The coaches had considered adopting a three-team tiebreaker that would eliminate the lowest-ranked team in the BCS standings, then go to the head-to-head result of the remaining two teams. If that had been in place last year, Texas Tech would have been eliminated, and Texas would have emerged as the division champion because it had defeated Oklahoma.
"The tiebreaker system we had was felt, by the majority of coaches, to be appropriate to what we want to accomplish," commissioner Dan Beebe said. "There's risks in either one. We had one risk last year."
The coaches' recommendation will go to Big 12 athletic directors, who may still change the tiebreaker.
Beebe said the coaches decided to stick with the BCS standings as a tiebreaker because of the national title implications. Under the rejected tiebreaker, it's possible that a fifth-ranked team could earn the nod because of a victory over a team ranked No. 1 or 2 -- and that might cost the Big 12 a shot at the national title.
