The pending playoff will likely do away with the non-AQ tag, but that's still a couple of years away. In the meantime, there are still teams in non-BCS leagues scrambling for berths in the big bowls -- a feat Boise State, TCU and Utah have all demonstrated is possible in recent seasons.
First, though, a qualifier about this particular list in this particular year: It isn't as strong as it has been, for a variety of reasons. For one, the pool is smaller. TCU and Utah figure to have decent squads this season, but they have managed to wiggle into BCS-level leagues. Others, such as Boise State, could soon be making similar moves to remove the mid-major tag.
Also, the fact is that some of the upstarts are just down, in terms of talent and depth, relative to the level they have played at in recent years (Boise is a great example of this). So the likelihood that there's an 11-1 BCS buster knocking on the door of, say, the Fiesta Bowl is pretty low. But, hey, you never know -- especially with the more manageable schedules in Conference USA, the Mountain West, Sun Belt and the WAC.
Here are the five non-BCS teams with the best chance to make some noise this season, and possibly work themselves into the BCS conversation (listed alphabetically).
Arkansas State Red Wolves
Gus Malzahn might have wound up as the coach of the Arkansas Razorbacks last month if he hadn't just settled into his digs in Jonesboro. Regardless of the location, he finally has his own program; now, let's see what he can do with it.
To see the rest of Travis Haney's top non-BCS teams, sign up for ESPN Insider.
Travis Haney
ESPN Insider• Joined ESPN as Insider's national college football writer in April 2012
• Previously wrote for The Oklahoman and The Post and Courier
ABOUT THIS BLOG
Travis HaneyTravis Haney joined ESPN in April 2012 as Insider's national college football writer. He previously covered the University of Oklahoma Sooners for The (Oklahoma City) Oklahoman for one season, and the University of South Carolina Gamecocks for The (Charleston, S.C.) Post and Courier for four. Additionally, Haney has contributed since 2003 to ESPN publications and projects, including ESPN The Magazine.
A native of Cleveland, Tenn., Haney's initial introduction to a college football cathedral was Neyland Stadium. He later graduated from the University of Tennessee, in 2003, and has spent time covering the Volunteers, the University of Georgia, Clemson University, and other schools. Safe to say, football, and football in the South, was injected into his bloodstream at a young age.
Haney is the author of three books -- Gamecock Glory and Gamecock Encore, which chronicled the South Carolina baseball team's run to the 2010 and 2011 national championships, and State of Disunion, a historical look at the Clemson-South Carolina football rivalry that he co-wrote with Larry Williams.
Haney resides in Charlotte, N.C. You can follow him on Twitter here.
