BCS Rankings: Top 12 College Football Programs of the BCS Era

Since 1998, the Bowl Championship Series has attempted to rank college football's top programs. The following dozen teams have been perennially rewarded by the system over the past 14 seasons.

A multitude of factors affect the BCS standings, including results from nationwide polls, strength of team schedule, and at what point in the season specific matchups occur.

Winning games is paramount.

The following programs regularly finish with an elite BCS ranking because of their on-field success each year.

Alabama Crimson Tide

The Alabama Crimson Tide kick off this alphabetically-ordered list, despite having been very inconsistent  in the BCS era.

For one, 'Bama has had four head football coaches since 1998 and several losing seasons under the direction of various individuals.

However, Nick Saban has brought the fanbase nothing but victories upon succeeding Mike Shula. He delivered a national championship to Tuscaloosa in 2009 and double-digit wins in 2008 and 2010.

In 2011, the Tide (10-1) are No. 2 in the BCS standings as Week 13 approaches. Their lone loss came against top-ranked LSU.

Boise State Broncos

The Boise State Broncos are a young dynasty.

They were completely off the radar when the BCS was introduced, but a couple dominant 10-2 campaigns and Big West conference titles earned them some notoriety.

BSU continued to excel upon moving to the Western Athletic Conference, initially cracking the Top 25 in 2002.

The Broncos busted the Oklahoma Sooners' BCS bubble following the 2006 season.

Former offensive coordinator and first-year head coach Chris Petersen orchestrated one of the most memorable games in college football history in the Fiesta Bowl to cap off an undefeated season.

Entering 2011, Boise State has lost one game or fewer in seven of the past nine years.

The program continues to thrive through 10 contests this season, although it appears they will once again fall short of a national title game berth.

Florida Gators

The Florida Gators were amazing before Tim Tebow and with Tim Tebow.

Not so much since Tim Tebow, but they have accomplished plenty in the BCS era.

They were named national champions following the 2006 and 2008 seasons. UF was pretty damn good in 2009, also.

As a member of the relentless Southeastern Conference, Florida usually benefits in the BCS standings from the strength of its schedule.

Conversely, during poor seasons like the last couple when their roster lacks talent and experience, the Gators have been embarrassed.

Florida State Seminoles

Luckily for legendary Florida State head coach Bobby Bowden, the tail end of his Seminoles' 14-year reign of terror (1987-2000) was recognized by the BCS.

FSU was awarded the 1999 national championship after a convincing win in the Sugar Bowl.

The Seminoles were also candidates to finish at No. 1 during the prior and following seasons before suffering postseason letdowns.

Overall, Florida State has participated in six BCS bowls—Orange (3), Sugar (2) and Fiesta.

The university has had a winning record in every season since the introduction of the BCS.

Georgia Bulldogs

Similar to Florida State, the Georgia Bulldogs used to boast about their impressive string of winning seasons despite the adversity of playing in a power conference.

But a 6-7 2010 season ended the streak and put Mark Richt squarely on the head coaching hot seat.

Still, the larger picture portrays Georgia as a perennial contender. Although the Dawgs haven't won a national title since 1980, they were remarkable in 2002 and 2007.

UGA (9-2) has reeled off nine consecutive victories in 2011 after an unfortunate 0-2 start. As usual, the BCS considers the team an elite one.

LSU Tigers

Louisiana State is seeking a national title for the third time in the last decade.

The Tigers' path is a simple one in 2011 because unlike in 2003 or 2007, they enter Week 13 with a spotless 11-0 record.

Of the six programs featured so far in this slideshow, LSU is the fourth that belongs to the SEC.

That ought to tell you quite a bit about the depth of the conference and make it clear why imperfect teams from it have frequently earned championship game berths.

Ohio State Buckeyes

Ohio State was dealt crushing blows after the 2006 and 2007 seasons, falling to aforementioned Florida and LSU, respectively, in national championship games.

The Buckeyes endured another series of painful hits prior to their 2011 campaign.

They lost long-time head coach Jim Tressel as a result of his documented neglect of compliance standards (all wins from 2010 season were vacated by the NCAA).

Additionally, dual-threat quarterback Terrell Pyor declared for the NFL supplemental draft.

Those departures left OSU at a huge disadvantage.

The 6-5 Buckeyes aren't a contender in the Big Ten after six consecutive years of claiming at least a share of the conference title.

Oklahoma Sooners

College football's adoption of the BCS system practically coincided with the beginning of Bob Stoops's reign at Oklahoma.

Stoops brought a national title to Norman after only two seasons. His team has since been a staple in the Top 25, with the exception of 2010.

Although the Sooners haven't recently added to that particular collection, they have accumulated a lot of other hardware.

Oklahoma's eight BCS bowl bids and equal number of conference championships in the past 11 years are more than any other program.

Texas Longhorns

In the 2000s—the decade ending in 2009, I mean—the Texas Longhorns were college football's most dependable team. They won 10+ games every year despite having to go through Oklahoma and the rest of the Big 12 conference.

The confetti rained down on Vince Young and Co. following their Rose Bowl victory on January 4, 2006 in what was essentially a home game for the opposing USC Trojans.

There's no denying the program has struggled in 2010 and 2011 because of uncertainty and poor performance at the quarterback position.

Miraculously, the 6-4 Longhorns are No. 25 in the BCS standings, proof that a love affair has sustained between UT and the all-powerful BCS computers.

TCU Horned Frogs

A few stinky seasons have stained Texas Christian's terrific body of work in the BCS era.

The Horned Frogs settled for a Galleryfurniture.com Bowl bid in 2001 and lost. Even worse, they finished below .500 in 2004 and fled from Conference USA to the Mountain West.

Recently, though, the program has taken off. TCU hasn't lost a conference game since 2008.

The BCS hasn't been able to ignore that epitome of excellence.

Perhaps the 2011 Horned Frogs won't be rewarded with an at-large bid to the Rose Bowl as they were in 2010. Nonetheless, they have responded admirably to the loss of so many defensive starters.

USC Trojans*

Note the asterisk—the USC Trojans had their 2004 national championship vacated due to NCAA violations along with all their wins from 2005.

No matter, there is still lots of awe to be found in the Trojans' 21st century exploits.

Prior to the Reggie Bush-induced sanctions that currently hinder the program, USC won four legitimate Rose Bowls and a national title through the BCS system.

Virginia Tech Hokies

National titles have barely eluded a number of superb Virginia Tech Hokies squads, so I consider them plenty worthy of acknowledgement.

Among the most tenured Div. I-A head coaches, Frank Beamer has led his team to consistent success, previously as part of the Big East Conference and now in the ACC.

His boys have already clinched the conference's Coastal division and an eighth straight season with double-digit wins.

The Hokies have appeared in five BCS bowls since 1998. In 12 of their last 13 completed campaigns, they has been a Top 25 team in the BCS standings.