The 2013–14 NCAA football bowl games were a series of college football bowl games. They concluded the 2013 NCAA Division I FBS football season and included 35 team-competitive games and three all-star games (down from four as the Texas vs the Nation game was cancelled for this season). The games began on Saturday, December 21, 2013, and, aside from the all-star games, ended with the 2014 BCS National Championship at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena that was played on January 6, 2014.
| 2013–14 NCAA football bowl games | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Season | 2013 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Regular season | August 29, 2013 – December 14, 2013 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Number of bowls | 35 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| All-star games | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bowl games | December 21, 2013 – January 25, 2014 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| National Championship | 2014 BCS National Championship | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Location of Championship | Rose Bowl Pasadena, California | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Champions | Florida State | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bowl Challenge Cup winner | SEC | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The total of 35 team-competitive bowls was unchanged from the previous year. While bowl games had been the purview of only the very best teams for nearly a century, this was the eighth consecutive year that teams with non-winning seasons participated in bowl games. To fill the 70 available bowl slots, a total of eight teams (11% of all participants) with non-winning seasons participated in bowl games—all eight had a .500 (6–6) season.
Schedule
editThe 2013–14 bowl season served as the last for the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) format. Starting in 2014–15, a new system, the College Football Playoff, was used.
The 2013–2014 bowl game schedule, with 70 teams to compete in 35 bowls, was announced in May 2013.[1] All bowl game participants were selected by December 8, 2013.
Note: All times are EST (UTC−5). Rankings from final BCS poll.
Non-BCS games
editBCS Games
edit| Date | Game | Site | Television | Teams | Affiliations | Results |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan. 1 | Rose Bowl | Rose Bowl Pasadena, CA 5:00 pm |
ESPN | #4 Michigan State Spartans[4] (12–1) #5 Stanford Cardinal[4] (11–2) |
Big Ten Pac-12 |
Michigan State 24 Stanford 20 |
| Fiesta Bowl | University of Phoenix Stadium Glendale, AZ 8:30 pm |
#15 UCF Knights[5] (11–1) #6 Baylor Bears[5] (11–1) |
American Big 12 |
UCF 52 Baylor 42 | ||
| Jan. 2 | Sugar Bowl | Mercedes-Benz Superdome New Orleans, LA 8:30 pm |
#11 Oklahoma Sooners[6] (10–2) #3 Alabama Crimson Tide[6] (11–1) |
Big 12 SEC |
Oklahoma 45 Alabama 31 | |
| Jan. 3 | Orange Bowl | Sun Life Stadium Miami Gardens, FL 8:30 pm |
#12 Clemson Tigers[7] (10–2) #7 Ohio State Buckeyes[7] (12–1) |
ACC Big Ten |
Clemson 40 Ohio State 35 | |
| Jan. 6 | BCS National Championship Game | Rose Bowl Pasadena, CA 8:30 pm |
#1 Florida State Seminoles[8] (13–0) #2 Auburn Tigers[8] (12–1) |
ACC SEC |
Florida State 34 Auburn 31 |
Post BCS all-star games
edit| Date | Game | Site | Television | Participants | Results |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan. 11 | Medal of Honor Bowl | Johnson Hagood Stadium Charleston, SC 2:00 pm |
NBCSN | American Team vs. National Team |
American 20 National 3 |
| Jan. 18 | East-West Shrine Game | Tropicana Field St. Petersburg, FL 4:00 pm |
NFL Network | East Team vs. West Team |
East 23 West 13 |
| NFLPA Collegiate Bowl | StubHub Center Carson, CA 6:00 pm |
ESPN2 | American Team vs. National Team |
National 31 American 17 | |
| Jan. 25 | Senior Bowl | Ladd–Peebles Stadium Mobile, AL 4:00 pm |
NFL Network | North Team vs. South Team |
South 20 North 10 |
Bowl Challenge Cup standings
edit| Conference | Total games | Wins | Losses | Pct. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun Belt * | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1.000 |
| SEC | 10 | 7 | 3 | .700 |
| Independents | 3 | 2 | 1 | .667 |
| Pac-12 | 9 | 6 | 3 | .667 |
| Big 12 | 6 | 3 | 3 | .500 |
| C-USA | 6 | 3 | 3 | .500 |
| MW | 6 | 3 | 3 | .500 |
| ACC | 11 | 5 | 6 | .455 |
| American | 5 | 2 | 3 | .400 |
| Big Ten | 7 | 2 | 5 | .286 |
| MAC | 5 | 0 | 5 | .000 |
* Sun Belt does not meet minimum game requirement of three teams needed for a conference to be eligible.
Selection of the teams
edit
To play in a bowl game, a college football team must qualify to do so according to the NCAA rules of bowl eligibility.
As in the 2010, 2011, and 2012 seasons, initial bowl eligibility would go to teams with no lower than a non-losing record (6–6) for the season. On August 2, 2012, the NCAA Division I Board of Directors approved a significant change to the process to determine bowl eligible teams, going so far as to potentially allow 5–7 teams to go to a bowl, in case there were not enough regular bowl-eligible teams to fill every game.
The easing of the bowl eligibility rules resulted in a record number of teams, 79 versus the 71 or 72 of the past few seasons, being deemed eligible for selection to a 2013–14 bowl game. The easing of rules to include teams with losing records and teams from the lower Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), will carry extra importance starting in the 2014–15 bowl season, when the number of bowl games will increase to 39—requiring 78 eligible teams.
If a bowl has one or more conferences/teams unable to meet their contractual commitments and there are no available bowl-eligible teams, the open spots can be filled – by the particular bowl's sponsoring agencies – as follows:[9]
- Teams finishing with an above .500 record, that is, 7–5. In case of two teams with identical record, the team with a .500 or above in conference play, AND winning percentage in a) FIRST non-conference Road games against i) BCS conference opponents, ii) Division I non BCS conference opponents, b) SECOND non-conference Neutral-site games against iii) BCS conference opponents, iv) Division I non BCS conference opponents, c) THIRD non-conference Home games against v) BCS conference opponents, vi) Division I non BCS conference opponents, and last, games at home against lower division opponents.
- Teams finishing 6–6 with one win against a team from the lower Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), regardless of whether that FCS school meets NCAA scholarship requirements. Until now, an FCS win counted only if that opponent met the scholarship requirements—specifically, that school had to award at least 90% of the FCS maximum of 63 scholarship equivalents over a two-year period. In the 2013 season, programs in four FCS conferences cannot meet the 90% requirement (56.7 equivalents)—the Ivy League, which prohibits all athletic scholarships; the Pioneer Football League, which does not currently award football scholarships; the Patriot League, which only began awarding football scholarships in the 2012 season and had a limit of 30 equivalents in the 2013 season; and the Northeast Conference, which limits football scholarships to 40 equivalents.
- 6–6 teams with two wins over FCS schools.
- 6–7 teams that normally play a 13-team schedule, such as Hawaii's home opponents. Although Hawaii normally plays a 13-game schedule, it is only playing 12 games this season.
- FCS teams who are in the final year of the two-year FBS transition process, if they have at least a 6–6 record.
- Finally, 5–7 teams that have a top-5 Academic Progress Rate (APR) score. This was later adjusted to allow other 5–7 teams to be selected thereafter—in order of their APR.[10]
Under a rule change approved by the NCAA Legislative Council on May 3, 2013, teams that enter a conference championship game with a 6–6 record, with no more than one win over an FCS school, are bowl-eligible regardless of the result of the championship game, without the team having to seek an NCAA waiver.[11]
Bowl Championship Series
editTen teams were selected for the Bowl Championship Series:
|
|
BCS top 25 teams
edit| Rank | Team | Conference and standing | Bowl game |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Florida State Seminoles | ACC champions | National Championship Game |
| 2 | Auburn Tigers | SEC champions | National Championship Game |
| 3 | Alabama Crimson Tide | SEC Western Division co-champions | Sugar Bowl |
| 4 | Michigan State Spartans | Big Ten champions | Rose Bowl |
| 5 | Stanford Cardinal | Pac-12 champions | Rose Bowl |
| 6 | Baylor Bears | Big 12 champions | Fiesta Bowl |
| 7 | Ohio State Buckeyes | Big Ten Leaders Division champions | Orange Bowl |
| 8 | Missouri Tigers | SEC Eastern Division champions | Cotton Bowl Classic |
| 9 | South Carolina Gamecocks | SEC Eastern Division second place | Capital One Bowl |
| 10 | Oregon Ducks | Pac-12 North Division co-champions | Alamo Bowl |
| 11 | Oklahoma Sooners | Big 12 second place (tie) | Sugar Bowl |
| 12 | Clemson Tigers | ACC Atlantic Division second place | Orange Bowl |
| 13 | Oklahoma State Cowboys | Big 12 second place (tie) | Cotton Bowl Classic |
| 14 | Arizona State Sun Devils | Pac-12 South Division champions | Holiday Bowl |
| 15 | UCF Knights | American champions | Fiesta Bowl |
| 16 | LSU Tigers | SEC Western Division third place | Outback Bowl |
| 17 | UCLA Bruins | Pac-12 South Division second place (tie) | Sun Bowl |
| 18 | Louisville Cardinals | American second place | Russell Athletic Bowl |
| 19 | Wisconsin Badgers | Big Ten Leaders Division second place | Capital One Bowl |
| 20 | Fresno State Bulldogs | MWC champions | Las Vegas Bowl |
| 21 | Texas A&M Aggies | SEC Western Division fourth place | Chick-fil-A Bowl |
| 22 | Georgia Bulldogs | SEC Eastern Division third place | Gator Bowl |
| 23 | NIU Huskies | MAC West Division champions | Poinsettia Bowl |
| 24 | Duke Blue Devils | ACC Coastal Division Champions | Chick-fil-A Bowl |
| 25 | USC Trojans | Pac-12 South Division second place (tie) | Las Vegas Bowl |
Teams that became bowl eligible
edit- American (5) : Cincinnati, Houston, Louisville, UCF (Champions), Rutgers
- ACC (11) : Boston College, Clemson, Duke (ACC Coastal Division Champions), Florida State (ACC Atlantic Division Champions, Champions), Georgia Tech, Maryland, Miami (FL), North Carolina, Pittsburgh, Syracuse, Virginia Tech
- Big Ten (7) : Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State (Big Ten Legends Division Champions, Champions), Minnesota, Nebraska, Ohio State (Big Ten Leaders Division Champions), Wisconsin
- Big 12 (6) : Baylor (Champions), Kansas State, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Texas, Texas Tech
- Conference USA (7) : East Carolina, Florida Atlantic, Marshall (C-USA East Division Champions), Middle Tennessee, North Texas, Rice (Champions, C-USA West Division Champions), Tulane
- Independents (3) : BYU, Navy, Notre Dame
- MAC (7) : Ball State, Bowling Green (MAC East Division Champions, Champions), Buffalo, Central Michigan, NIU (MAC West Division Champions), Ohio, Toledo
- Mountain West (7) : Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State (Mountain West West Division Champions, Champions), San Diego State, San Jose State, UNLV, Utah State (Mountain West Mountain Division Champions)
- Pac-12 (9) : Arizona, Arizona State (Pac-12 South Division Champions), Oregon (Pac-12 North Division Co-Champions), Oregon State, Stanford (Pac-12 North Division Co-Champions, Champions), UCLA, USC, Washington, Washington State
- SEC (10) : Alabama (SEC West Division Co-Champions), Auburn (SEC West Division Co-Champions, Champions), Georgia, LSU, Mississippi State, Missouri (SEC East Division Champions), Ole Miss, South Carolina, Texas A&M, Vanderbilt
- Sun Belt (7) : Arkansas State (Co-Champions), Louisiana–Lafayette (Co-Champions), Louisiana–Monroe, South Alabama, Texas State, Troy, Western Kentucky
Number of bowl berths available: 70
Number of teams bowl eligible: 79
The easing of the bowl eligibility rules, to include teams with non-losing (6–6) or even losing records, resulted in a record number of teams – 79 versus the 71 or 72 of the past few seasons – being deemed eligible for selection to a 2013–14 bowl game.
Nine eligible teams did not receive a bowl invitation, including two with winning records: Western Kentucky (8–4), Toledo (7–5), Central Michigan (6–6), Florida Atlantic (6–6), Louisiana-Monroe (6–6), San Jose State (6–6), South Alabama (6–6), Texas State (6–6), and Troy (6–6).
Teams that did not become bowl eligible
edit- American (5) : Connecticut, Memphis, South Florida, SMU, Temple
- ACC (3) : NC State, Virginia, Wake Forest
- Big Ten (5) : Illinois, Indiana, Northwestern, Penn State (via NCAA sanctions), Purdue
- Big 12 (4) : Iowa State, Kansas, TCU, West Virginia
- Conference USA (7) : FIU, Louisiana Tech, Southern Miss, Tulsa, UAB, UTEP, UTSA (via transition)
- Independents (3) : Army, Idaho, New Mexico State
- MAC (6) : Akron, Eastern Michigan, Kent State, Miami (OH), UMass, Western Michigan
- Mountain West (5) : Air Force, Hawaii, Nevada, New Mexico, Wyoming
- Pac-12 (3) : California, Colorado, Utah
- SEC (4) : Arkansas, Florida, Kentucky, Tennessee
- Sun Belt (1) : Georgia State
Number of teams bowl ineligible: 46
Changes for 2014–15
editStarting in 2014–15, a new system, the College Football Playoff, has been used to determine the national champion.
The new format uses a committee of 13 people to select and seed the top 12 teams.[12] These teams are paired in six of the ten oldest bowl games—the Rose, Sugar, Orange, Cotton, Peach and Fiesta bowls. These games have been marketed as the "New Year's Six",[13] with three bowls played daily, typically on consecutive days around New Year's Day.
Within this New Year's Six format, the top four seeded teams are paired in two national semi-finals, followed by a national championship game played on the first Monday that is six or more days after the semifinals, at a neutral site.[14] The two semi-finals will rotate each year, first at the Rose and Sugar bowls, then the Orange and Fiesta bowls, then the Cotton and Peach bowls.
In addition, the number of bowls expanded to 39 games in 2014–15, with four new games – the Camellia Bowl, scheduled for the Cramton Bowl in Montgomery, Alabama pitting the Sun Belt against the MAC; the Bahamas Bowl, played in Nassau between the MAC and the American Athletic Conference; the Miami Beach Bowl, played in Marlins Park with an AAC team as host; and the Boca Raton Bowl, played at FAU Stadium, with a third MAC team taking on a team from Conference USA. The increase to 76 teams (38 bowls + national championship played by semi-final bowl winners) in bowl play required the easing of bowl eligibility rules, allowing teams with losing records or teams in the lower FCS to be deemed eligible for invitation to a bowl game.
Notes
edit- ^ The American Athletic Conference would have its sixth team to this game, but only five teams were bowl-eligible.
- ^ Conference USA was to have sent a team, but because of a lack of bowl eligible teams, the Pac-12 sent a team instead.
- ^ The Big Ten Conference would have had its eighth selection go to this bowl, but it had only 7 eligible teams. Therefore, the ACC sent a team instead.
- ^ Army would have been eligible, but had a losing record.
- ^ The Big 12 Conference was supposed to send its seventh selection to the Pinstripe Bowl. However since only six Big 12 teams were eligible this year, its place will be taken by an at-large team.
- ^ With two SEC in the BCS, the Pac-12 replaces them.
- ^ Neither the Big Ten nor Big 12 were able to fulfill their required bowl slots for this game.
References
edit- ^ "2013–14 Bowl Schedule", ESPN, May 22, 2013. Retrieved October 20, 2013.
- ^ Pinstripe Bowl set: Rutgers to play Notre Dame in Yankee Stadium
- ^ McMurphy, Brett. "Twitter Account of ESPN's Brett McMurphy". Retrieved December 8, 2013.
- ^ a b Wilner, Jon (January 7, 2013). "Stanford Cardinal headed back to Rose Bowl". San Jose Mercury-News.
- ^ a b Fuhrmeister, Chris (December 8, 2013). "2014 Tostitos Fiesta Bowl, Baylor vs. UCF: TV time, team profiles and more". SBNation. Vox Media, Inc.
- ^ a b "2014 Sugar Bowl, Alabama vs. Oklahoma: TV time, team profiles and more". SBNation. Philly.com. December 8, 2013.
- ^ a b "2014 Orange Bowl, Ohio State vs. Clemson: TV time, team profiles and more". SBNation. Philly.com. December 8, 2013.
- ^ a b "College football: Florida State to face Auburn in BCS National Championship game". San Jose Mercury-News. Associated Press. December 7, 2013.
- ^ Johnson, Greg. "DI Board approves process to fill football bowls in case of shortfall". Archived from the original on August 3, 2012. Retrieved August 2, 2012.
- ^ Palm, Jerry. "Possible fallout from Canes' self-imposed bowl ban".
- ^ "Midnight Madness to start earlier". ESPN.com. May 3, 2013. Retrieved May 4, 2013.
- ^ Whitley, David (February 8, 2013). "College football playoff selection committee members will need witness protection". Aol.sportingnews.com. Archived from the original on February 13, 2013. Retrieved April 25, 2013.
- ^ Staff reports (July 22, 2013). "Sources: 'New Year's Six' likely the working title for College Football Playoff's six bowl game". Dallas Morning News. Archived from the original on November 19, 2015. Retrieved July 26, 2013.
- ^ Heather Dinch (June 27, 2012). "Playoff plan to run through 2025". ESPN.com. Retrieved August 10, 2013.
Further reading
edit- Maisel, Ivan (January 12, 2014). "2013-14 All-Bowl Team". ESPN. Retrieved January 10, 2019.