—->>>> Maybe?

The recent news about possible changes to the BCS system has been flying a little under-the-radar lately, so I’m here to get you up to speed:

–The annual BCS meeting closed out on Thursday of this past week.  Included in the meeting were representatives of the 11 conferences involved in the BCS, plus Notre Dame.  A final decision on any changes to the system must be made by July 4.

–A four-team, plus-one system is what’s on the table right now.  The No. 1 and No. 4 teams would play each other in one semifinal, the No. 2 and No. 3 teams in another.  Winners would meet for the championship game, obviously.

–One point of disagreement and debate is whether these semifinal games and the championship game would be played on neutral sites or on the sites of current BCS bowl games (Pasadena, California, for example, where the Rose Bowl is now).  Big Ten commissioner Jim Delany threw out the idea of playing the games at the home stadium of the higher-seeded team.  Issues about weather, however, are a problem for that proposal.  Big Ten schools don’t want to play in warmer climates because they think that SEC or Big 12 schools would have the advantage, and vice versa. 

–Some involved in the situation want only conference champions to be involved in a possible four-team playoff system.  In that system, last year’s Alabama team would not have even been eligible to participate in the national postseason.  As you’ll remember, the Crimson Tide beat LSU in the 2012 national championship pretty handily, 21-0.

–A proposal for the calendar includes playing the semifinal games on New Year’s Day and the championship game about a week later.  Declining attendance for BCS games could be tied to the later date of the national championship, as many people have already returned to work after the holidays.

–Once the BCS contract is up in 2013-2014, there will no longer by automatic qualifying berths for BCS bowl games.  Regardless of what is decided about a potential playoff system, the AQ system is dead after 2014.

–The Rose Bowl is causing problems, as many expected it to because of its long-standing tradition in college football.  Any amount of change to the postseason system has to take into consideration the Rose Bowl.  Rose Bowl officials want to continue its tie-in to Pac-12 and Big Ten schools, but others have pointed out the possibility of leaving the Rose Bowl out of consideration of hosting a semifinal game if it limits itself to only including Big Ten and Pac-12 schools.  The bowl would still be eligible to bid for the rights to host the national championship game, however.

–BCS officials will meet again in June in Chicago, and a final decision has to come by July 4.  If the four-team, plus-one format is not accepted, it’s likely that a modified BCS system will continue in college football.

Follow me on Twitter @AshleyScobyKSR for updates and/or Joe Schad retweets.