As of Tuesday morning, Big Ten commissioner Jim Delany had yet to see the latest BCS-related gripe, this one from Boise State coach Chris Petersen.



Petersen said that "everybody is just very tired of the BCS" and called for a Plus-One playoff system, even though that wouldn't have helped his team. Boise State has finished outside the top four in the BCS standings every year but did earn spots in the 2006 and 2009 Fiesta bowls.



Delany remains opposed to a Plus-One because he believes it would lead to an eight- or 16-team playoff that would harm college football's regular season and bowl system.



"Our view is we'd like to stay where we are," Delany told the Tribune in a telephone interview. "We do believe in the slippery-slope theory."



But Delany also said of the BCS: "No system is perfect, and this one is not. It can be improved."



Two areas of potential improvement: Kill the automatic bids (and two-bid-per-conference restriction) that allow the Big East's West Virginia (No. 23 in the BCS) and the ACC's Clemson (No. 14) to play in BCS bowl games over the likes of Arkansas (6) and Boise State (7).



"There are 10 access points in the BCS, and when you attain one, it's seen as affirmation," Delany said.



And play the BCS title game closer to New Year's Day.



"I think we need to do everything we can to explore that," Delany said. "It's a pretty high priority for the presidents and commissioners. Whether we can get the (BCS title game) up to Jan. 2 or Jan. 3, I don't know. But right now it's not good for anyone – student-athletes because of the academic calendar, fans who work and want to travel to the game."



From 2004-06, the BCS title game was played on Jan. 4. Then the BCS added a fifth bowl to give programs such as Boise State more access, but that created a model where one bowl (this year, the Sugar) hosts two games. Adding a fifth bowl site such as Cowboys Stadium in Dallas seems an obvious solution.



This year's BCS title game will be played Jan. 9, a day after the NFL's Wildcard weekend, which dominates the headlines and national consciousness.



Delany said he and fellow conference commissioners are kicking around new BCS bowl models that will be evaluated from January to the BCS spring meetings in April. The next four-year cycle of the BCS begins with the January 2015 games.



That means more BCS fatigue for those who defend the system.



"I'm not as fatigued this December," Delany joked. "I'm pretty well rested because I work out more and try to be resilient.



"We live in a free society, and the passion speaks volumes about the interest in college football and the passion people have for their teams."



Delany on a few other topics:



*On the inaugural Big Ten Championship Game in Indianapolis, which produced a stirring 42-39 Wisconsin victory over Michigan State but did not sell out Lucas Oil Stadium – 64,152 tickets were sold for the 66,268-seat venue: "If you can't have a hard sell-out, you hope for a soft sell-out. If you can't have that, you hope that it's only a couple of thousand unsold tickets. The demand for the game was very good, and we were extremely pleased with the facility, the buzz in town and the stadium."



*On how it compared to the SEC title game, dominated by LSU: "I'm not talking about other people, not going there. We had a great game. It was as entertaining, if not more, than the first game (between Wisconsin and Michigan State)."



*On whether he expects the NCAA to sanction Penn State over its sexual-abuse scandal: "I have no idea. Anybody who wants to predict (the results) should be in a different business."



*On whether it was personally difficult to remove Joe Paterno's name from the Big Ten Championship trophy: "Any time you're dealing with people you know, especially one who obviously has had a great career … but you have to take the personal side and leave that off to the side. All of us have a job to do."



tgreenstein@tribune.com

Twitter @TeddyGreenstein