There are three certainties in life: death, taxes, and Tommy Tuberville sitting on a two score lead. (H/T to Walt for that line.) This tendency to hold back on offense after gaining a significant lead became affectionately known as the Tubershell. With a conservative mindset and a quality defense, this wasn't actually a bad idea. Sure, it allowed for some late comebacks. Yes, it made games much more nerve-racking than they needed to be. But perhaps it's worst result was one of perception.
2004 and advanced stats
As Bill Connelly has said before, the BCS's biggest problem was that is was unable to fit three teams onto one field.