<Ol> <Li> Teams finishing 6 - 6 with one win against a team from the lower Football Championship Subdivision ( FCS ) , regardless of whether that FCS school meets NCAA scholarship requirements . Until now , an FCS win counted only if that opponent met the scholarship requirements -- specifically , that school had to award at least 90 % of the FCS maximum of 63 scholarship equivalents over a two - year period . In the 2012 season , programs in four FCS conferences can not meet the 90 % requirement ( 56.7 equivalents ) -- the Ivy League , which prohibits all athletic scholarships ; the Pioneer Football League and Georgetown , which do not currently award football scholarships ; and the Northeast Conference , which limits football scholarships to 38 equivalents . </Li> <Li> 6 - 6 teams with two wins over FCS schools . </Li> <Li> Teams that finish 6 - 7 with loss number seven in their conference championship game ( that has been eliminated by the conference championship waiver rule ) . </Li> <Li> 6 - 7 teams that normally play a 13 - team schedule , such as Hawaii 's home opponents . Although Hawaii normally plays a 13 - game schedule , it only played 12 games in the 2012 season . </Li> <Li> FCS teams who are in the final year of the two - year FBS transition process , if they have at least a 6 - 6 record . </Li> <Li> Finally , 5 - 7 teams that have a top - 5 Academic Progress Rate ( APR ) score . This was later adjusted to allow other 5 - 7 teams to be selected thereafter -- in order of their APR . </Li> </Ol>
how many games does a football team have to win to be bowl eligible
5