One BCS computer still ranks Notre Dame No. 1, because it’s the BCS
You saw the BCS Championship Game, right? Well, at least the parts that mattered before turning to something more interesting, most notably Alabama rolling to a huge lead over Notre Dame and ESPN showing A.J. McCarron's girlfriend.
[Related: Alabama's 'it' couple enjoys spotlight | Photos of Katherine Webb]
So you know that Alabama is the best team in the nation. Nobody in their right mind would pick Notre Dame ahead of Alabama after witnessing the carnage that was 42-14 on Monday night.
Oh, but the BCS has a computer that still prefers the Irish. So let the BCS bashing continue.
The Colley Matrix, one of the six computer systems used by the BCS, has Notre Dame ranked No. 1 and the Crimson Tide No. 2. Notre Dame's final ranking was 0.973997 to Alabama's 0.961139. Notre Dame had an edge in strength of schedule. Alabama won more games against top 25 teams in the rankings. Margin of victory is not part of the calculations. No matter how the computer spit out that reading, it's worth mentioning again: An entity the BCS uses still prefers Notre Dame to Alabama.
They're not going to make Alabama give back the trophy over it or anything, and it's just one of the many rankings the BCS uses to determine who plays in the final game (not who is awarded the championship) but it just shows once again that there are flaws in the process.
ESPN's Brad Edwards, who has become a foremost BCS formula expert, offered this on Twitter after pointing out the Colley Matrix's interesting final output:
We're all sure to find something new to rail about when the playoff system is implemented for the 2014-15 season. But at least we can be sure that there won't be such an egregious issue like a team winning 42-14 in the final game, but a component of the system picking the losing team No. 1 anyway ... right?
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