Hawaii No. 18 in BCS ranking

The quality of UH's opponents results in a lower rating than in other polls

The undefeated Hawaii football team is ranked No. 18 in the first Bowl Championship Series poll released yesterday.

A combination of two human polls and computer ratings gave the Warriors a BCS average of .284. Fellow unbeatens Ohio State (.942 BCS average) and South Florida (.920) are the top two teams in the country in the BCS poll, which is used to determine the national championship game. The coaches and the Harris Interactive polls are part of the equation. Both have Hawaii ranked No. 16 this week. Hawaii's weak schedule is why the Warriors were dragged down to No. 18.

For Hawaii to play in a big-money BCS bowl, the Warriors must finish in the top 12 of the final BCS standings in December. They could also qualify by placing in the top 16 of the BCS and have that ranking be higher than a conference champion that has an annual automatic berth in one of the BCS bowls.

The Western Athletic Conference is not a member of the BCS, which means one of its schools must go unbeaten and hope to qualify for an automatic spot. Last year, Boise State did just that and beat Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl. The Broncos were ranked No. 15 in the first BCS poll released last year.