That's the fault of the Rose Bowl selection committee. They pretty much were against the BCS from the beginning, and I'm sure they're happy to screw it up. Rather than look at who deserved to be in a BCS game, they picked who they wanted in there.
Sad thing is they're so concerned with keeping tradition they don't see how great and memorable the Rose Bowl could have been had they selected the best match-up instead. They're more stubborn than the Bears coaching staff.