I’m not sure you understand the concept of “The Belt” - start by giving it to Nebraska at the end of the 1971 season, and, from that point forward, treat each game that the current beltholder plays as a “title fight”; if the beltholder loses, the winner becomes the new beltholder. Back in the days when college football games could end in ties, a tie was like a draw in a boxing title fight - the champion retains the title.
Here’s where it starts.
Yes, and you can’t make any inference between who is the superior team and who holds the belt. Theoretically, a top tier team could have an off day and get beat by a “cupcake” that then went into conference play. The result could be that the Belt would bounce around the weaker conference for the rest of the season.
What if Michigan had the Belt when they lost to Appalachia State (a DII team) a few years ago? A situation like that or similar to it could make for an interesting path until it got back to a top ranked program.
So, “The Belt” doesn’t mean anything but but is a fun exercise. There is also some game where you can make a chain of who beat who to determine what the best team is. Take the #1 team (if they have lost a game) then trace the schedules back to create a chain and show that some pansy team is the champ because they beat the team that beat the team that . . .
Oh no, I get the concept. It just seems statistically improbable. (Also, I’m an unabashed Alabama fan.)
That is true, but it should trend toward working it’s way toward the top. [Not that Baylor doesn’t have a great team.] It seems that in the last 10 years or so, between all of the bowl seasons and the occasional interconference games and TAMU moving from the Big 12 to the SEC, it should have worked its way over to the SEC at some point. (Also, I’m an unabashed SEC fan.)
Yes, but it can become a matter of scheduling quirks. One team may have it and be able to run with it. Another team may pull an upset, get it, and then lose it the next week. Another team, by virtual of their schedule will not play the team with the Belt. I don’t think Ohio State is on Baylor’s schedule but I think they would beat them. So just have fun with it. Don’t try to read anything into it. College Football isn’t professional boxing. If it was, they would only play one or two games a year and the next opponent would usually be unknown (or would be contingent on the outcome of the last match).
I haven’t updated this listing since 2011 but it does give a picture of how the BCS Championship games have differed from The Belt Holder since 1998
The “<<<<<<<” markers show where there’s a difference.
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http://collegefootballbelt.com/Seasons.htm
History and schedule
The games are listed in chronological order, the rankings reflect the final BCS standings, and the win-loss data is prior to the BCS Bowls.
1998-99 season
Monday, January 4, 1999
Tostitos Fiesta Bowl, (National Championship):
#1 Tennessee (12-0, BCS #1, SEC champion) 23,
#2 Florida State (11-1, BCS #2, ACC champion) 16
>>> BELT: Texas 1 11/27/1998 8/28/1999 <<<<<<<
1999-2000 season
Tuesday, January 4, 2000
Nokia Sugar Bowl (National Championship):
#1 Florida State (11-0, BCS #1, ACC champion) 46,
#2 Virginia Tech (11-0, BCS #2, Big East champion) 29
>>> BELT: Florida State 14 9/18/1999 10/7/2000
2000-01 season
Wednesday, January 3, 2001
FedEx Orange Bowl (National Championship):
#1 Oklahoma (11-0, BCS #1, Big 12 champion) 13,
#2 Florida State (10-1, BCS #2, ACC champion) 2
>>> BELT: Miami, FLA 31 10/7/2000 1/3/2003 <<<<<<<
2001-02 season
Thursday, January 3, 2002
Rose Bowl Game presented by AT&T (National Championship):
#1 Miami (11-0, BCS #1, Big East champion) 37,
#2 Nebraska (11-1, BCS #2) 14
>>> BELT: Miami, FLA 31 10/7/2000 1/3/2003
2002-03 season
Friday, January 3, 2003
Tostitos Fiesta Bowl (National Championship):
#2 Ohio State[18] (13-0, BCS #2, Big Ten champion) 31,
#1 Miami (FL) (12-0, BCS #1, Big East champion) 24 (2 OT)
>>> BELT: Ohio State 5 1/3/2003 10/11/2003
2003-04 season
Sunday, January 4, 2004
Nokia Sugar Bowl (National Championship)
#2 LSU (12-1, BCS #2, SEC champion) 21,
#1 Oklahoma (12-1, BCS #1) 14
>>> BELT: Southern Cal 11 1/1/2004 12/4/2004 <<<<<<<
** Though winning the BCS National Championship, the LSU Tigers were not consensus national champions. The USC Trojans ended the regular season ranked #3 in the final BCS standings, with three Coaches Poll voting coaches defecting from their agreement with the BCS to vote its designated game winner as champion, instead voting for USC.[20] USC was voted #1 in the Associated Press poll, and the AP awarded USC their National Championship. So, the 2003 Season ended with split champions which is what the BCS was organized to prevent. Because of this split championship, changes were made to the BCS formula for the 2004-05 season.
2004-05 season
Tuesday, January 4, 2005
FedEx Orange Bowl (National Championship):
#1 Southern California (11-0, BCS #1, Pac-10 champion) 55,
#2 Oklahoma (12-0, BCS #2, Big 12 champion) 19
>>> BELT: Vacated 13 12/4/2004 1/4/2006 <<<<<<<
** Pursuant to NCAA sanctions, running back Reggie Bush was declared retroactively ineligible for the 2005 Orange Bowl. The 2004 BCS championship held by USC (as well as their participation in the game)[22] was vacated by the BCS committee on June 6, 2011 after the NCAA denied appeal of sanctions.
2005-06 season
Wednesday, January 4, 2006
Rose Bowl Game presented by Citi (National Championship):
#2 Texas (12-0, BCS #2, Big 12 champion) 41,
#1 Southern California (0-0, BCS #1, Pac-10 champion now vacated) 38
>>> BELT: Texas 1 1/4/2006 9/9/2006
** Pursuant to NCAA sanctions, running back Reggie Bush was declared retroactively ineligible for the 2005 Orange Bowl and the entire 2005–06 season. USC’s participation in the 2006 Rose Bowl[22] was vacated by the BCS committee on June 6, 2011 after the NCAA denied appeal of sanctions.
2006-07 season
Monday, January 8, 2007
Tostitos BCS National Championship:
#2 Florida (11-1, BCS #2, SEC champion) 41,
#1 Ohio State (12-0, BCS #1, Big Ten champion) 14
>>> BELT: Florida 4 1/8/2007 9/27/2007
2007-08 season
Monday, January 7, 2008
Allstate BCS National Championship:
#2 LSU (11-2, BCS #2, SEC champion), 38,
#1 Ohio State (11-1, BCS #1, Big Ten champion) 24
>>> BELT: Missouri 5 1/1/2008 10/11/2008 <<<<<<<
2008-09 season
Thursday, January 8, 2009
FedEx BCS National Championship:
#2 Florida (12-1, BCS #2, SEC champion) 24,
#1 Oklahoma (12-1, BCS #1, Big 12 champion) 14
>>> BELT: Florida 12 1/8/2009 12/5/2009
2009-10 season
Thursday, January 7, 2010
Citi BCS National Championship:
#1 Alabama (13-0, BCS #1, SEC Champion) 37 vs
#2 Texas (13-0, BCS #2, Big 12 Champion) 21
>>> BELT: Alabama 6 12/5/2009 10/9/2010
2010-11 season
Monday, January 10, 2011
Tostitos BCS National Championship:
#1 Auburn (13-0, BCS #1, SEC Champion) 22 vs.
#2 Oregon (12-0, BCS #2, Pac-10 Champion) 19
>>> BELT: Auburn 3 12/4/2010 9/17/2011
After this past Saturday I’m beginning to think the most likely team to do this will be Texas Tech.
This is my first time learning about the College Football Belt. What a wonderful idea!
They said you could almost certainly choose any team in college football history and the lineage will eventually intersect with the belt. So purely as an intellectual exercise, I started with the Indiana Hoosiers of 1982, with '82 being the year I was born, and Indiana, where I’m from.
It didn’t really take too long! Indiana, much to my not surprise, only retained the ekedolphin belt once, against Northwestern, before losing it to USC on 9/18. USC retained it four times before going up against the College Football Belt holder, Arizona State, on 10/30. Arizona State defeated USC to unify the belts.
That’s good information. It reminds me of another site that does linkages between any two teams to see if/when they intersect. Play around at College Football Victory Chain Linker Version 1.0 and see how it works.
T’wernt K State and right now it’s Iowa State 0 and Baylor 50. So this week will likely be a “No.”
And Kansas didn’t do it either tonight.
Earlier I said Tech had the best chance but now I don’t know.
According to this thread’s now-closed poll The Belt has its best chance of changing hands in the next three weeks.
The Week 11 guesses are mounting up in
Week 11 CFB – Which AP Top Ten team(s) will lose?
My own pick in this thread’s poll was for Oklahoma State, and I’m still leaning that way.
The latest Sagarin numbers ( College Football Ratings Page ) for the teams involved are
===================== Baylor 94.59
Thu, Nov 7 vs Oklahoma ===== 83.64
Sat, Nov 16 vs Texas Tech === 80.45
Sat, Nov 23 @ Oklahoma St === 86.05
Looks like Baylor may just keep it this season!
My SEC-homer heart says that they will turn the belt over to the SEC in the Sugar Bowl. But my brain tells me that, if nobody in the Big 12 can beat them, then nobody except for 'Bama in the SEC can either.
The Big 12 champ (unless they play in the NCG) plays the SEC champ (ditto) in the Sugar Bowl, right? [IIRC the “Champions Bowl” turned into the Sugar Bowl after the Sugar Bowl won the bid. Correct me if I am wrong.] Which means that, either way, there is a better than even chance (IMHO) of the belt ending up in the SEC after this season.
[Emphasis mine] I don’t think that poll is closed yet.
ETA: I just voted in it.
The poll in the linked thread is still open. This thread’s poll is closed.
Here are the current votes in the other thread:
================================================================================================
Alabama Oregon Florida St. Baylor Stanford Auburn Missouri LSU
=====================================================================
armedmonkey 3 Baylor Stanford LSU
Death of Rats 2 Alabama Oregon
lieu 2 Stanford LSU
Munch 3 Baylor Stanford LSU
Oakminster 3 Oregon Baylor LSU
R. P. McMurphy 2 Oregon Baylor
Rucksinator 2 Stanford LSU
Sterling Archer 3 Oregon Baylor LSU
Wolverine 3 Stanford Auburn LSU
yellowjacketcoder 2 Alabama Oregon
Zakalwe 2 Stanford LSU
Zeldar 2 Alabama Stanford
===================== =====================================================================
12 29 3 5 0 5 7 1 0 8 /29
================================================================================================
Okay. So it wasn’t Oklahoma!
Clearly I got that wrong. At this point I’m going to say OSU has the best chance.
If the Bears get by the Cowboys the answer for this year may just be Nobody.
The BU/OU game was one of the most exciting I’ve ever attended but it was costly wrt injuries. WR Tevin Reese is out for the season and RBs Glasco Martin and Lache Seastrunk are injured so like against Texas Tech their depth will again be tested. Turnover aside, Tech’s freshman QB Baker Mayfield was seriously impressive Saturday.
Having watched OK State dismantle TT and Texas, no doubt this will be Baylor’s toughest regular season opponent this year. BU has never won in Stillwater, not even w/ RG III. This is the game.
As expected this time of year injuries will have as big an impact on this game as the inclement weather. Drango and Hager additionally for BU, Stewart for the Cowboys.
http://m.espn.go.com/general/blogs/blogpost?blogname=big12&id=76111&src=desktop
Here’s what’s at stake in the Big Picture of The College Football Belt today:
See http://collegefootballbelt.com/Seasons.htm
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Lineage of Champions as of Nov/22/2013
Champion Successful
Defenses Date
Belt Won
Date
Belt Lost
Miami, FLA 31 10/7/2000 1/3/2003
Southern Cal 24 11/11/1978 11/15/1980
Nebraska 15 9/20/1997 10/10/1998
Florida State 14 9/18/1999 10/7/2000
Vacated 13 12/4/2004 1/4/2006
Baylor 12 11/17/2012
Florida 12 1/8/2009 12/5/2009
Southern Cal 11 1/1/2004 12/4/2004
Ohio State 10 9/9/2006 1/8/2007
UCLA 10 1/1/1976 11/20/1976