U. unlikely to have rated No. 1 in old system, either

In light of the Utes’ No. 2 finish in the A.P. football poll, some have claimed that under the old system ‘ in which the national champion was decided by polling, rather than a BCS title game ‘ Utah would have ended up No. 1.
Not likely. First, the Utes probably wouldn’t have been playing in the Sugar Bowl, and thus would have had less exposure. They would have played in the Las Vegas Bowl against a lesser opponent than Alabama.
Although the 1984 BYU Cougars did earn a national title, in 1979 they were 11-0 going into their bowl game, but didn’t come close to being voted No. 1. They never got ranked higher than ninth. They went on to finish 13th in the AP poll, 12th in UPI, after losing in the Holiday Bowl.
The ’84 Cougars got to the top by getting ranked early and beating No. 3 Pitt to start the season.
Ute coach Kyle Whittingham’s formula for winning a title now is probably accurate: start high in the rankings and stay there. Maybe the BCS title game will come calling.
Trouble for Utah is, considering all the players who will be missing next year, it’s not a team that will likely show up terribly high in the preseason polls.
Either way, it brings up an obvious question: Would the BCS ever allow a ‘mid-major’ team to play in the national title game?