BCS National Championship Game
| BCS National Championship Game | |
|---|---|
| File:Bcsuscnationalchamps.jpg The winner of the BCS National Championship Game receives the AFCA National Championship Trophy. | |
| Stadium | Rotates among the following: University of Phoenix Stadium; Louisiana Superdome; LandShark Stadium; & Rose Bowl |
| Location | Rotates among the following: Template:City-state; Template:City-state; Template:City-state; & Template:City-state |
| Operated | 1998-present |
| Payout | US$18,000,000 (As of 2009[update]) |
| Sponsors | |
| 2009 matchup | |
| Oklahoma vs. Florida (Florida 24-14) | |
| 2010 matchup | |
| Texas Christian vs. Alabama (January 7) | |
The BCS National Championship Game is the final bowl game of the annual Bowl Championship Series (BCS) and is intended by the organizers of the BCS to determine the national champion of the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (formerly known as NCAA Division I-A). The participants are the two highest-ranked teams in the BCS standings at the end of the regular college football season, currently determined by averaging the results of the final weekly USA Today Coaches' Poll, Harris Interactive Poll of media, former players and coaches, and the average of six participating Computer rankings.
The game was first played at the conclusion of the 1998 college football season in accordance with the agreement reached by the Big Ten and Pac-10 conferences and the Rose Bowl Game to join the members of the former "Bowl Alliance" to create the Bowl Championship Series. The Bowl Alliance and its predecessor, the Bowl Coalition, featured championship games from 1992 through 1997. However, these were hindered by the lack of potential participation by the champions of the Big Ten or Pac-10.
The game was initially rotated among the four participating bowl games, the (Rose Bowl, Orange Bowl, Fiesta Bowl, and Sugar Bowl). However, beginning with the 2006 season, the BCS National Championship Game became a separate event played at the same site as a host bowl a week following New Year's Day.
The USA Today Coaches' Poll has contractually agreed to select the winner of the game as the national champion in its final poll of the season. Thus, the winner of the game is awarded the AFCA National Championship Trophy in a postgame ceremony. The winner also is automatically awarded the National Football Foundation's MacArthur Trophy.[1] However, the Associated Press does not participate in the BCS and may award its national championship trophy to a different school. The AP has done so once to date, awarding its 2003 trophy to the University of Southern California.
Since the formation of the Bowl Championship Series, there have been several controversies regarding the selection of the participating teams. Most notably, following the 2003 season, the BCS ranking system excluded Associated Press #1 University of Southern California from the National Championship Game (the Nokia Sugar Bowl). The following season, in 2004, undefeated Auburn University, Boise State University and University of Utah teams were left out of the National Championship Game (the FedEx Orange Bowl), although the participating teams were undefeated as well. In 2001, Oregon, second ranked in the AP poll, was bypassed in favor of Nebraska despite Nebraska's blowout loss in its final regular season game to the University of Colorado. Most recently, in 2008, the University of Utah was excluded from the BCS championship for a second time despite being the only undefeated Division I-A team at the end of the season and finished second behind 13-1 Florida. Despite these controversies, since the inauguration of the BCS National Championship Game, to date only the 2003-2004 season resulted in a split national championship, when USC won the Associated Press national championship.
The National Championship Game for the 2007 season was sponsored by Allstate, played at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana, on January 7, 2008, and broadcast by FOX television network. The game featured the #2 LSU Tigers and the #1 Ohio State Buckeyes. LSU won 38-24 to become the first team to win two BCS national championships. Additionally, LSU became the first team with two losses to play in a BCS National Championship Game.
The game for the 2008 season was played on January 8, 2009, in Miami, Florida, and was broadcast on FOX, and sponsored by FedEx. It featured the Oklahoma Sooners and the Florida Gators. Florida won by a score of 24-14, becoming the BCS national champion and ranking first in both the final AP and USA Today polls. Additionally, Florida became the second team to win two BCS national championships.[2]
Future
The game's location rotates among the sites of the BCS bowls. Future scheduled sites are as follows (note the years shown are for the game, which occurs in the calendar year following the corresponding NCAA football season):
- Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California in 2010
- University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Arizona in 2011
- Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana in 2012
- LandShark Stadium in Miami, Florida in 2013
The title sponsor of the BCS National Championship Game each year will be the same as that of the bowl game in that year's host location. Thus, the 2007 game was the Tostitos BCS National Championship Game, after the title sponsor of the Fiesta Bowl. The following year saw it become the Allstate BCS National Championship, and the 2009 game bears the FedEx brand. The 2010 game will have Citi as its title sponsor.[3]
Based upon television contracts between the BCS and the Pasadena Tournament of Roses with ESPN, the BCS will retain its current format through at least the 2014 season. ABC will televise the 2010 game.
Criticisms and controversy
Critics of the current BCS championship complain that the national champion is decided by polls and computers—not by competition on the field. The BCS method chooses only the top two ranked teams, according to a combination of the BCS computer rankings and two human polls, to compete for the national championship.
This has often led to controversy and questions as to whether the team who won the BCS National Championship Game is actually the best team. In 2003, for example, USC was not included in the BCS Championship Game, but beat Michigan in the Rose Bowl and ended up #1 in the Associated Press final poll. The following season, USC and Oklahoma finished #1 and #2 in the final BCS poll before the games, while an undefeated Auburn team from the SEC finished third and was thus left out of the national championship game.
In all other NCAA sporting events, the national champions are determined by a playoff system.
Many critics of the Bowl Championship Series favor a larger championship tournament with eight to sixteen teams, similar to that administered by the NCAA for its Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), Division II, and Division III football championships. Others favor 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, the so-called "plus one" option. The SEC and ACC conferences have recently been pushing for some form of playoff system. On June 24, 2009, the BCS presidential oversight committee rejected the Mountain West Conference's proposed eight-team playoff plan.[4]
One idea gaining momentum that would combine both a playoff and the keep the heritage of the Bowls, would be to take the 3 large bowls that share the hosting of the National Championship and make them the playoff. Two of the Bowls would host #1 vs. #4, and the other #2 vs. #3. The third Bowl would host the winners that would determine the national champion. The three Bowls would rotate who hosted the above each year. This way there is a very high potential that the top team in the nation is in the top 4 and would play.
Game results
- For Bowl Coalition championship game results from 1992-1994, see: Bowl Coalition
- For Bowl Alliance championship game results from 1995-1997, see: Bowl Alliance
Template:Fnb †Double overtime
Records by conference
| Conference | Wins | Losses | Winning Teams | Losing Teams |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SEC | 5 | 0 | Tennessee, LSU (2), Florida (2) | |
| Big 12 | 2 | 4 | Oklahoma, Texas | Oklahoma (3), Nebraska |
| ACC | 1 | 2 | Florida State | Florida State (2) |
| Big East | 1 | 2 | Miami (FL) | Virginia Tech, Miami (FL) |
| Big Ten | 1 | 2 | Ohio State | Ohio State (2) |
| Pac-10 | 1 | 1 | USC | USC |
Records by team
| Team | Wins | Losses | Percentage | Title Seasons |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| LSU | 2 | 0 | 1.000 | 2003, 2007 |
| Florida | 2 | 0 | 1.000 | 2006, 2008 |
| Tennessee | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | 1998 |
| Texas | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | 2005 |
| Miami (FL) | 1 | 1 | .500 | 2001 |
| USC | 1 | 1 | .500 | 2004 |
| Florida State | 1 | 2 | .333 | 1999 |
| Ohio State | 1 | 2 | .333 | 2002 |
| Oklahoma | 1 | 3 | .250 | 2000 |
| Nebraska | 0 | 1 | .000 | |
| Virginia Tech | 0 | 1 | .000 |
Media coverage
Television
From 1999 through 2006, 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 2006–07 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. This means FOX has the rights to the 2009 BCS Championship Game, and ABC will have the rights to the 2010 National Championship Game.
On November 18, 2008, the BCS announced that ESPN had won the television rights to the BCS National Championship Game for 2011, 2012, 2013, and 2014. The contract with ESPN is notable as it appears the BCS National Championship Game will become the most prominent annual sporting event not to be shown over broadcast television.[5]
| Date | Network | Bowl | Play-by-play announcer | Color analyst | Sideline reporter(s) | Studio host | Studio analyst(s) | TV Rating[6] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | ABC | Fiesta Bowl | Keith Jackson | Bob Griese | Lynn Swann | John Saunders | Terry Bowden | 17.2 |
| 2000 | ABC | Sugar Bowl | Brent Musburger | Gary Danielson | Lynn Swann Jack Arute |
John Saunders | Terry Bowden | 17.5 |
| 2001 | ABC | Orange Bowl | Brad Nessler | Bob Griese | Lynn Swann Jack Arute |
John Saunders | Terry Bowden | 17.8 |
| 2002 | ABC | Rose Bowl | Keith Jackson | Tim Brant | Lynn Swann Todd Harris |
John Saunders | Terry Bowden | 13.9 |
| 2003 | ABC | Fiesta Bowl | Keith Jackson | Dan Fouts | Lynn Swann Todd Harris |
John Saunders | Terry Bowden | 17.2 |
| 2004 | ABC | Sugar Bowl | Brent Musburger | Gary Danielson | Lynn Swann Jack Arute |
John Saunders | Terry Bowden Craig James |
14.5 |
| 2005 | ABC | Orange Bowl | Brad Nessler | Bob Griese | Lynn Swann Todd Harris |
John Saunders | Craig James Aaron Taylor |
13.7 |
| 2006 | ABC | Rose Bowl | Keith Jackson | Dan Fouts | Todd Harris Holly Rowe |
John Saunders | Craig James Aaron Taylor |
21.7 |
| 2007 | FOX | Tostitos BCS National Championship Game |
Thom Brennaman | Barry Alvarez Charles Davis |
Chris Myers | Chris Rose | Eddie George Emmitt Smith Jimmy Johnson |
17.4 |
| 2008 | FOX | Allstate BCS National Championship Game |
Thom Brennaman | Charles Davis | Chris Myers | Chris Rose | Eddie George Urban Meyer Jimmy Johnson |
17.4 |
| 2009 | FOX | FedEx BCS National Championship Game |
Thom Brennaman | Charles Davis | Chris Myers | Chris Rose | Eddie George Barry Switzer Jimmy Johnson |
15.8 (26.8 million viewers) |
| 2010 | ABC | Citi BCS National Championship Game |
Brent Musburger | Kirk Herbstreit | Lisa Salters | John Saunders | Jesse Palmer | TBD |
| 2011 | ESPN | BCS National Championship Game | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD |
| 2012 | ESPN | BCS National Championship Game | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD |
| 2013 | ESPN | BCS National Championship Game | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD |
| 2014 | ESPN | BCS National Championship Game | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD |
- Expected announcer, subject to change.
Radio
| Date | Network | Bowl | Play-by-play announcer | Color analyst | Sideline reporter(s) | Studio host | Studio analyst(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | ESPN Radio | Mike Tirico | Jon Gruden and Todd Blackledge | ||||
| 2007 | ESPN Radio | Tostitos BCS National Championship Game |
Brent Musburger | Bob Davie and Todd Blackledge | Lisa Salters |
References
External links
- Bowl Championship Series - Official website of the Bowl Championship Series.