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Ranking the BCS: Enough already!
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How much stock can we put in the AP polls at this stage of the season? Probably not much, but it’s really the only way we have of gauging things right now.
Until the BCS starts releasing its rankings in October, the AP poll gets the spotlight and is the most important poll for the first seven or so weeks of the season.
In the most recent AP poll, BYU sits at No. 9, thanks to its upset victory over Oklahoma last week. Coupled with this week’s resounding win over Tulane, the Cougars are in a good position to at least keep a hold on their current ranking.
Continued wins, mixed with the inevitable losses by higher-ranked teams, will help the Cougars continue to climb in the polls. It will be interesting to see how the BCS recognizes BYU’s tougher non-conference schedule and its continued wins, should they continue to come.
But will the Cougars or any other mid-major conference team really get a chance at the national title?
Unlikely. Even if they go undefeated. But we can still hope.
I think I’ve made it abundantly clear that I think the BCS is a sham(e). Yet, it is the only way we have to crown a national champion right now. Until a playoff is put into place, things are going to be this way.
There are 120 schools that play football at the highest level of play and each are part of ONE group called the Bowl Subdivision. Yet, of those 120 schools, only 66 – or 55% –have a legitimate shot at the national championship at the start of each season.
And that’s just because of conference affiliation.
Something’s amiss and it’s not just another Shaquille O’Neal free throw attempt.
BCS busting isn’t going to change things for the mid-majors. If something else doesn’t change, the best a mid-major team is going to be able to hope for is to go undefeated and get a No. 2 ranking.
Is there a scenario where a mid-major team can be ranked No. 1 or No. 2 by the BCS rankings at season’s end? We can only hope so. History has not given any indication that there is a chance.
That is a sad thing.
On to brighter things.
Based on this week’s AP poll, let’s take a look at how all of the Bowl Subdivision conferences stack up.
ACC: 4 teams ranked
Big East: 1 team ranked
Big Ten: 2 teams ranked
Big 12: 6 teams ranked
Conference USA: 0 teams ranked.
Mid-American: 0 teams ranked.
Mountain West: 3 teams ranked
Pac-10: 2 teams ranked
SEC: 5 teams ranked
Sun Belt: 0 teams ranked
Western Athletic: 1 team ranked
In terms of ranked teams, only three conferences (SEC, Big 12 and ACC) have more teams in the AP top 25 than the MWC. That means that MWC teams occupy more top 25 slots than the remaining three BCS conferences (Pac-10, Big Ten and Big East).
So where’s the love?
Is having a top 10 ranking and getting a lot of media attention sufficient for BYU? I don’t think so. What BYU, and any other deserving mid-major team, needs is to get the respect when it counts most – at regular season’s end.
In each instance of BCS busting in recent years, none of the teams from the mid-majors had a real shot at the national championship, even if they won their bowl game. Thanks to the BCS rankings, at season’s end, only two teams have a shot at the national championship and it’s not always the most deserving ones.
All the other ranked teams?
Well, let’s just say they have a chance of winning a flashy trophy and getting a bunch of cool t-shirts and hats – not to mention mega bucks for their conferences and schools.
What a sham(e)!
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