BCS agrees to adds fifth game
By MARK LONG, AP Sports Writer
MIAMI BEACH, Fla. (AP) -- TCU and LSU in the Sugar Bowl? Boise State and Texas in the Fiesta Bowl? Marshall and Miami in the Orange Bowl?
As strange as they may seem, those matchups are now more likely to happen.
The Bowl Championship Series agreed to add a fifth game Sunday, increasing access for schools not part of college football's most lucrative postseason system.
It means a better chance at big bucks for teams in the Mid-American Conference, the Mountain West Conference, the Western Athletic Conference and Conference USA. But the changes do not guarantee that a team outside the six BCS conferences -- the Big East, ACC, SEC, Big 12, Big Ten and Pac-10 -- will play in one of the elite bowls.
``This is still a merit-based system,'' said Oregon president Dave Frohnmayer, a member of the BCS Presidential Oversight Committee. ``We have done our level best not to dilute the quality of play in BCS games.''
The fifth bowl is subject to final approval based on market viability, but all indications point to it being in place when the new BCS contract takes effect before the 2006 season.
``This agreement is a significant victory for college sports and higher education,'' NCAA president Myles Brand said.
Smaller schools have long complained that the current BCS system makes it impossible for them to win the national championship and puts them at a financial and recruiting disadvantage.
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