The Division I Council solidified the process for placing eligible teams into bowl games for the 2016-17 season during its Wednesday meeting in Indianapolis.
The Council determined that all bowl-eligible teams with 6-6 records must be selected for a bowl game before any teams with a 5-7 record can be considered.
After all bowl-eligible teams are selected, the 5-7 teams – which will be considered alternates – will be deemed eligible in descending order from the highest multiyear Academic Progress Rate in the Football Bowl Subdivision for the most recent reporting year. Those teams will then select the bowl in which they will participate.
If two or more teams have a tie in the multiyear APR, then the highest APR for the most recent single year will break the tie. This process will continue until all the bowl slots are filled.
The Division I Football Oversight Committee studied the issue and made the recommendation to the Council.
“It’s impossible to project how many eligible bowl teams we will have,” said Bob Bowlsby, chair of the football oversight committee and commissioner of the Big 12 Conference. “We think we have a selection process in the postseason that makes sense and is fair to the schools and the bowls.”
Last season, only 77 teams were eligible for the 80 bowl slots by the established criteria. The remaining three slots were filled by 5-7 teams. Those alternate teams (University of Nebraska, Lincoln; University of Minnesota, Twin Cities; and San Jose State University) were selected by the bowls in which they appeared.
In April, the Council placed a moratorium on the certification of new bowl games. No new bowl games will be played before the 2020 football season.
The new process will be effective for the 2016-17 bowl season.
