2010 marks a significant season for the Mountain West Conference's hopes to gain automatic qualification to the Bowl Championship Series.

The BCS has published a minimum standard for a conference to obtain AQ status, and there are other criteria that are not published as well. However, without first passing the test of "published" criteria, there is little doubt that a conference will ever get put to the test for the other standards.

It will review the 2008 thru 2011 regular seasons to determine if any changes will be made in regards to conference affiliations. The rules state that up to seven conferences can obtain annual automatic berths.