Lawmakers want probe of college football bowl system

[oupride]

http://sports.yahoo.com/ncaaf/news;_ylt=Al.inUT5ishADii6AVJtBjccvrYF?slug=ap-congress-bowlgames&prov=ap&type=lgns



Lawmakers want probe of college football bowl system
By BEN EVANS, Associated Press Writer
Apr 17, 5:05 pm EDT

Printable View
Return to Original Buzz Up PrintWASHINGTON (AP)—Forget government corruption or corporate fraud. Three members of Congress want the Justice Department to investigate whether college football’s Bowl Championship Series is an illegal enterprise.

Reps. Neil Abercrombie, D-Hawaii, Lynn Westmoreland, R-Ga., and Mike Simpson, R-Idaho, are introducing a resolution rejecting the oft-criticized bowl system as an illegal restriction on trade because only the largest universities compete in most of the major bowl games. The resolution would require Justice’s antitrust division to investigate whether the system violates federal law.

The measure also would put Congress on record as supporting a college football playoff.

“Who elected these NCAA people? Who are they to decide who competes for the championship?” Abercrombie said at a press conference Thursday on Capitol Hill, gripping a souvenir University of Hawaii football.


Abercrombie said the matter is worthy of federal review because college football is big business with hundreds of millions of dollars at stake.

“It’s money. That’s what this is all about,” he said.

But it’s no coincidence that all three lawmakers have home-state schools with recent beefs against the bowl system.

The University of Hawaii and Boise State University in Idaho each had an undefeated season in recent years, but were denied a shot at the championship. And Westmoreland said he is still smarting about his University of Georgia Bulldogs being passed over for the national championship game last year.

Georgia instead was matched up against undefeated Hawaii in the Sugar Bowl, winning 41-10.

Westmoreland and Abercrombie said they started talking about the resolution after that game, as Abercrombie was paying off a bet with chocolate-covered macadamia nuts.

The lawmakers say the bowl system is rigid and blocks all but the largest universities from competing in post-season bowls, denying dozens of others not just the opportunity to compete but also a shot at the big payoffs and national exposure that come with bowl appearances.

Abercrombie maintained that television markets are one factor in selecting which teams go to high-profile bowls.

“We shouldn’t have to argue about who the champion is,” Westmoreland said, citing the excitement and unpredictability of the NCAA college basketball tournament. “That should be decided on the field.”

The BCS was created in 1998 by the six most powerful conferences. It relies on polls and computer ratings to determine which teams qualify for the top bowls.

Congress held a hearing on the BCS in 2005, but no legislation came of it.

In a statement, ACC Commissioner and current BCS Administrator John Swofford said the BCS allows all qualified teams to participate and is beneficial for student athletes, universities and fans.

“This issue has been looked at before,” Swofford said. “We’re confident that it complies with the law.”

[BillyBall]

Fantastic, I'm thrilled that members of Congress are focused on things like the ****ing BCS....

[badger]

Obligatory "We are at war in Iraq, our gas prices are skyrocketing, our dollar is not as valuable overseas as it once was, we have constant terrorist threats, we have no border security, we have illegal immigration, we have a presidential election, we have corrupt government elected officials, we have out of control government spending through earmarks, we have natural disasters regularly each winter, summer, fall and spring... did I leave anything out? Ok, we have all these problems, AND YOU'RE FOCUSING ON THIS?!?!?!"

[stoops the eternal pimp]

He said probe

[soonerfan28]

Does anyone think this will push for a playoff system?

[oupride]

Does anyone think this will push for a playoff system?
nope

[stoops the eternal pimp]

no...our congress is too busy with important issues like baseball to worry about football...not now anyway

[Flagstaffsooner]

“Who elected these NCAA people? Who are they to decide who competes for the championship?” Abercrombie said at a press conference Thursday on Capitol Hill, gripping a souvenir University of Hawaii football.
Hey mister penis-brain congressman, the NCAA doesn't run the BCS.

[stoops the eternal pimp]

It seems after the bowl beatdown your Hawaii team took congress person, you would just let it go

[RedstickSooner]

What'd be funny is if they "won", and got the BCS disbanded.

So we could go back to how it was in the past, with some highly ranked Big-10 team playing some gutterball Pac-10 team, or vice-versa, while some highly ranked SEC team played some middle-of-the-road team in the Sugar, and a couple of good, but not great, matchups took place in the Fiesta and Orange bowls.

With the national champion determined, basically, by whoever ended the season highest ranked without then tripping over their dickies in their bowl game.

That system ROCKED. It was absolutely flawless.

And, yeah -- Hawaii or Boise State would have a snowball's chance in hell under *THAT* system.

We, the people, elect us some real geniuses, given the opportunity.

Maybe we need to raise the bar, and start putting, say, Wunderlic scores on the ballot for the candidates. (Seeing as the topic is football, that seems more apropos than that "other" test)

Yeah, call me an elitist. I'm all about the meritocracy, baby.

[Fraggle145]

Hey Congress, why do you hate the regular season?

[12]

Neil Abercrombie, D-Hawaii, was quoted saying, "Yeah, what THEY said."

[oupride]

“We shouldn’t have to argue about who the champion is,” Westmoreland (GA) said, citing the excitement and unpredictability of the NCAA college basketball tournament. “That should be decided on the field.”
Dear mr. westmoreland, Did you know your very own SEC champ IS "decided on the field?"

[CU Sooner]

Why is an illegal enterprise such a bad thing it doesn't seem to bother them that we have illegal immigration.

[oupride]

heh.
http://www.dawgrun.com/message_board/georgia/2008/April/18/528723.php

[12]

Wow, their threads go off on tangents like OUr's do at times. :D

[JLB]

Its the money, thats what its all about.Who elected this guy.Thats what the whole problem with this country is.The Federal Reserve should be abolished and money changing made illegal.
BCS should also be abolished and a playoff system should be put in its place.
That would fix our country and fix the great game of College Football.

[1890MilesToNorman]

If congress is focused on baseball and football they aren't screwing up more important stuff. God Bless the idiocy of our wonderful law makers.

"No man's life, liberty or property is safe while congress is in session" Mark Twain

[badger]

Let us give Boise State and Hawaii the benefit of the doubt here.

FACT: If they played in the national title, they would have a guaranteed undefeated (unless you count Illinoiz) opponent who "earned" its spot in the title game also.

FACT: Said undefeated team is a pansy Big 10 team that can only beat up liddle brudder skools like Meat Chicken.

FACT: Any team in the top 10 these past two years that walked into the title game with this Big 10 pansy would be national champions (including us!)

FACT: Boise State and Hawaii would have both had a chance at being national champs had they played this Big 10 pansy.

It doesn't matter if those Big 10 idiots start singing "I don't give a d@mn about the whole state of Boise, the whole state of Boise, the whole state of Boise" they would have lost and been the "enemy" in that made-for-tv drama :mad:

It doesn't matter if they dot the "i" against Hawaii, because that state has two dottable i's, so there.

You know who I'm talking about. O-H! (I-O!)

You suck! (We know!)

[SoonerBOI]

Yeah, good things always happen when legislators get involved in sports. Doesn't the country have enough more pressing problems?

[GottaHavePride]

Wow, their threads go off on tangents like OUr's do at times. :D

Except their board software makes my eyes bleed.

[Fraggle145]

Its the money, thats what its all about.Who elected this guy.Thats what the whole problem with this country is.The Federal Reserve should be abolished and money changing made illegal.
BCS should also be abolished and a playoff system should be put in its place.
That would fix our country and fix the great game of College Football.

As has been said many times... a megaplayoff doesnt fix everything. The one thing it does do for sure is destroy the regular season. Look at college basketball's TV and advertising numbers during the regular season if you dont believe me... They are all DOWN.

I am not saying the BCS is the best solution, but if you win all of your games and you dont play sucky competition then chances are you will get a shot. UGA didnt win all of its games, Hawaii, played sucky teams, so did BSU. Auburn played sucky teams the year they got shut out (see The Citadel).

I can think of tons of better ways to spend the money they are going to spend on not changing the BCS.

[Stoop Dawg]

As has been said many times... a megaplayoff doesnt fix everything. The one thing it does do for sure is destroy the regular season.

You can use the search feature on this board to find out why you are wrong.

[Fraggle145]

You can use the search feature on this board to find out why you are wrong.

Or I can look at college basketball and see why I am right...

look whatever, I dont care to argue about all of this because in reality I doubt anything that I have to say or you have to say or most anyone on this board has to say about the BCS vs playoff argument is going to decide anything.

[oupride]

Reps. Neil Abercrombie, D-Hawaii, Lynn Westmoreland, R-Ga., and Mike Simpson, R-Boise State are.....
There, I fixed it!

[badger]

As I've stated, Boise State, Hawaii and all other teams shut out of the national title game these past two years have every right to complain. I mean, oupride, don't YOU want to beat up Ohio State yourself after all of their self glorifying leading up to automatic title game berths only to be embarrassed on national television? What team DOESN'T want to to experience that, AND be able to put a number up in the rafters?

...then again, knowing you personally I think you would want to beat up Ohio State regardless of the circumstances...

*cough* Anyway, playoffs won't ruin the regular season, they just might ruin players' knees, acl's and collarbones. For that reason, a playoff system will work IF (and only IF)...

1- Eight teams or less. Anymore creates too many additional games.

2- Mandatory time off. Most championship games are the first weekend of December/last weekend of November. They should NOT begin playoffs until at least two weeks after this.

3- Practice restrictions. What is the limit now, 20 hours per week? During playoff time, the limit could be 15 hours per week.

4- Neutral sites, no exceptions. Oh, is it prejudice of me to not want to play in New Orleans? Not if we're playing LSU. Keep teams relatively close to home, but none of the "UNC playing in another North Carolina city until the Final Four" crap that plagued the basketball tourney this season.

5- One exception to neutral sites: At least 40, more likely 45 percent of all tickets must be reserved for each team participating in any game.

6- No more than two teams from each conference and at least six conferences represented. Imagine the outcry if the top 8 had four Big 12 teams and four SEC teams... a fun tourney, but very controversial.

This should solve all problems left, other than the bowls feeling screwed (NIT says "Welcome to the end of significance.") It is incredibly difficult to be in the top eight at the end of the season, regardless of a pansy non-conf schedule, because of player injuries, poll prejudice and other issues. Will some teams still feel screwed? Of course, but #9 has less of a claim at a title shot than #3. Thoughts?

[stoops the eternal pimp]

plus 1 is enough IMO..or keep it like it is

[soonerfan28]

8 TEAM PLAYOFF. This would work. The ratings might be down in basketball because you only have to be 4th best in a good conference to get in. Here's somebody else's idea that I would like to see at least tried.
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/498401/how_ncaa_college_football_can_create.html

[soonermix]

conference champion playoff.
done.


edit:
i just thought of this and would like to state that it will never happen but in a perfect world where i make the rules this is my view:
8 conferences of 12 teams
each conference champion gets to play in the playoff
i know that leaves out about 21 schools oops back to 1-AA
problem solved.

[Fraggle145]

I like the idea of a 1 vs 4, 2 vs 3 plus 1.

[soonermix]

As has been said many times... a megaplayoff doesnt fix everything. The one thing it does do for sure is destroy the regular season. Look at college basketball's TV and advertising numbers during the regular season if you dont believe me... They are all DOWN.

I am not saying the BCS is the best solution, but if you win all of your games and you dont play sucky competition then chances are you will get a shot. UGA didnt win all of its games, Hawaii, played sucky teams, so did BSU. Auburn played sucky teams the year they got shut out (see The Citadel).

I can think of tons of better ways to spend the money they are going to spend on not changing the BCS.

ok fine it would take away importance from games like OU vs Chattanoga
or popcorn state vs big bad bcs school

[Fraggle145]

ok fine it would take away importance from games like OU vs Chattanoga
or popcorn state vs big bad bcs school

ask Michigan how important those games are... ;)

[soonermix]

ask Michigan how important those games are... ;)

not that important after thy lost to oregon also

[Fraggle145]

not that important after thy lost to oregon also

oregon = Nike st.

So they lost two of those games in a row... :eek:

[soonermix]

oregon = Nike st.

So they lost two of those games in a row... :eek:

and when you lose 2 games in a row you are out of the equation
you don't matter any more.

[Fraggle145]

and when you lose 2 games in a row you are out of the equation
you don't matter any more.

So in essence those two regular season games were important?

[soonermix]

So in essence those two regular season games were important?

grats on using circular logic to make me sound like an idiot. you win.
however i can try to save face a little and redirect this convo real quick.

in the scheme of things the way college football is right now every game matters as long as you win. and almost as important as winning is when you lose. last year was crazy with everybody losing and a freakish streak of #2 losing quite a few weeks in a row.

so yes they were important and under a playoff they would be less important.

[Cam]

So in essence those two regular season games were important?

Not really since they're OOC games. Win your conference and you're either in the playoff or BCS no matter how you did in your OOC. Provided you're in a BCS conference anyway.

[badger]

ask Michigan how important those games are... ;)
After that game, the Michigan/Notre Dame game became the battle for Botton 10 supremacy!

(ND was #1 and Michigan was taken off the list, so a win-win situation)

Seriously, would anybody mind more football? :D Basketball has 30+ games per season and can get close to 40 with a deep run in the tournament(s). Baseball has even more games, so why compare apples and oranges when saying that playoffs would take away from the regular season? The season's too short right now for a lot of football fanatic's tastes

[Fraggle145]

After that game, the Michigan/Notre Dame game became the battle for Botton 10 supremacy!

(ND was #1 and Michigan was taken off the list, so a win-win situation)

Seriously, would anybody mind more football? :D Basketball has 30+ games per season and can get close to 40 with a deep run in the tournament(s). Baseball has even more games, so why compare apples and oranges when saying that playoffs would take away from the regular season? The season's too short right now for a lot of football fanatic's tastes

I wouldnt mind more football... The season is too short for my taste! I just want it to be meaningful football. I want losses to matter.

In other sports realistically the losses in the regular season dont matter that much. I mean we lost to Steven F. Austin this year!

It may be apples and oranges in the other sports, but it is the same in the NFL. The regular season doesnt matter that much because virtually everyone makes the playoffs.

I just dont want that to happen to CFB. CFB should stay CFB and the NFL should stay the NFL. Hence, why I prefer a +1. I like the idea of one loss and you might be out! It creates interest in games that I wouldnt normally watch if it was just about conference champions or if everyone got in.

[Fraggle145]

Not really since they're OOC games. Win your conference and you're either in the playoff or BCS no matter how you did in your OOC. Provided you're in a BCS conference anyway.

Right, but it is likely that you wont be playing for the national title...

[Stoop Dawg]

It may be apples and oranges in the other sports

It is.


but it is the same in the NFL.

No, it's not.


The regular season doesnt matter that much because virtually everyone makes the playoffs.

Exactly. CFG has 119 teams and would take, at most, 8 teams. Not even close to the NFL.


I like the idea of one loss and you might be out!

Might? Well, depending on the playoff scenario, you still have the same thing. If OU loses to Texas we *might* not win the conference and therefore *might* be out of the playoff. No difference.


It creates interest in games that I wouldnt normally watch if it was just about conference champions or if everyone got in.

So you watched Mich/App St. live? Didn't think so. You went back and watched the entire game after you heard who won? Me neither. You like watching the blocked field goal over and over? Me too. But don't pretend a playoff would have made that play/game moot.

[Cam]

Right, but it is likely that you wont be playing for the national title...

If you won your conference in a playoff system, you'd still be playing for a Nat'l title. Win all of your conference games and you're playing for it.

[snp]

Not really since they're OOC games. Win your conference and you're either in the playoff or BCS no matter how you did in your OOC. Provided you're in a BCS conference anyway.

After 4 other tiebreaker procedures, best BCS ranking and best overall winning percentage decides the division champ.