Nice to know that this is how the participants in the final games of the college football year are decided...

Why can't we get all sports to do it this way?

--- 12:58 PM ET

Kevin Blackistone of The Dallas Morning News:

"The sad reality... is that there are just two games left worth paying attention to. The first is that final regular-season contest Saturday for the Hokies and Hurricanes.

And if the Hurricanes blow away the Hokies, as they are heavily favored to, the only other game worth our while will be the Fiesta Bowl on Jan. 3, matching Miami against the other unscathed team, Ohio State.

All of which is yet another reason to loathe the BCS. Even when it appears to work, it is a ruination of college football. It renders an entire portion of the season, the one that was always the most fun, pointless."

--- 10:57 AM ET

Even in a season gift-wrapped for it with 2 undefeated teams, the BCS is still determined to screw things up. Let the fun begin...

"We have been assured that Iowa will be in the BCS system," said Big Ten Associate Commissioner Sue Lister. "We don't know which game, but that's a conference statement."

But when reached Tuesday evening, Orange Bowl Executive Director Keith Tribble insisted that's not the case.

"That's a major assumption on the Big Ten's part," said Tribble. "We have not made any selection or pick or anything of that nature. We still have various scenarios on the board."

Tribble, when asked what would happen to Iowa if it fell out of the BCS and with those games now locked up, said, "I have no idea."

--- 7:45 PM ET

The final 2002 College Football Playoffs bracket will be released late this Sunday. Check in then to see whether your team would have made the playoffs and who they would be playing in the first round.

--- 10:12 AM ET

Pete Fiutak of CollegeFootballNews.com:

"Get ready with those ear plugs, cause the Iowa fans might go ballistic. It's ridiculous, but the bizarre BCS has a funky little twist that might end up keeping the Hawkeyes out of a big money game. If USC finishes in the top four in the BCS, but doesn't win its conference, it's in. If Washington State beats UCLA, USC will be a near no-brainer to get one of the at-large bids and will finish in the top four. Wanting the prestige and popularity of Notre Dame, someone (like the Orange Bowl) can then get the team it really wants, but can't take over USC without getting publicly lynched. I'm not saying this is going to happen, but just the possibility that it might shows how wrong the BCS is."

--- 4:53 PM ET

The New York Times computer poll, one of the main factors in determining who will play for the college football national championship, has USC (10-2) as the #1 team over Miami (11-0) and Ohio State (13-0).

Thank you, New York Times, for demonstrating how stupid this system is.

--- 10:17 PM ET

So 10-2 USC beats 10-2 Notre Dame, 44-13, and it's Notre Dame that gets to go to a BCS bowl?

That seems fair.

--- 12:07 AM ET