What Makes the BCS Function?

There is a particular location that I work at occasionally, where there seems to be one common bathroom for many of the employees in that building that is located very close to the break room. This specific bathroom has had an upgrade of the light switch to conserve energy. Large companies try to do what they can to save pennies here and there to see the large sums accumulate in their pockets at year's end. This upgrade has been installed for about 2 years now giving us a glimpse of advanced technology in the form of a motion detector. So, when you walk into the dark room, the sensor recognizes the change to the room and the light automatically turns on. Wow! This is amazing! The lights don't immediately shut off as soon as you leave, but there is about a five minute delay if there is no motion detected before the lights go out. Cool! Now, there is still a button just below the detector where you can manually turn the light on or off by pressing this button, but why would you do that? The automatic thing is really great! This is technology that can save time and electricity and it's nice to not have to touch one more button in the medical field with potential of spreading unnecessary germs. Therefore, I feel it should never be touched by anyone, unless they have sterile gloves on, or something. So, it won't surprise you that it bothers me when I walk into this dark bathroom and the light doesn't automatically turn on so I can continue to my original plan of destination without any further interruptions. It drives me crazy when I have to actually, physically, push a button to turn the light on. Doesn't it seem quite superfluous with the technology we have? Why do I have to push something? It's automatic! Why wouldn't you prefer this? It drives me crazy to have to turn it on! Or is there someone out there that hasn't figured out the automatic thing during the two years? We have the idea and capability of it working like it is intended; however, some of us are just flabbergasted that some people out there screw it up so that it won't function properly.

The invention of the motion-detecting, automatic light is a great idea if everybody used it the correct way; which is much like the BCS invention of the number one and number two teams playing for a national championship with the capability of it working like it is intended, but there are some people and teams out there that screw it up so that it won't function properly. It drives me crazy just as much, if not much more, than the automatic light being turned off manually by some knucklehead.

So, the dream of having a number one and number two team playing every year in the biggest game of the season is so wonderful and heart-warming that it sends chills down my backside just thinking about it. This is the cause and purpose of the Bowl Championship Series (BCS). The BCS has devised a complicated mathematical equation with computer rankings, strength of schedule calculations, and human-based polls, to acquire the most amazing list of the top 25 college programs in the country. This list of the 25 most successful universities will send the first and second names on the list to a championship bowl game to determine which one, single team deserves the national recognition to be hailed the best team in the country. -Hold on while I wipe the tears from my cheeks- A long time ago (about 13 years or so) there used to be some major bowl games throughout the country that housed the top teams nationwide. Once in a while (nearly always), there would be a couple teams that would be at the top of the polls (AP and Coaches' polls) and not get to play each other in those bowls and those two or three teams would win their final games and the national champion would be determined by vote, not by beating any of the other top teams. This would leave at least one team wondering, "What if we played that #1 team? I know we could beat that team." They never got the chance. It's sad. That's the way it was... until... the BCS came along. Now, everything is better and perfect! (Whoa! Way too much sarcasm there - sorry.)

The BCS is far from perfect (check out my other blog entries - especially "Pac-10 Gets the Shaft"); however, it does seem slightly better than what there used to be. At least there is an attempt and means of getting the two top teams to play in the final bowl game of the season to determine the national champion. The BCS takes five or six computer ranking systems to show an "unbiased" means of accumulating important data for the final calculations. I do wonder about the computer rankings because some of them seem heavy on strength of schedule, and who plugs in the information for the computer to manipulate? Then the BCS had to develop a human-based poll called the Harris Poll due to the AP Poll not wanting to have anything to do with the BCS after a horrible fiasco with bowl match ups (I'm sure it wasn't a year that effected the Pac-10 at all - right!). In my opinion, the BCS lost some credibility again that year. However, the Harris Poll was brought about to bring in human voters into the equation to establish the teams to play in the most lucrative and popular game, after the Super Bowl for the NFL. The Harris Poll was set up to improve the BCS and current standings because the BCS standings would not start until well into the college football season. As well as the Harris Poll trying to ignore all the preseason hype about most teams by not voting until a good month into the season to show that the voters are unbiased. I have found biased flaws in the Harris Poll since its inception (see my other blog, "Harris Poll Bias") as recently as this last season of 2009 when Oklahoma was a mere 2-2 and voted in the top 20 in the poll. I'm sorry, but if you are voting to avoid preseason hype, which Oklahoma gets every year since Bob Stoops' second year at the helm, then a 2 and 2 team is NOT a top 20 team, but merely a mediocre .500 ball club. Two losses for anyone after only four games is clearly not living up to expectations and does not deserve to be recognized until they win their last 8 games - then yes.

The BCS has erred so badly a few years that it's calculations were so off that it ignored the number 1 team in the nation to send the 2 and 3 numbered teams to the championship game, sent a team to the national championship game after failing to appear at its conference championship game, sent a team to the national championship game after that team lost its conference championship game, neglected to send the number two team to the title game, etc., etc. It's like the light is on and instead of waiting for the five minute delay, someone manually turns it off. It's not natural. It should be predictable and less complicated. It was developed to clear all doubts about the teams and how well they match up. It's like we've gone back to the old days of random bowl games that don't play the two top teams together. It feels like having a motion detector to turn your light on and off, but you insist on using the button each time, instead. Plus, I haven't even mentioned the money factor yet.

The bowl games are going to make a ton of money, no matter what, but the BCS is sucking it out of the whole history and tradition of college football. Since the BCS has stuck in that extra fifth BCS bowl game after the 2006 season, the TV ratings have seen at least two games each year at 8.4 or lower when the prior BCS years before had only one game (ever) with a TV rating of 8.4 (as the very lowest rating). The large amount of bowl games are watering down the excitement and reward of a successful season. There are too many. A team with a record of 6 and 6 does not qualify for a successful season. Six losses shows more failure than success, no matter who you play. Teams being rewarded should have at least seven or eight wins on the season which would reduce the bowl amount significantly to allow the fans to rejoice in their team. So, how I see it, as long as the BCS is still in charge and hasn't succumbed to a playoff system, it will continue to water down the boring bowl games and any sense of achievement in a successful season playing 6-6 teams. As the automatic light system being a great idea and should theoretically work, the BCS, too, has fallen short due to the human factor that always messes things up. It drives me crazy!