[Editor's note: BCS Bits is a weekly public release by BCS administrator Bill Hancock now available at the BCS Homepage]

With BCS Selection Sunday (December 6) two months away, this week's Bits topic is "How are the teams chosen for BCS games?

The answer really is quite simple: some earn automatic berths, others are selected by the bowls.  Basically there are four ways to qualify:

1. The top two teams in the final BCS Standings qualify automatically.  
2. The champions of six conferences have annual automatic berths.
3. Other teams can qualify automatically as follows:
   1. The highest-ranked champion from the MAC, MWC, WAC, Sun Belt or C-USA qualifies if it finishes in the top 12; (or top 16 if ranked higher than the champion of a conference that has an automatic berth)
   2. Notre Dame qualifies if it finishes in the top eight.
4. If spots remain after the above teams are slotted, a bowl can select any other team that finishes in the top 14, but no more than two teams from a conference can participate.

That's the Cliff'sNotes version.  But it's always useful to understand the entire novel, and so the full selection procedures are attached.  As you will see, they include a handful of steps to address other scenarios. 

The ACC, Big East, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-10, and SEC earned their automatic qualification by virtue of contracts with the host bowls and by meeting performance standards.  As agreed by all 11 conferences, the 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007 regular seasons were evaluated using three criteria:  rank of the highest-ranked team, rank of all conference teams and number of teams in the top 25.  Those six met the standard.

The 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011 seasons will be evaluated to determine if a seventh conference achieves automatic qualification for the BCS games that will conclude the 2012 and 2013 seasons.

That's all for this week.  Thanks for listening.

[commentary after the jump]

The link to the entire selection process can be found in my side bar, as it might be a useful reference throughout the season.  The criteria for automatic qualification are given at the bottom of the same page that contains the selection process.

Some of the other scenarios that are omitted are (in order of appearance in the BCS selection process):

1. It is possible for a conference to qualify three teams if they have the #1 and #2 ranked teams and a third team wins the conference championship.
2. Only one team can qualify using the provisions of 3.1, and it would be the higher ranked team.
   
3. Teams ranked #3 or #4 would be selected, if they are still eligible after steps 1-3 above are performed.
4. Teams must have 9 wins in addition to a top 14 ranking to be eligible.
5. If their are not enough eligible teams in the top 14 to fill all slots the field would be expanded to the top 18, then by 4 until enough teams are present.  Two notes should be made on this procedure:
   1. All eligible teams in the top 14 must be selected before any teams #15 or below
   2. Teams still must have 9 wins to be eligible, even if the required rankings are lowered
   3. If two or more teams from non-automatic qualifying conferences earned a top 14 ranking, they must be selected before this rule can come into play.
6. A disclaimer is made that a team must be eligible for post season play by NCAA rules and the rules of their conference to participate in a BCS game.

All conferences will be evaluated using 2010-2013 data if the current system is extended to the 2014-2017 seasons.

It is not stated explicitly, but after the expansions of 2004 and 2005 the precedent was set that a team's numbers over the entire four year period count for the conference they play in the final year of the evaluation.  At that time their was only one criteria: that the average of the highest ranked team from the conference over four years was over higher than #12.  If this precedent holds, the numbers for 2008-2011 of all conference members in 2011 will be used to determine if another conference warrants an automatic qualification for 2012 and 2013.