sam Bradford | Oklahoma | L | 41-26-2, 256, 2 TD; 2-(-18) rush | |
2009 | Mark Ingram II | Alabama | W | 22-116, 2 TD | |
2010 | Cam Newton | Auburn | W | 34-20-1, 265, 2 TD; 22-64 rush | |
2013 | Jameis Winston | Florida State | W | 35-20-0, 237, 2 TD; 11-26 rush |
Critics of the BCS National Championship argued against the internal validity of a so-called national championship being awarded to the winner of a single postseason game. Critics lamented that the participants were selected based upon polls, computer rankings, popularity and human biases, and not by on-field competition, as in other major sports and all other levels of college football, which employed tournament-format championships. Often, the BCS system led to controversies in which multiple teams finished the season with identical records, and voters distinguished the worthiness of their participation in the BCS National Championship with no set of formal criteria or standards. The end of the 2010 season was one of the best examples of this. Without any objective criteria for evaluation of the teams, the BCS forced voters to impose their own standards and tiebreakers. Critics noted that the system inherently fostered selection bias, and therefore lacked both internal validity and external validity. [3]
Controversies surrounding teams' inclusion in the BCS National Championship Game were numerous. In 2001, Oregon, ranked second in the AP poll, was bypassed in favor of Nebraska despite Nebraska's 62-36 blowout to Colorado in its final regular season game. In 2003, USC was not included in the championship game, but beat Michigan in the Rose Bowl and ended up No. 1 in the final AP poll. The following season, undefeated Auburn, Boise State, and Utah teams were left out of the national title game (the Orange Bowl). In 2008, Utah was excluded from the BCS championship for a second time despite being the only undefeated FBS team and finished second in the final AP poll behind Florida. In 2009, five schools finished the regular season undefeated: Alabama, Texas, Cincinnati, TCU, and Boise State; however, the BCS formula selected traditional powers Alabama and Texas to participate in the BCS National Championship Game.
In 2010, three teams, Oregon, Auburn, and TCU, all finished the year with undefeated records. While TCU statistically led the other two teams in all three major phases of the game [4] (1st in defense, 14th in offense [5] and 13th in special teams [6] ) the teams from the two automatic qualifying conferences, Oregon (Pac-12) and Auburn (SEC), were selected over the Horned Frogs for the 2011 national title game. Many voters cited TCU's membership in the non-automatic qualifying Mountain West Conference, perceived as having weaker teams, as one significant reason for their exclusion, despite TCU's undefeated regular-season records in both 2010 and the previous year. [7] Adding to the controversy were comments made by the president of Ohio State University, Gordon Gee, who said that teams which played "the little sisters of the poor" instead of the "murderer's row" of teams in the automatic qualifier conferences did not deserve any national title game consideration. Gee retracted his statement and apologized after TCU defeated Wisconsin in the 2011 Rose Bowl (the Badgers had convincingly defeated Ohio State during the regular season).
Many critics of the Bowl Championship Series favored a tournament with eight to sixteen teams, similar to those administered by the NCAA for its Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), Division II, and Division III football championships. Others favored adopting the incremental step of adding a single post-bowl championship game between the winners of two BCS games among the top four ranked teams in the BCS standings, a so-called "plus-one" option. On June 24, 2009, the BCS presidential oversight committee rejected the Mountain West Conference's proposed eight-team playoff plan. [8]
During 2012, the BCS actively considered changes to the format for the 2014 football season, to either to extend the season by one game by establishing a four-school semifinal round or by selecting the participants in the national championship game after the season's bowl games were completed. [9] On June 26, 2012, the BCS presidential oversight committee approved a four-school playoff format, in which the participants are determined by a selection committee. The semifinals are played as existing bowl games on or around New Year's Eve and New Year's Day. The championship game is played approximately a week later at a neutral site selected through a competitive bidding process. [10] The new format, known as the College Football Playoff began with 2014 college football season and is scheduled through the 2025 season.[ citation needed ]
From 1999 through 2005, ABC broadcast eight BCS National Championship Games pursuant to broadcasting rights negotiated with the BCS and the Rose Bowl, whose rights were offered separately. Beginning with the 2006 season, FOX obtained the BCS package, consisting of the Orange Bowl, Fiesta Bowl, Sugar Bowl, and the BCS National Championship Games hosted by these bowls, with ABC retaining the rights to the Rose Bowl and BCS National Championship Games hosted by the Rose Bowl.
On November 18, 2008, the BCS announced that ESPN had won the television rights to the BCS National Championship Game, as well as the other four BCS bowls, for 2011–2014. [11]
Year | Network(s) | Bowl | Play-by-play announcer | Color analyst(s) | Sideline reporter(s) | Studio host(s) | Studio analyst(s) | TV Rating [12] |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1999 | ABC | Fiesta Bowl | Keith Jackson | Bob Griese | Lynn Swann | John Saunders | Todd Blackledge | 17.2 |
2000 | ABC | Sugar Bowl | Brent Musburger | Gary Danielson | Lynn Swann and Jack Arute | John Saunders | Terry Bowden | 17.5 |
2001 | ABC | Orange Bowl | Brad Nessler | Bob Griese | Lynn Swann and Jack Arute | John Saunders | Terry Bowden | 17.8 |
2002 | ABC | Rose Bowl | Keith Jackson | Tim Brant | Lynn Swann and Todd Harris | John Saunders | Terry Bowden | 13.9 |
2003 | ABC | Fiesta Bowl | Keith Jackson | Dan Fouts | Lynn Swann and Todd Harris | John Saunders | Terry Bowden | 17.2 |
2004 | ABC | Sugar Bowl | Brent Musburger | Gary Danielson | Lynn Swann and Jack Arute | John Saunders | Terry Bowden and Craig James | 14.5 |
2005 | ABC | Orange Bowl | Brad Nessler | Bob Griese | Lynn Swann and Todd Harris | John Saunders | Craig James and Aaron Taylor | 13.7 |
2006 | ABC | Rose Bowl | Keith Jackson | Dan Fouts | Todd Harris and Holly Rowe | John Saunders | Craig James and Aaron Taylor | 21.7 |
2007 | Fox | 2007 BCS National Championship Game | Thom Brennaman | Barry Alvarez and Charles Davis | Chris Myers | Chris Rose | Emmitt Smith, Eddie George and Jimmy Johnson | 17.4 |
2008 | Fox | 2008 BCS National Championship Game | Thom Brennaman | Charles Davis | Chris Myers | Chris Rose | Eddie George, Urban Meyer and Jimmy Johnson | 17.4 |
2009 | Fox | 2009 BCS National Championship Game | Thom Brennaman | Charles Davis | Chris Myers | Chris Rose | Eddie George, Barry Switzer and Jimmy Johnson | 15.8 |
2010 | ABC | 2010 BCS National Championship Game | Brent Musburger | Kirk Herbstreit | Lisa Salters and Tom Rinaldi | Chris Fowler and Rece Davis | Lee Corso, Desmond Howard, Pete Carroll, Lou Holtz and Mark May | 17.2 |
2011 | ESPN | 2011 BCS National Championship Game | Brent Musburger | Kirk Herbstreit | Erin Andrews and Tom Rinaldi | Chris Fowler | Desmond Howard, Urban Meyer and Nick Saban | 16.1 |
2012 | ESPN | 2012 BCS National Championship Game | Brent Musburger | Kirk Herbstreit | Erin Andrews and Tom Rinaldi | Chris Fowler | Lee Corso, Gene Chizik and Chip Kelly | 14.0 |
2013 | ESPN | 2013 BCS National Championship Game | Brent Musburger | Kirk Herbstreit | Heather Cox and Tom Rinaldi | Chris Fowler | Urban Meyer and Desmond Howard | 17.5 |
2014 | ESPN | 2014 BCS National Championship Game | Brent Musburger | Kirk Herbstreit | Heather Cox and Tom Rinaldi | Chris Fowler | Lee Corso, Nick Saban and Desmond Howard | 15.7 |
As part of ESPN's contract with the BCS, ESPN Deportes provided the first Spanish-language U.S. telecast of the BCS National Championship Game in 2012.
From 1999 to 2014, the BCS National Championship Game was broadcast on ESPN Radio.
Year | Network | Play-by-play announcer | Color analyst(s) | Sideline Reporter |
---|---|---|---|---|
1999 | ESPN Radio | Ron Franklin | Mike Gottfried | Adrian Karsten |
2000 | ESPN Radio | Ron Franklin | Mike Gottfried | Adrian Karsten |
2001 | ESPN Radio | Ron Franklin | Mike Gottfried | Adrian Karsten |
2002 | ESPN Radio | Ron Franklin | Mike Gottfried | Adrian Karsten |
2003 | ESPN Radio | Ron Franklin | Mike Gottfried | Adrian Karsten |
2004 | ESPN Radio | Ron Franklin | Mike Gottfried | Adrian Karsten |
2005 | ESPN Radio | Ron Franklin | Mike Gottfried | Erin Andrews |
2006 | ESPN Radio | Ron Franklin | Bob Davie | Dave Ryan |
2007 | ESPN Radio | Brent Musburger | Bob Davie and Todd Blackledge | Lisa Salters |
2008 | ESPN Radio | Brent Musburger | Kirk Herbstreit | Lisa Salters |
2009 | ESPN Radio | Brent Musburger | Kirk Herbstreit | Lisa Salters |
2010 | ESPN Radio | Mike Tirico | Jon Gruden and Todd Blackledge | Wendi Nix |
2011 | ESPN Radio | Mike Tirico | Jon Gruden | Joe Schad |
2012 | ESPN Radio | Mike Tirico | Todd Blackledge | Holly Rowe |
2013 | ESPN Radio | Mike Tirico | Todd Blackledge | Holly Rowe and Joe Schad |
2014 | ESPN Radio | Mike Tirico | Todd Blackledge | Holly Rowe and Joe Schad |
During the BCS era, there was no NCAA Division I FBS playoff, and the BCS National Championship Game was just one of several national championship selection processes in existence.
The American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) participated in a weekly Coaches' Poll published by USA Today ; for its final poll of the season, the AFCA was contractually bound to select the BCS National Champion as its No. 1 team. [13] Thus, the winner of the game was awarded the AFCA National Championship Trophy in a postgame ceremony.
The BCS National Champion was also automatically awarded the National Football Foundation's MacArthur Bowl. [14]
The Associated Press and the Football Writers Association of America were independent of the BCS system; their national championship trophies could have been awarded to a school other than the BCS National Championship Game winner.
The Fiesta Bowl is an American college football bowl game played annually in the Phoenix metropolitan area. From its beginning in 1971 until 2006, the game was hosted at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Arizona. Since 2007, the game has been played at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. Since 2022, it has been sponsored by Vrbo and officially known as the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl. Previous sponsors include PlayStation, BattleFrog, Vizio, Tostitos, IBM (1993–1995) and Sunkist (1986–1990).
The Sugar Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game played in New Orleans, Louisiana. Played annually since January 1, 1935, it is tied with the Orange Bowl and Sun Bowl as the second-oldest bowl games in the country, surpassed only by the Rose Bowl Game.
The Bowl Championship Series (BCS) was a selection system that created four or five bowl game match-ups involving eight or ten of the top ranked teams in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of American college football, including an opportunity for the top two teams to compete in the BCS National Championship Game. The system was in place for the 1998 through 2013 seasons and in 2014 was replaced by the College Football Playoff under its original four-team format.
In North America, a bowl game, or simply bowl, is one of a number of postseason college football games primarily played by NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) teams. For most of its history, the FBS did not use a playoff tournament to determine an annual national champion, instead relying on a vote by sportswriters or coaches. In place of such a playoff, cities developed regional festivals featuring bowls. Prior to 2002, bowl game statistics were not included in players' career totals. Despite the move to establish a permanent system to determine the FBS national champion on the field, some bowls are still held.
Mid-major conferences in American college sports at the NCAA Division I level are athletic conferences that are not among the Power conferences. The grouping is used particularly in men's college basketball to describe conferences outside of the Big Ten, Big 12, Big East, SEC, Pac-12, and ACC, collectively referred to as the Power Six or "high majors".
The power conferences are the most prominent athletic conferences in college football in the United States. They are part of the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association's Division I, the highest level of collegiate football in the nation, and are considered the most elite conferences within that tier. Power conferences have provided most of the participants in the College Football Playoff (CFP) and its predecessors, and generally have larger revenue, budgets, and television viewership than other college athletic programs. The Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), Big Ten Conference, Big 12 Conference, and Southeastern Conference (SEC) are currently recognised as power conferences.
The teams that participate in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's Division I Football Bowl Subdivision earn the right to compete in a series of post-season games called bowl games. As of 2024, there are 42 bowl games, and all are contractually obligated to offer bids to specific conferences, a situation known as a "tie-in". The "top" six bowl games in the nation select their teams as part of the College Football Playoff (CFP), which was put into place for a minimum of 12 years, beginning with the 2014 season. Prior to 2014, the top five games in the country were chosen under the system known as the Bowl Championship Series. The bowls outside of the CFP have individual contracts with the conferences to offer preferential bids to teams from those conferences. As long as teams are bowl eligible, they may be selected by these bowls to meet these contracts.
The Coaches Poll is a weekly ranking of the top 25 NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) college football, Division I college basketball, and Division I college baseball teams. The football version of the poll has been known officially as the US LBM Coaches Poll since 2023.
The 2005 Tostitos Fiesta Bowl, played on January 1, 2005, was the 34th edition of the Fiesta Bowl. The game was played between Utah and Pittsburgh, in front of 73,519 fans. It is notable for being the first BCS game to feature a team from a BCS non-AQ conference.
The 2008 NCAA Division I FBS football season was the highest level of college football competition in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA).
The Bowl Championship Series (BCS) was a selection system used between 1998 and 2013 that replaced the previously similarly more controversial Bowl Coalition and Bowl Alliance that was used between 1992 and 1997 and was replaced by the College Football Playoff in 2014. The selection system was designed, through polls and computer statistics, to determine a No. 1 and No. 2 ranked team in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS). After the final polls, the two top teams were chosen to play in the BCS National Championship Game which determined the BCS national champion team, but not the champion team for independent voting systems. This format was intended to be "bowl-centered" rather than a traditional playoff system, since numerous FBS Conferences had expressed their unwillingness to participate in a play-off system. However, due to the unique and often esoteric nature of the BCS format, there had been controversy as to which two teams should play for the national championship and which teams should play in the four other BCS bowl games. In this selection process, the BCS was often criticized for conference favoritism, its inequality of access for teams in non-Automatic Qualifying (non-AQ) Conferences, and perceived monopolistic, "profit-centered" motives. In terms of this last concern, Congress explored the possibility on more than one occasion of holding hearings to determine the legality of the BCS under the terms of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act, and the United States Justice Department also periodically announced interest in investigating the BCS for similar reasons.
The NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), formerly known as Division I-A, is the highest level of college football in the United States. The FBS consists of the largest schools in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). As of the 2024 season, there are 10 conferences and 134 schools in FBS.
A national championship in the highest level of college football in the United States, currently the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), is a designation awarded annually by various organizations to their selection of the best college football team. Division I FBS football is the only National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) sport for which the NCAA does not host a yearly championship event. As such, it is sometimes referred to as a "mythical national championship".
The college football playoff debate was a very hot topic of discussion concerning college football in the United States prior to 2012. This debate—among fans, journalists, conference representatives, government officials, university administrators, coaches and players—concerned whether or not the postseason format of NCAA Division I-A should be changed or modified.
The Orange Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game that has been played annually in the Miami metropolitan area since January 1, 1935. Along with the Sugar Bowl and the Sun Bowl, it is one of the oldest bowl games in the country behind only the Rose Bowl, which was first played in 1902 and has been played annually since 1916.
The Plus-One system was a suggested modification to the process used by the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) to determine a national champion in college football.
The College Football Playoff (CFP) is an annual postseason knockout invitational tournament to determine a national champion for the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), the highest level of college football competition in the United States. It culminates in the College Football Playoff National Championship game. The inaugural tournament was held at the end of the 2014 NCAA Division I FBS football season under a four-team format. The CFP Board of Managers voted in 2023 to expand the playoff to twelve teams beginning in 2024, an arrangement that will last at least through the end of the 2025 season. After 2025, the current contract between all major players expires and a new contract will be drawn up, with indications that additional expansion may take place as soon as 2026.
The 2013–14 NCAA football bowl games were a series of college football bowl games. They concluded the 2013 NCAA Division I FBS football season and included 35 team-competitive games and three all-star games. The games began on Saturday, December 21, 2013, and, aside from the all-star games, ended with the 2014 BCS National Championship at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena that was played on January 6, 2014.
The New Year's Six, sometimes abbreviated as NY6, are the following NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) bowl games: the Rose Bowl, Sugar Bowl, Orange Bowl, Cotton Bowl, Peach Bowl, and Fiesta Bowl. These games are played annually on or around New Year's Day and represent six of the ten oldest bowl games played at the FBS level.
The 2023 College Football Playoff National Championship was a college football bowl game that was played on January 9, 2023, at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California. The ninth College Football Playoff National Championship, the game determined the national champion of the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) for the 2022 season. It was the final game of the 2022–23 College Football Playoff (CFP) and, aside from any all-star games following after, was the culminating game of the 2022–23 bowl season. The game began at approximately 4:45 p.m. PST and was televised by ESPN.
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