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Co-champs? It could happen
Posted: Tuesday December 29, 1998 03:09 PM By B.J. Schecter, Sports Illustrated TEMPE, Arizona -- The Fiesta Bowl claims to be the first true national championship game, thanks to the mathematical mystery called the Bowl Championship Series. Yes, the convoluted BCS formula allows the No. 1 and No. 2 teams to play, but not necessarily for the undisputed national title. Last season we had two undefeated teams, Nebraska and Michigan, and two national champions -- Nebraska was picked by the coaches and Michigan by the media. While it's true if the BCS existed last year the problem would have been avoided, because the Huskers and Wolverines would have played each other, controversy was unavoidable this season. The public struggled to grasp the formula. With three undefeated teams going into the final week of the regular season, a major controversy was brewing, because one would surely be left out. But UCLA and Kansas State lost, opening the door for Florida State. Seminoles coach Bobby Bowden , a likable 69-year-old teddy bear, has been down this route before. Florida State won the national title in 1993, but not without the help of Boston College, which shocked top-ranked Notre Dame one week after the Irish had beaten the Seminoles. As he walked off the team plane on Monday afternoon, Bowden beamed in the warm desert sun, strolled down a red carpet and looked like a child still enjoying his Christmas gifts. "I'm just tickled to death that things fell the way they did," he said, the smile never leaving his face. Of course, Bowden hasn't considered the possibility that his team may beat Tennessee and still end up as co-champions. Huh? Co-champions? How does that happen when the entire country is billing the Fiesta Bowl as the national championship game? It can happen, and it's much more likely than you might think. Consider the scenario: Florida State narrowly beats Tennessee, after third-ranked Ohio State (10-1) crushes Texas A&M in the Sugar Bowl on Jan. 1. Ohio State? Remember, the Buckeyes were the preseason No. 1 and held the top spot for 10 straight weeks before falling to Michigan State 28-24 on November 7. If the aforementioned scenario plays out, many people might believe that Ohio State is the best team in the nation. And they would be right. Florida State and Ohio State each lost one game, but the Seminoles benefited by losing nine weeks earlier. What's more, Florida State was drilled by mediocre N.C. State, 24-7, and was never in the game. Ohio State had a chance in the final seconds to win, but Joe Germaine threw an interception on fourth down at the Michigan State 1. If Ohio State wins impressively and Florida State wins a yawner -- a distinct possibility because the Seminoles are playing with, essentially, a third-string quarterback in Marcus Outzen, while Tennessee's offense is unspectacular -- there could be a split vote. The coaches are locked into declaring the winner of the Fiesta the national champion, but the writers aren't. Further, the writers hate the BCS and are still irked about last year, when Michigan was No. 1 in both polls at the end of the regular season and won its bowl game, but the coaches named Nebraska the champion, giving a gift to retiring Huskers coach Tom Osborne. Of course, this will all be moot if Tennessee wins. But Florida State is favored and probably will knock off the Vols. If that happens and Ohio State doesn't slip, we might be back where we started, with a pair of unsatisfying co-champions. Sports Illustrated writer-reporter B.J. Schecter will be filing daily reports from the Fiesta Bowl for CNNSI.com.
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