Bill Hancock named first executive director of the BCS

Former NCAA executive Bill Hancock was named today as the first permanent executive director of college football's Bowl Championship Series.

Hancock was promoted from his role as BCS administrator. The BCS is the governing body of college football and had previously rotated the role of coordinator from conference to conference every two years. Atlantic Coast Conference Commissioner John Swofford will remain BCS coordinator through this year's title game at the Rose Bowl on Jan. 7.

Before joining the BCS in 2005, Hancock had served as director for the NCAA men's basketball tournament for 13 years. He is a 1972 University of Oklahoma graduate.

"I'm thrilled and humbled to move into this new role," Hancock said in a statement. "I love the special place college football occupies in our society, and I am proud of the great benefits the BCS has brought to student-athletes, college football fans and others. It's an honor to be working on behalf of this wonderful game."

-- Chris Dufresne

chris.dufresne@latimes.com

Photo: Bill Hancock. Credit: Associated Press via BCS

Wait: There IS a way USC makes the Rose Bowl, if you also believe in goblins

After further review, a popular term in college football this year, there is an extremely remote chance USC could still earn the Pac-10's Rose Bowl bid this year.

Earlier Sunday, Pac-10 spokesman Jim Muldoon said he could not find a scenario in which USC could qualify for the Rose Bowl. But, Muldoon said, sportswriter Bud Withers of the Seattle Times found a route for the Trojans.

It involves, get this, a six way at 6-3.

How it works:

Oregon loses to Arizona and Oregon State

Stanford loses to Cal

Oregon State loses to Washington State, beats Oregon

Arizona beats Arizona State and Oregon, loses to USC

USC beats UCLA and Arizona

Cal beats Stanford and Washington

All teams finish 6-3, then you compare records against the others. Arizona, Oregon State and USC are 3-2. Cal, Oregon and Stanford at 2-3 are eliminated.

USC wins a three-way tiebreaker against Arizona and Oregon State.

See how easy it is? Of course, the dealbreaker in this scenario is Oregon State losing to Washington State.

-- Chris Dufresne

chris.dufresne@latimes.com

BCS rankings week 12

What’s new at the top of the latest Bowl Championship Series standings: very little.

The order of last week’s top eight stayed the same in Sunday’s release, with Florida, Alabama and Texas holding down the top three positions.

The nation’s three remaining unbeaten schools--Texas Christian, Cincinnati and Boise State, are holding steady at fourth, fifth and sixth.

Rounding out the BCS top 10 is Georgia Tech at No. 7, followed by Louisiana State, Pittsburgh and Ohio State.

This year’s battle for two spots in the BCS title game at the Rose Bowl on Jan. 7 remains on track to be the winner of Florida-Alabama in the Southeastern Conference title game against Texas.

Florida, which had to fight for a 10-point win at South Carolina, remains first with a BCS average of .9833, followed by Alabama at .9521 and Texas at .9261.

USC, which suffered a 55-21 home loss to Stanford, tumbled from No. 9 to No. 18, one spot ahead of Stanford.

The Pac-10 has five schools in the BCS top 25, led by Oregon at No. 11. The others are Stanford (17), USC (18), Oregon State (19) and California (25).

The final BCS standings will be released Dec. 6.

-- Chris Dufresne

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The AP top 25 was released today (we are still waiting the release of this week's BCS standings), and USC tumbled all the way to No. 22.

The Trojans dropped 11 spots after losing 55-21 to Stanford. The Trojans have been ranked in 128 consecutive media polls dating to the start of the 2002 season, but never this low.

The Trojans haven't been ranked lower than No. 13 since October 2002.

Meanwhile, Stanford soared up the rankings to No. 14, its best showing since being No. 11 in the last regular-season poll of 2001.
   

Florida remained No. 1 and Alabama leapfrogged Texas into the No. 2 spot, one of only two small changes to the top 10.
   

The Gators received 36 first-place votes. Alabama received 14 first-place votes after its most convincing victory — 31-3 at Mississippi State — in more than a month.

Texas got 10 first-place votes. The Crimson Tide and Longhorns are separated by just five points.
   

The other three undefeated major college teams were next, with TCU at No. 4, Cincinnati at No. 5 and Boise State No. 6 for the second consecutive week.
   

No. 7 Georgia Tech and No. 8 Pittsburgh also held their places. No. 9 Ohio State and No. 10 LSU flip-flopped for the only other change in the top 10.

No. 11 Oregon moved up three spots, No. 12 Oklahoma State jumped five and No. 13 Penn State gained six places.

Iowa held its spot at No. 15 and was followed by Virginia Tech, Wisconsin, Clemson, BYU and Oregon State, which moved into the rankings for the first time this season at No. 20.

Miami dropped nine spots to No. 21 and was followed by USC, Utah and Houston — all of which lost Saturday.

No. 25 Rutgers into the rankings for the first time this season, and the first time since the middle of the 2007 season.

Arizona and South Florida both dropped out of the rankings after losses.

For what it's worth: USC officially eliminated from Rose Bowl race

USC football's sky and status kept falling when the Trojans dropped 11 positions to No. 22 in today's Associated Press poll while it was confirmed that Pete Carroll's team had been officially eliminated from the Rose Bowl race.

"I can't find any scenario where USC gets to the Rose Bowl," Pac-10 spokesman Jim Muldoon said in an e-mail today.

The Trojans (7-3, 4-3) could still claim a share of the Pac-10 title in a multiple-tie situation but cannot earn the automatic bid to Pasadena.

Thus, USC's streak of seven straight Bowl Championship Series appearances is over, but you might have guessed that after Saturday's 55-21 home loss to Stanford.

The best postseason game available to USC appears to be the Sun Bowl on Dec. 31. Oregon and Stanford, which both defeated USC, can finish no worse than 6-3 in the Pac-10, while 6-3 is the best USC can finish.

USC is currently tied with Cal for fifth place in the conference race, with the Pac-10 having arrangements with six bowl partners.

Other options for USC include the Emerald Bowl, against an Atlantic Coast Conference opponent on Dec. 26, the Las Vegas Bowl versus the Mountain West on Dec. 22 or the Poinsettia Bowl against the Mountain West on Dec. 23.

-- Chris Dufresne

Pac-10 approves reinstatement of Oregon's LeGarrette Blount

The Pacific-10 Conference today approved Oregon's request to have tailback LeGarrette Blount reinstated for the rest of the season.

Blount was originally suspended for the season by Oregon Coach Chip Kelly after the running back punched Boise State player Byron Hout following the Ducks' season opening loss on Sept. 3.

"After a thorough review of the situation, I am convinced LeGarrette Blount paid a significant and appropriate price for the mistakes he made on the field, and that he has learned important life-long lessons," Pac-10 Commissioner Larry Scott said in a statement.

Blount has been reinstated immediately, meaning he can play in Oregon's home game this week against Arizona State.

Oregon (7-2) is coming off a 51-42 loss at Stanford but will claim the conference's Rose Bowl bid if it wins its last three games against Arizona State, Arizona and Oregon State.

-- Chris Dufresne

Photo: LeGarrette Blount. Credit: Steve Dykes / Getty Images

BCS rankings Week 11

Florida and Alabama, headed for a Southeastern Conference title game meeting on Dec. 5 in Atlanta, are first and second in Sunday’s Bowl Championship Series standings.

But the real news is how one Texas school went down and one Texas school went up.

Texas ceded the No. 2 spot to Alabama this week, dropping to third, while Texas Christian moved up two positions to No. 4.

That’s really not important as long as Texas keeps winning, because Florida and Alabama have to play.

These are, though, high times for TCU, which jumped Cincinnati this week in the standings and moved into the No.4 hole vacated by Iowa, which lost at home to Northwestern.

The BCS title-game on Jan. 7 in the Rose Bowl appears headed on a track that will pit the Florida-Alabama winner against Texas.

Those three schools have clearly separated from the BCS standings field.

Florida is first with a BCS average of .9842, followed by Alabama at .9516 and Texas at .9234.

Texas Christian is fourth at .8620, followed by Cincinnati, Boise State, Georgia Tech, Louisiana State, USC and Iowa.

Iowa’s loss cost the Hawkeyes a six-position BCS drop while USC’s rebound victory against Arizona State bumped the Trojans three spots to No. 9.

TCU’s schedule strength should be enough to hold off Boise State for the automatic BCS bid that would go to the highest top-12 ranked undefeated champion of a conference without an automatic berth.

Boise State, at 13-0, would receive strong consideration for one of four BCS at-large spots.

Those prospects improved now that Notre Dame, with three losses, has been virtually eliminated.

Whether TCU, with a few breaks, can become the “non-automatic qualifier” to earn a trip to the title game remains to be seen.

For the Frogs, it still seems like a long leap from four to two.

TCU has an impressive non-conference resume having scored wins at Virginia and Clemson, with another chance to bolster its case this week at home against BCS No. 16 Utah. TCU ends its Mountain West season against Wyoming and New Mexico.

The top 12:

1. Florida, .9842

2. Alabama, .9516

3. Texas, .9234

4. Texas Christian, .8620

5. Cincinnati, .8580

6. Boise State, .8126

7. Georgia Tech, .7552

8. LSU, .6138

9. USC, .5922

10. Iowa, .5745

11. Ohio State, .5733

12. Pittsburgh, .5628

You can find the full list here.

-- Chris Dufresne

 

Chris Dufresne: USA Today coaches reverse call on secret ballot decision

It's been a tough year in the replay booth, but college football finally got one right when coaches in the USA Today poll today  overturned a decision made last off season to quit making their final ballots public in the final Bowl Championship Series standings.

There was "irrefutable proof'' this was the correct call and that the coaches had no choice but to do this or risk getting tossed out of the BCS starting in 2010.

The American Football Coaches Assn. last January commissioned Gallup to  find ways to improve the USA Today poll. Gallup suggested the AFCA could produce a more accurate index if the coaches made their votes anonymously.

Well, isn't this just what the coaches wanted to hear!

Most coaches never wanted their votes made public to begin with. They were forced into transparency after some suspect secret vote juggling in 2004 involving a BCS bowl berth battle between Texas and California. In one of the BCS's darkest chapters, Texas edged Cal by a slim points margin for the Rose Bowl berth, setting off arguments and cries of conspiracy. In the aftermath, the Associated Press pulled its poll out of the BCS formula.

After four years of having to their final votes exposed, and sometimes ridiculed, the coaches were all too happy to have Gallup recommend going under ground again.

But it was never going to fly with the BCS, which immediately sent signals that the AFCA had better reverse field or risk no longer being part of the BCS formula.

Today,  the AFCA wisely acted and acted wisely.

"The AFCA agreed to be a part of the BCS selection process when we were asked by the commissioners in 1998,” AFCA Executive Director Grant Teaff said in a released statement. “As with past decisions by the AFCA and the FBS head coaches, we are again acting in what the coaches believe to be the best interest of the game.”

That's just mumbo-jumbo for saying we got it wrong before, but now we got it right.

-- Chris Dufresne

Photo: Bowl Championship Series on Jan. 4, 2008. Credit: Charlie Riedel / Associated Press.

 

BCS rankings Week 10

Texas jumped Alabama into the No. 2 spot behind Florida in Sunday’s Bowl Championship Series rankings, USC dropped seven spots to No. 12 for losing big to Oregon, but Oregon improved only two spots to No. 8 for thrashing USC, 47-20.

Huh?

Welcome to this week’s BCS, a logjam of seven undefeated schools at the top and a lot of position jockeying.

The BCS top three did not change, only the order.

Florida held its No. 1 position with an average of .9918, followed by Texas at .9227 and Alabama at .9166.

The Crimson Tide was idle this weekend and host Louisiana State on Saturday.

The order, if the top three teams keep winning, is really not important. Either Florida or Alabama is going to lose if the schools meet in the Southeastern Conference championship.

Iowa, which needed another amazing comeback to stay undefeated, holds tight in the No. 4 position, followed by Cincinnati, Texas Christian, Boise State, Oregon, Louisiana State and Georgia Tech.
Oregon’s rout of USC was one of the most impressive performances in recent years, yet the one-loss Ducks are getting boxed out by seven unbeaten teams.

Incredibly, the Ducks’ computer averaged dropped from a tie for sixth to No. 7 this week.

Oregon did move up four spots to No. 8 in the USA Today coaches’ poll and three positions to No. 8 in the Harris poll.

If Oregon keeps winning against quality Pac-10 opponents, voters are going to ultimately have to decide whether to jump the Ducks over the only team to beat them: Boise State.

Right now, Boise State is holding strong at No. 4 in Harris and No. 5 in the coaches’ poll.

It remains to be seen whether this BCS traffic jam will get cleared.

Alabama and Florida are the only teams that may potentially play each other.

Texas has the easier portion of its Big 12 schedule left, Iowa plays at BCS No. 16 Ohio State on Nov. 14 and Cincinnati closes its Big East season at BCS No. 13 Pittsburgh.

Texas Christian hosts BCS No. 14 Utah on Nov. 14 while Boise State has no ranked opponents left on its schedule.

Notre Dame (6-2), which needs nine wins and a top-14 finish to be eligible for an at-large BCS berth, moved up one position this week.

The top 12:

1. Florida, .9918

2. Texas, .9227

3. Alabama, .9166

4. Iowa, .8407

5. Cincinnati, .8033

6. TCU, .8008

7. Boise State, .7863

8. Oregon, .7651

9. LSU, .7121

10. Georgia Tech, .6287

11. Penn State, .6166

12. USC, .5336

Do you agree with the standings? Leave a comment letting us know what you think.

-- Chris Dufresne

Chris "Rankman" Dufresne's top 25 college football teams

Memo to AP, Harris and USA Today voters: excuse me? Florida escapes two weeks in a row with help from the officials and stays No.1? Alabama almost loses to a team UCLA (0-4 in the Pac-10) defeated and stays No.2. And Texas finally plays like No. 1 but stays at No. 3? You should all have your medical marijuana cards revoked.
Rankman loves the SEC as much as anyone (cough), but this blatant display of affection is tough to take (Did that come out the way you asked for it, Mack?”)
Thank goodness there is one poll man out there not afraid to make Cincinnati No.3 in exchange for a year’s supply of chili spaghetti.

1. Texas 7-0; Brown was Ok with Oklahoma State receiver being reinstated Nov.1. (Last week: 1)

2.  Florida 7-0; Four out of five SEC refs tell dentists they have sweet tooth for Gators. (2)

3. Cincinnati 7-0; By now you know the “C” in BCS really stands for Cincinnati. (3)

4. Boise State 7-0; Broncos had sinking feeling they might drop in BCS standings. (4)

5. Oregon 6-1; Halloween uniforms: Pumpkin helmets, green pants, black jerseys, white shoes. (5)

6. Alabama 8-0; Kicker will live in protective bubble until Tide is eliminated from title chase. (6)

7. Texas Christian 7-0; Not sure what team did to BYU in Provo was Texas Christian. (8)

8. USC 6-1; No victories since 2005 in: Alaska, Guam, North Dakota, Maine, Oregon. (7)

9. Iowa 8-0; Year-end season highlights will be shown on fun-house mirrors. (10)

10. Georgia Tech 7-1; Latest health care bill may include Paul Johnson’s “triple” option. (11)

BCS rankings week 9 (updated with standings)

And here they are. The standings:

1. Florida, 0.9726

2. Alabama, 0.9450

3. Texas, 0.8927

4. Iowa, 0.8249

5. USC, 0,7944

6. TCU, 0.7890

7. Boise State, 0.7752

8. Cincinnati, 0.7735

9. LSU, 0.7030

10. Oregon, 0.6456

You can find the entire expanded standings here.

-- Houston Mitchell