CatsClaw Wrote:What you guys are forgetting is that the Big Ten is getting a team in championship game AND a 2nd BCS team. The Big Ten is one of the few conferences that can have two undefeated teams at the end of the regular season, and it has happened in the past. And the Big Ten would rather have a team compete for a national title and a 2nd BCS team then a conference championship game that could screw up their chances at a national title AND a 2nd BCS team. The reason the ACC expanded was so they could get 2 BCS teams. The reason the SEC talked the BCS into relaxing their rules was so they could get a 2nd BCS team and improve their national title hopes (they complained that the conference beat themselves up). There is a lot of prestige in the Big East or ACC having two teams in the BCS. The Big Ten knows that if they can have two teams make the BCS they would be guaranteed to have a team playing in the Rose Bowl. Don't think that the Rose Bowl doesn't play a huge part in this.
Hail CatsClaw!
I respect you as a poster, but, to me, either you or I (or perhaps both of us) just have a mental block on this issue.
Let me first state that I understand the point about a conference championship game possibly hurting the chances of a team from a particular conference making the National Championship Game. I am only disputing the notion that a conference championship game also significantly impacts getting a second conference team a BCS Bowl berth.
First, the esteem factor for the ACC and the Big East is because neither conference has accomplished it yet. The Big Ten, SEC, and Big 12 have routinely. I think that is comparing apples and oranges.
Second, I agree that the Rose Bowl enhances the chances of the Big Ten getting a second team in
when they have a NC game contender because they will likely pick another Big Ten team for their game - if eligible. But this would be true regardless of whether or not the Big Ten holds a conference championship game, wouldn't it?
Third, mostly, a second BCS Bowl game basically gets a conference $4.5 million. It's not as though people remember the at-large entries each and every year and how many from each of the power conferences got in, the way they might the National Champion. And if its mostly about money, a Big Ten Championship game will make more than twice the amount of money the second BCS Bowl team brings in.
Lastly, can you cite any evidence having a Championship Game precludes getting an additional BCS Bowl team? Is there a year that sports reporters and fans can point to where they can say because so-and-so played and lost in their conference championship game they got passed over as an at-large BCS Bowl entry and as a result no other entry from that league got in?
I think the only time I can recall that even being an issue was back in 1998 when Kansas State was #3 and lost to Texas A&M #8 and didn't make it to a BCS Bowl game. But then K-State was getting criticized for their lack of schedule strength that year. So that factor plus not being an elite program gave the BCS Bowl Committee a reason not to choose them.
Of course, had there been no Big 12 Championship Game then K-State would have gone and A&M would have been left out, so the Big 12 still would have only gotten one team in that year anyway.
Now there have certainly been times when the loser of a championship game got overlooked for another team from that conference - last year with Kansas being chosen of Missouri being a prime example. But that's an entirely different story.
Again, the conference championship game hurting the possibility of getting to the national championship game I understand. But I am just not seeing how it's such a significant threat to getting a second conference team a BCS Bowl berth, especially now when ten teams instead of eight make it to BCS Bowls.
Cheers,
Neil