2003
Championship Game: No. 1 LSU vs. No. 2 Oklahoma in the Sugar BowlChampionship Result: LSU 21, Oklahoma 14
On the Outside Looking In: Kansas State and USC. The Wildcats upset the Sooners in the Big XII championship game, posted the same 11-1 record as Oklahoma and still had had to watch their rival play for the title instead of them. USC, also 11-1, was narrowly edged out for the No. 2 spot by LSU, who ended up shocking the Sooners with a superb defensive performance in the Sugar Bowl.
Other Bowls: Old rivals Miami and Florida played a great one in the Orange, as the ‘Canes earned a 16-14 win. Ohio State beat Kansas State in the Fiesta and USC beat Michigan in the Rose.
2004
Championship Game: No. 1 USC vs. No. 2 Oklahoma in the Orange BowlChampionship Result: USC 55, Oklahoma 19
On the Outside Looking In: Auburn. The 2004 season was possibly the BCS’ greatest failure. A great Auburn team survived the brutal SEC unscathed and was still denied a chance to play for the title. It didn’t make Tigers fans feel any better when they saw Oklahoma — the team that took their place in the BCS championship — get crushed by USC. Utah also posted an unbeaten record en route to a Fiesta Bowl bid.
Other Bowls: Auburn took its frustrations out on Virginia Tech, beating the Hokies 16-13 in the Sugar. Utah dominated a weak Pittsburgh team 38-7 in the Fiesta and, in one of the great Rose Bowls ever, a Texas team led by quarterback Vince Young edged Michigan 38-37. It was a sign of things to come for the Longhorns.
2005
Championship Game: No. 1 USC vs. No. 2 Texas in the Rose BowlChampionship Result: Texas 41, USC 38
On the Outside Looking In: Nobody. Texas and USC were the nation’s only undefeated teams. Their Rose Bowl matchup was highly anticipated, and the result was spectacular. Again, Young led his Longhorns to the win, giving Texas the national championship in dramatic fashion.
Other Bowls: West Virginia stunned just about everyone, and helped salvage the Big East’s reputation, by beating heavily favored Georgia 38-35 in the Sugar. Ohio State blew past Notre Dame 34-20 in the Fiesta and, in a matchup of two legendary coaches, Joe Paterno’s Penn State Nittany Lions beat Bobby Bowden’s Florida State Seminoles 26-23 in triple overtime in the Orange.
2006
Championship Game: No. 1 Ohio State vs. No. 2 FloridaChampionship Result: Florida 41, Ohio State 14
On the Outside Looking In: For the second straight season, the BCS enjoyed a relatively controversy-free year, as the Buckeyes and Gators were almost universally accepted as the nation’s top two teams. The Gators went to upset – and manhandle – the favored Buckeyes in the first-ever standalone BCS title game. This system, in which all four traditional bowl games are played along with an additional championship game, remains in place today.
Other Bowls: USC beat Michigan again in the Rose, Louisville beat upstart Wake Forest in the Orange and LSU dominated Notre Dame in the Sugar. Meanwhile, Boise State delivered an all-time classic by beating Oklahoma – with the help of two late trick plays – in maybe the greatest Fiesta Bowl of all time.
2007
Championship Game: No. 2 LSU vs. No. 1 Ohio StateChampionship Result: LSU 38, Ohio State 24
On the Outside Looking In: Just about everyone, or so it seemed. LSU was considered by many to be the nation’s best team all year, but the Tigers ended up with two losses, calling into question their credentials. Ohio State went 11-1 but a weak Big Ten made them suspect to many, too. Oklahoma, USC and Georgia all could have made cases that they deserved to play for the title.
Other Bowls: Some real bummers in this bunch. Though everyone wanted to see Georgia vs. USC in the Rose, the powers-that-be did not deliver. As a result, USC ended up torching Illinois 49-17 in the Rose, while Georgia beat Hawaii 41-10 in the Sugar. Kansas delivered an exciting win over Virginia Tech in the Oregon, while West Virginia beat Oklahoma in the Fiesta.
2008
Championship Game: No. 1 Oklahoma vs. No. 2 FloridaChampionship Result: Florida 24, Oklahoma 14
On the Outside Looking In: Texas. Definitely Texas. The Longhorns seemed to have the inside track in the Big 12 after knocking off Oklahoma in October, but a late-season loss to Texas Tech proved costly for the Longhorns. When all was said and done, the Sooners ended up playing for the Big 12 title because the teams' BCS rankings--not the results of their head-to-head matchup--were used as the tiebreaker. A very, very strange rule.
Other Bowls: The Longhorns gained some measure of redemption by knocking off Ohio State in a hard-fought Fiesta Bowl, while USC dominated Penn State in the Rose and Virginia Tech beat Cincinnati a fairly boring Orange. The real stunner came in the Sugar, where unheralded Utah crushed Alabama, 31-17.
