Example of the Different Polls: Harris, Coaches, BCS

BCS Standings - Updated: December 6, 2009
RK	Team	W-L	Harris			Coaches			CPU %	BCS
			RK	Points	%	RK	Points	%		Prev	Avg
1	Alabama	13-0	1	2841	.9968	1	1470	.9966	1.0000	2	.998
2	Texas	13-0	2	2721	.9547	2	1409	.9553	.9200	3	.943
3	Cincinnati	12-0	4	2467	.8656	4	1280	.8678	.9300	5	.888
4	TCU	12-0	3	2579	.9049	3	1336	.9058	.8400	4	.884
5	Florida	12-1	5	2395	.8404	5	1240	.8407	.9100	1	.864
6	Boise State	13-0	6	2358	.8274	6	1216	.8244	.7800	6	.811
7	Oregon	10-2	7	2130	.7474	7	1096	.7431	.7800	7	.757
8	Ohio State	10-2	8	2081	.7302	8	1077	.7302	.5100	8	.657
9	Georgia Tech	11-2	10	1787	.6270	10	921	.6244	.6900	10	.649
10	Iowa	10-2	11	1772	.6218	11	918	.6224	.6100	9	.618
11	Virginia Tech	9-3	12	1569	.5505	12	829	.5620	.5900	12	.568
12	LSU	9-3	13	1384	.4856	13	718	.4868	.6400	13	.537
13	Penn State	10-2	9	1800	.6316	9	950	.6441	.3200	11	.532
14	Brigham Young	10-2	14	1349	.4733	14	702	.4759	.4100	14	.453
15	Miami (FL)	9-3	15	1173	.4116	15	611	.4142	.5000	17	.442
16	West Virginia	9-3	18	730	.2561	17	429	.2908	.4600	23	.336
17	Pittsburgh	9-3	16	995	.3491	16	506	.3431	.2500	15	.314
18	Oregon State	8-4	19	722	.2533	20	368	.2495	.3600	16	.288
19	Oklahoma State	9-3	17	839	.2944	18	404	.2739	.2200	20	.263
20	Arizona	8-4	24	381	.1337	23	237	.1607	.3800	0	.225
21	Stanford	8-4	21	625	.2193	21	253	.1715	.1500	24	.180
22	Nebraska	9-4	20	631	.2214	19	391	.2651	.0100	22	.165
23	Utah	9-3	22	511	.1793	24	183	.1241	.0700	25	.124
24	USC	8-4	26	124	.0435	27	42	.0285	.2900	18	.121
25	Wisconsin	9-3	23	409	.1435	22	247	.1675	.0500	0	.120

Polls Explained: Harris, Coaches, BCS

I. Harris Interactive Poll (1/3rd)
Replaces the AP Poll. The first poll will be released September 27, then weekly through December 6. A team's score in the Harris poll will be divided by 2,850, which is the maximum number of points any team can receive if all 114 voting members rank the same team as Number 1. Example: 2,850 / 2,850 = 1.0. If a team receives a total of 114 voting points, an average of 25th place, their BCS quotient of this component would be .04. (1.0 / 25 = 0.04).

II. Coaches Poll (1/3rd)
A team's score in the USA Today poll will be divided by 1,475, which is the maximum number of points any team can receive if all 59 voting members rank the same team as Number 1. Example: 1,475 / 1,475 = 1.0. If a team receives a total of 59 voting points, an average of 25th place, their BCS quotient of this component would be .04. (1.0 / 25 = 0.04).
(Better understanding the polls: In both human polls, voting members fill out their own top 25 rankings ballot. Each team receives 1-25 points in reverse order of the way they are ranked. The 25th place team on each ballot receives 1 point, 24th place gets 2 points, 23rd receives 3 points... first place receives 25 points. This inverse point order is also applied to the computer rankings.
In the Harris Interactive College Football Poll and USA Today Coaches Poll, a team will be evaluated on the number of voting points it receives in each poll. The number of actual voters, which can vary and has varied in the past, is figured into the computation on a weekly basis in stating each team's percentage of a possible perfect score.

III. Computer rankings (1/3rd)
The computer rankings percentage is calculated by dropping the highest and lowest ranking for each team and then dividing the remaining total by 100, the maximum possible points. (Example: the 6 rankers have Team A ranked 2, 3, 3, 3, 3, and 4. Take away the 2 and 4 which leaves an average of 3rd place. The BCS quotient of this component would be 0.92. (23 / 25 = 0.92).

Simplifying the formula
The percentage totals of the Harris Interactive Poll, USA Today Poll, and the computer rankings are then averaged. The teams’ averages are ranked to produce the BCS Standings.
A = Team is No. 1 in Harris Poll with all voters = 1.000
B = Same team is No. 1 in Coaches Poll with all voters = 1.000
C = Same team is No. 3 in Computer Rankings = 0.920
Result: (A+B+C)/3 = Total Score of 0.973

http://www.collegefootballpoll.com/bcs_explained.html

http://msn.foxsports.com/cfb/polls

The Case of the "Mythical" Champion

This can lead to alot of problems for the BCS. Here's a situation: LSU beat Oklahoma 21-17 but USC was voted #1 by the AP poll after a 28-14 win over Michigan in the Rose Bowl in 2003.


Here are some other situations where this happened:

Pre-BCS Split "Mythical" Titles
1954 Ohio State (AP), UCLA (UPI Coaches Poll)
1957 Auburn (AP), Ohio State (UPI Coaches Poll)
1965 Alabama (AP), Michigan State (UPI Coaches Poll)
1970 Nebraska (AP), Texas (UPI Coaches Poll)
1973 Notre Dame (AP), Alabama (UPI Coaches Poll)
1974 Oklahoma (AP), Southern California (UPI Coaches Poll)
1978 Alabama (AP), Southern California (UPI Coaches Poll)
1990 Colorado (AP), Georgia Tech (UPI Coaches Poll) YAY COLORADO BUFFALOES! :)
1991 Miami, Fla. (AP), Washington (USA Today/CNN Coaches Poll)
1994 Nebraska (AP, USA Today/ESPN Coaches Poll)
1997 Michigan (AP), Nebraska (USA Today/ESPN Coaches Poll)

http://www.collegefootballpoll.com/bcs_explained.html
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