SMQ: The FBS postseason and the history of bowl games

The exploding 1990s and the impact of a ballooning bowl calendar

By the 1990s, the powerhouses of college football were beginning to consolidate power at the top level of the sport. Control of television revenue was wrested away from the NCAA, and the top leagues began to seek ways to turn growing interest in college football into a more lucrative enterprise. They also sought to create more definitive results through the formation of a single national championship.

Early attempts faltered. The Bowl Coalition and Bowl Alliance were two early attempts between 1992 and 1997 to create a single national championship structure. Without the Big Ten or the Pac-10, however, the absence of the two Rose Bowl-linked conferences continued to present the risk of split national championships.

The bowl calendar continued to grow around these developments as bowls gained and lost prestige and affiliations changed between leagues and bowl destinations. As conferences gained increased importance and independence became less attractive to maintain during the 1990s, the expansion of some leagues and the rise of new conferences also facilitated more bowl growth.

Entering the 1990s there were 19 games on the bowl schedule. By 2000, that number had increased to 25 even with the rise and fall of several bowl games over the span. The shift toward a more decisive system would only accelerate the growth trend in the 21st century.