BCS format unfair to teams like Utah
With the way college football decides its national championship, it's hard to argue with the final NCAA 2008-09 poll released by the Associated Press on Friday.
The Florida Gators, winners of the Bowl Championship Series title game, stand on top, followed by the Utah Utes, the nation's lone unbeaten BCS team; Southern Cal and Texas.
The BCS title game loser, Oklahoma, is fifth and Alabama, the SEC runner-up but a 31-17 upset loser to Utah in the Sugar Bowl, is sixth.
If we all had a vote, we might line up a little differently, but it would probably look about the same.
Just to be contrary and to protest the BCS, I'd probably vote:
No. 1 Utah
No. 2 USC
No. 3 Texas
No. 4 Florida
But, when you get down to it, if a playoff is not going to be held, then the BCS is as good a way as any other imperfect way to decide a national champion.
But wouldn't be great if we were getting ready for the NCAA Football Semifinals with Florida facing Texas and Southern Cal facing Utah?
Tim Tebow outgunned Sam Bradford, but would he fare as well against Colt McCoy and the Longhorns' rabid pass rush?
And how about the Utes. If Utah somehow upset USC to make it to the national title game, would anyone question their worth as a football program ever again? Heck no.
But the way things stand, the Utes will never ever win a national championship because no matter how good they are, they will never get the chance to play for the title because they aren't a member of a power conference.
Utah hit college football's glass ceiling this year at No. 2 in the polls with an undefeated season. The Utes might be able to match that feat again, but as long as the BCS method remains intact, they'll never even get the chance to play for a national title.
Now, if the Utes were playing the Trojans in the semifinals of a college football playoffs - or for that matter Florida or Texas or Oklahoma - I would only give them the slightest of chances to win.
But, you know what? I thought the very same thing about them facing Alabama in the Sugar Bowl, and, boy, was I wrong.
Given the chance, who knows what Utah could have done this season. Had they played in the SEC or the Big 10 or the Big 12 or Pac 1O, they might have won those conferences and had a shot at a national title.
And what about Texas? Believe me, it's hard for me to have any empathy or sympathy for anything colored orange, particularly the burnt variety.
But, Texas did beat Oklahoma on a neutral field by 10 points this season.
The other team that did that - Florida - was given the national title.
Why is it more special to beat Oklahoma by 10 points on a neutral field in early January than in mid-October? Just because a bunch of administrators and bureaucrats say so?
The BCS is a joke and even grade schoolers know it. So how come the wisest guys in college athletics can't realize the truth?
They know it, too. They just can't handle it because some team like Utah might upset their applecart full of cash.
Copyright (c) 2001-2009 Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, Inc
Sugar Bowl Results: Undefeated Utah Stuns Alabama
The Sugar Bowl, like the Orange Bowl, celebrated its 75'th anniversary this year. Unlike the Orange Bowl, however, the Sugar Bowl was much more highly anticipated. The Sugar Bowl had Alabama, which was 15 minutes away from playing for a national championship, and Utah, the only undefeated team left in college football. A mid-major team would have another shot of crashing the BCS, and the Utah Utes took it.
With a 31-17 win over the Crimson Tide in the Sugar Bowl, the Utes took the mid-majors another step closer to parity with the big boys.
Utah was the first ever mid-major team to get to a BCS bowl in 2004, slaughtering Pittsburgh in the Fiesta Bowl in then-coach Urban Meyer's last game. But this time, Utah was a much bigger underdog against the much more powerful Crimson Tide. However, it didn't seem that way in the first quarter of the Sugar Bowl.
The Utes needed only three possessions to take a 21-0 lead in the first quarter, behind Sugar Bowl MOP quarterback Brian Johnson. The Crimson Tide fought back behind a 73-yard punt return touchdown by Javier Arenas.
Alabama got as close as 21-17 in the third quarter, but the Utes quickly answered back with a touchdown, and never looked back.
The Utes punished the Alabama offensive line with eight sacks on quarterback John Parker Wilson. The Crimson Tide didn't have Outland Trophy winner Andre Smith on that line, as he was suspended for undisclosed reasons. Few used that as an excuse for Alabama's play, however.
The Sugar Bowl proved to be another statement in favor of the mid-majors. As Utah will be the only undefeated team of the 2008-09 season, the Utes will use the traditional "Why not us?" argument that they should have gotten consideration for a national title berth.
Boise State did the same when they were the only unbeaten team of 2006-07, after their legendary Fiesta Bowl win over Oklahoma.
This year's Utes didn't have the iconic trick plays or Cinderella finishes of that Boise State team. But Utah handled Alabama so convincingly in the Sugar Bowl that they didn't need them.
This Sugar Bowl ended much better for a mid-major than last year, as unbeaten Hawaii was destroyed by one-loss SEC team Georgia last season.
As for the Crimson Tide, a season that brought them back to national power ends with two straight disappointing losses. The only team that can share that kind of disappointment is Texas Tech, as the Red Raiders also ended a gigantic year with a disappointing loss to Ole Miss in the Cotton Bowl earlier yesterday.
With the Sugar Bowl finished, only two BCS games are left. The Fiesta Bowl pits Texas and Ohio State on Monday, with the long awaited BCS championship between Florida and Oklahoma on Thursday. Today, the smaller International Bowl has Connecticut vs. surprising Buffalo.
(c)2009 Associated Content, Inc
The BCS rolls on with ears wide shut
The song and words made popular by Harry Nilsson in the 1969 movie, "Midnight Cowboy," accurately describe the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) conference commissioners. Everyone is talkin' at them and they don't hear a word they're saying.
The controversial manner in which the BCS conferences anoint a football champion - through a myriad of complex polls that would make a derivatives expert blush - is the basis for frequent and vocal criticism. Even President-elect Barack Obama got in on the act, threatening to "throw my weight around," as he put it, in a post election interview on CBS' 60 Minutes. Like so many other college football fans, Obama believes a national football champion should be determined by a playoff.
Such a concept isn't unique. A playoff is held in every other football division and every other NCAA sport. But the BCS isn't affiliated with the NCAA. The six conferences that comprise the BCS broke away from the governing body in the aftermath of a 1981 lawsuit brought by the Universities of Oklahoma and Georgia.
The major football schools wanted to divvy up the TV and bowl money among themselves, without contributing to the NCAA's revenue sharing arrangement. Any reversal of course that includes a playoff system would most likely require the participation of the NCAA. Which makes the idea of a playoff a non-starter for BCS schools.
Now, I'm no fan of the NCAA. Their pious blatting about the welfare of student-athletes rings hollow when their actions over the years clearly prove otherwise. But in this case, there is no rational reason why the NCAA administers all national collegiate championships - 88 annually - save one.
BCS commissioners are quick to defend the status quo, arguing it protects the tradition and sanctity of the bowls. They even admit to leaving millions of dollars on the table by eschewing a playoff system. But if the extra money is distributed by the NCAA to non-BCS schools, the thinking goes, why bother?
Even worse than their unwillingness to share the wealth with their less fortunate brethren, BCS conferences don't even maximize their own revenue potential under the current system. A survey of tax documents by Yahoo!.com uncovered what can only be described as gross overspending and mismanagement on the part of bowl committees, at the expense of BCS schools.
The Sugar Bowl, for example, took in revenue of $12.9 million in 2006 and paid only $6 million into the BCS pool (participating teams will receive $17 million for a BCS bowl appearance this season, but much of that amount is derived from TV contracts). The majority of the remaining revenue was spent on such "necessities" as entertainment, media relations, decorations, committee meetings, gifts, bonuses and employee compensation, including $453,399 to Sugar Bowl CEO Paul Hoolahan.
The Sugar Bowl isn't alone. The Orange Bowl took in more than $17.9 million in revenue in 2007, and after their contribution to the BCS pool, spent most of the remainder. The Arizona Sports Foundation, which staged two BCS games in 2007, did the Sugar and Orange Bowls one better. They took in $19.7 million and still managed to "lose" a million dollars.
The reality is BCS conferences don't need the bowls, whether they use the present system to determine a "national champion" or conduct a playoff. They proved as much when they began staging conference championship games - in effect creating their own "bowls" - which have turned out to be extremely profitable. To wit: The 2007 SEC championship game grossed $13.7 million in revenue and distributed almost $12 million to conference schools, according to Yahoo!com.
So why allow yourself to be ripped off by the existing bowls? The answer has nothing to do with tradition or the sanctity of the bowls. The current system suits the BCS conferences just fine. They get to decide who gets how much money and they don't have to deal with the NCAA. In this case, power is more important than money.
Those who argue for a playoff, including the President-elect, be damned. Despite all the talkin', the BCS commissioners don't hear a word they're saying.
Software (c) 1998-2008 1up! Software
Cherokee wins Heisman Trophy
NEW YORK (AP) - The first person to congratulate Heisman Trophy winner Sam Bradford was the player who won it last year - Tim Tebow.
The star quarterbacks from the top two teams in the country shook hands Saturday night, then embraced.
On Jan. 8, with the national championship on the line, it won't be so cordial.
Bradford, Oklahoma's amazingly accurate and quick-thinking passer, won the Heisman after leading the highest-scoring team in major college history to the BCS title game.
A year after Tebow was the first sophomore to win the Heisman, Bradford became the second and kept the Florida star from joining Archie Griffin as the only two-time winners.
Bradford and Tebow will soon meet again, when the No. 2 Sooners (12-1) face No. 1 Gators (12-1) in Miami.
"We're ready to get back to work to get ready for the 8th," Bradford said. "When we started this season, winning the national championship was the first goal we put down as a team."
Next month's game between Oklahoma and Florida marks the second time Heisman winners will play against each other. The first was in the 2005 Orange Bowl, when '04 winner Matt Leinart and Southern California beat '03 winner Jason White and Oklahoma for the national title.
Bradford, who leads the nation in touchdown passes with 48, received 1,726 points. Texas quarterback Colt McCoy was second with 1,604 and Tebow - who received the most first-place votes - was third with 1,575 points.
"I was definitely surprised and I think it's everything I imagined," said Bradford, who raised the 25-pound bronze statue with his left hand still in a cast from a recent surgery. "I think it will take a couple weeks to set in."
Bradford got 300 first-place votes, McCoy 266 and Tebow 309. Not since 1956 had a player drawn the most first-place votes and finished third; Tommy McDonald of Oklahoma holds that distinction.
Bradford was the third person to win without receiving the most first-place votes, joining Notre Dame's Paul Hornung in '56 and Oklahoma's Billy Sims in 1978.
Any consolation, Tim?
"Not really," he said with a smile. "You lose, you lose.
"We still get to play in January and decide something a little bit bigger."
It was the closest margin between the top two since Nebraska's Eric Crouch edged Florida's Rex Grossman by 62 points in 2001. The only other time the gap between first and third was smaller was also '01, when Miami's Ken Dorsey was 142 points behind Crouch.
"Now I know what it's like for those people on 'American Idol,' " McCoy said. "My heart was pounding."
The award ceremony was held at the Nokia Theatre in Times Square. When it was over, the finalists were whisked downtown with a police escort, about 50 blocks to the Sports Museum of America in lower Manhattan for a news conference.
"I was really nervous," Bradford said during his news conference. "I'd much rather play in front of 100,000 people than wait for an award to be handed out."
The Big 12 South was the epicenter of college football this season, with both the national championship race and Heisman chase turning weekly on games played by its three powerhouse teams.
McCoy was the early Heisman front-runner after leading the Longhorns to the No. 1 ranking with a victory against Oklahoma in October. Texas Tech's Graham Harrell, who finished a distant fourth in Heisman voting, then moved to the forefront after he tossed a last-second, game-winning touchdown pass to beat Texas a month later.
But Bradford closed strongest, leading his team to a string of blowout victories, including one against Texas Tech, and a spot - even if it was somewhat controversial - in the BCS title game.
Bradford leads the nation in passer rating (186.3) and has thrown for 4,464 yards, directing the Sooners' fast-paced, no-huddle offense.
"This is an individual award but I feel like I'm receiving it on behalf of my teammates," Bradford said during his acceptance speech. "I feel like our whole offense bails me out every game. They make me look good."
Bradford is a citizen of the Cherokee Nation who grew up in Oklahoma City. His parents are Kent and Martha Bradford.
(c)2008 NATIVE AMERICAN TIMES
South rises again
MYRTLE BEACH -- Turns out the South did rise again.
Lexington High School's bruising running back Anthony Carden carried 17 times for 107 yards and a touchdown and the South squad turned in an outstanding defensive performance as the lower state all-stars won Saturday's SCADA North-South All-Star Football Game 24-14 at Myrtle Beach High's Doug Shaw Stadium.
After three consecutive wins for the North, the South was primed for a show of strength under Berkeley head coach Jerry Brown, and that's exactly what he and his team displayed Saturday on a perfect day for football.
The South's offensive line, which included a pair of local players, Manning offensive guard Rick Cantey and Crestwood center Matt Haney, sprung Carden and the rest of the South running game for a big second half, including a huge third-quarter drive that blew open a 9-6 ball game.
Not to be outdone, the South's defense, which included Sumter High linebacker Quinn McClendon and Crestwood defensive back Randy Moulds, kept what could have been a potent North offense in check much of the game. Kenyatta Gary, out of Cheraw, earned the South's defensive most valuable player award with 10 tackles.
McClendon had three tackles and a pass breakup, and Moulds had a key touchdown-saving tackle in the first quarter when Chesnee quarterback Cedrick Proctor connected with South Pointe wide receiver Charles Holmes for a 59-yard completion to the South 19.
Sumter's versatile Travis Fredimon played at wide receiver in a South passing game that was virtually nonexistent after the running game got rolling in the second half. Only two passes went Fredimon's way, and he never had a chance at either.
Still, Fredimon said the experience was worthwhile.
"It was good, fun; we learned a lot of new stuff," Fredimon said. "I see why they're all-stars. It was good to get to play with all these good athletes. I was glad to be out there. I'm not disappointed, but I'd like to have been able to catch one."
McClendon shut down a pair of running plays at key times with solid solo tackles. He said he enjoyed the experience.
"It was good getting to know the guys and running some new plays on defense," McClendon said. "Just coming together as a team - we didn't have a lot of time to do it, but obviously we got it done because we came out with a victory. That's always good.
"I think I did all right. I could have played better," McClendon said. "I could have played worse. I'm just going to be happy with the win and I'll see these guys later."
The North forced a South punt from its own end zone and took over in good field position early in the fourth quarter. Josh Epps, a converted quarterback out of Williston-Elko, capped the drive with a 4-yard scoring dive and the 2-point conversion pass from South Pointe's Devonte Holloman to Great Falls' Josh Lynn was good, making it a 17-14 game with 11:17 remaining.
The North held the South offense and took over at midfield after a punt. After picking up a first down on a horse-collar penalty, however, the North was forced to punt when three passes fell incomplete.
The South's Sydney Sarmiento, out of West Florence, broke through the line and blocked the punt of Christ Church's Chandler Catanzaro and Richland Northeast's Harrison Oxendine scooped up the ball and rumbled 40 yards to paydirt, breaking several tackles along the way. Summerville's Dylan Zimmerman's point-after kick made the final 24-14.
The South looked like the more powerful team in the first half, but the North opened the second half with an 11-play, 56-yard drive that resulted in a 38-yard field goal by Catanzaro that cut the South lead to 9-6. The North's defense then pushed the South backward, forcing a punt and taking over in good field position at the South 46-yard line.
The South defense stiffened again, however, stopping the North on fourth down and two yards to go at the South 38. The hard-running offense then went back to work.
Carden, who earned offensive Most Valuable Player honors, carried four times on the ensuing drive for 48 of the 62 yards, including a 29-yard touchdown run. Calhoun County quarterback David Sims called his own number on the 2-point conversion and made it good, putting the South up 17-6 with under five minutes remaining in the third quarter.
"It was a little tough in the beginning, adapting to all the new plays," said Haney. "In the end, it turned out great - met a lot of people, had fun and came out with a win."
Manning's Cantey said he wasn't particularly impressed with the competition.
"They weren't as good as I thought they were going to be," Cantey said moments after speaking with a college recruiter. "They were all right - they're good boys."
Cantey said he was glad the South settled into a power running attack as the game wore on.
"I don't like pass locking," Cantey said. "That's not rough enough for me."
The South got on the board on its first drive when Zimmerman capped a 9-play, 61-yard drive with a 24-yard field goal. The drive was fueled by a 38-yard pass from Sims to Irmo's Nathan Dorton to the North 19. Carden rushed to the 2, but the North defense stiffened and sacked Sims for a 5-yard loss forcing the South to settle for a field goal.
The North answered with an 8-play, 82-yard drive that resulted in a 27-yard field goal by Catanzaro. That drive was aided by a 58-yard connection from Proctor to Holmes. Proctor carried to the 13 before the South defense tightened and forced the field goal.
On the ensuing kickoff, Stall's John Gadson returned the ball 95 yards for the only touchdown of the first half. The North got through the line on the point-after kick, however, and forced an unsuccessful 2-point run to keep it a 9-6 game.
"It was fun playing with some of the top players in the state," said Moulds. "Defensively, it was a little bit of a challenge running a 3-4 (defensive scheme), but I got used to it throughout the week, and it came to me really easy."
Moulds said the South team was emotional on the sideline during its effort to represent the lower state in the face of three straight North wins.
"We wanted to win," he said. "The South hasn't won in two or three years, and we were saying all week that the South will rise again. We rose."
Copyright (c) The Item.com
Waiting game continues for WMU; Ball State made the right call, no matter what one columnist says
As of early Friday evening, there is no new news on which bowl game Western Michigan's football team is headed to. WMU AD Kathy Beauregard and coach Bill Cubit are both a bit frustrated but resigned to the fact that they may not know for sure until Sunday night.
Notre Dame, more than any other factor, is the issue. I'm told by a friend who works for the South Bend Tribune that the Irish are most likely Texas Bowl-bound, but are also considering the Independence Bowl, Motor City Bowl and International Bowl.
That the Texas Bowl is shown to a limited audience on the NFL Network is apparently what's keeping ND from pulling the trigger on the matchup with Rice.
If I were in Notre Dame's administration -- and this is not a group I have much faith in -- I'd push for the International Bowl. The Irish could hang with Buffalo (though I'd take the underappreciated Bulls), it's an early January Saturday game, on ESPN2, and the only college football game in that time slot. And it's an interesting bowl game, in a cool venue, in a world class city.
Turning to Ball State and the criticism the Cardinals have taken for turning down Boise State's offer to play in the Boise-based Humanitarian Bowl ...
Ball State made the right call here. Why does Boise get to call the shots? Why not have Boise State come to Detroit for the Motor City Bowl? Boise???? The almighty WAC needs to remember it's not the SEC. The bottom of its league isn't any better than the MAC's bottom feeders.
Folks like Yahoo.com's Jason King have lambasted the Cardinals, questioning their backbone. Look, Ball State chickened out of a decent nonleague schedule, there's no question about that. And, it's paid the price -- it won't be part of the Bowl Championship Series. Had it scheduled Nebraska and Illinois, like WMU, the Cardinals and MAC probably would be about to receive a huge pay day.
The Cardinals did go 12-0 (heading into tonight), though. They dominated a very good division. Their fans' support was uncharacteristically outstanding. The reward for Ball State's players and fans shouldn't be heading to a hostile, cold-weather environment that's hard to get to for those who supported the team so well during all those cold, November midweek games.
King is like many national columnists far from close to the situation. He may not respect Ball State, but anyone who really knows college football does.
King talks about how embarrassing a Motor City Bowl loss to 6-6 N.C. State -- "especially a bad one" -- would be for Ball State. Nobody in the ACC is going to embarrass Ball State. The Wolfpack are playing well. Not that well. He also brings up Notre Dame. Please. King doesn't know his stuff here.
And, again, why is Boise State scared to leave its ridiculously colored home turf? If the MAC's willing to let its champ -- its best in a few years -- look elsewhere for the best possible matchup, the WAC ought to do the same. Ford Field, though only a drive from Muncie, Ind., provides more true winner. It's no one's home field and it's indoors. There are no elements to worry about. Boise??? Think about it???
I don't like to take shots at fellow writers. Our job is sometimes to put our opinion out there and it should be respected, if not agreed with -- at least by our brethren in the business.
That said, King woundn't have this perspective if he spent a year covering midmajor football or did the necessary reporting on his own. Jason, there'll be no "asterisk" next to Ball State's season.
None of this embarrassing for the MAC or Ball State, as King suggests. It's embarrassing for college football that 6-6 Notre Dame is dictating the bowl season, that Boise is playing a home game for its bowl and that two-loss Ohio State will be in the BCS over Boise State and Ball State.
And, to me, it's embarrassing when folks in my profession are so blind to that.
(c)2008 mlive.com. All Rights Reserved
Pat Hill has 'great' talk with UW
Washington's monthlong search for a successor for football coach Tyrone Willingham appears to be intensifying as the regular season closes, as sitting coaches are now available to interview.
And Sunday, Pat Hill recorded a milestone in the search, becoming the first candidate to publicly acknowledge speaking with the Huskies.
Hill, who has been the coach at Fresno State for 12 years, confirmed before entering FSU's season-ending team banquet on Sunday that he interviewed with UW officials on Saturday.
Hill, in a 54-second interview with Fresno reporters, called his meeting with UW officials "a great conversation."
"They talked about their goals, their expectations, the facilities they're going to build and the things they're going to do to put Washington back on the map amongst the best teams in America," Hill said in comments reported by The Fresno Bee and TV station KPGE. "That's what they want to do.
"They asked me about what my blueprint for success was, what my expectations and goals were. And in the end, I'll say this — whoever accepts that job is going to have a great challenge but a great opportunity to be successful," said Hill, who is 92-60 at Fresno State.
Hill's interview with UW indicates that he is a serious candidate for the job. But others remain in the mix, according to sources.
One said that Cincinnati's Brian Kelly has already had conversations with UW officials, and another said Kelly might interview with Washington this week. However, one source said Sunday an interview this week might be difficult to squeeze in because Cincinnati is due to leave Wednesday for a game at Hawaii.
Kelly is 21-5 in two seasons at Cincinnati, leading the Bearcats to the Big East title this season.
While Hill would come with apparently few financial complications — his contract does not include any penalty for leaving — Kelly could be a little more involved. He is reported to have a $2 million buyout if he leaves for another school before Jan. 15, 2009.
Kelly, however, is also thought to be a prime candidate for the Notre Dame job, should it come open, and one source said he would favor that position over Washington's.
One source also said that the Huskies are expected this week to reach out to Texas Tech coach Mike Leach, who apparently said he didn't want to entertain any discussions of other jobs until after his team's regular season. Leach is widely believed interested in looking at other options but has not said publicly whether he would be interested in UW.
Another source said Utah's Kyle Wittingham remains high on UW's list.
The only other candidate confirmed to have interviewed is Notre Dame offensive coordinator Michael Haywood.
One coach once rumored as a candidate, Missouri offensive coordinator Dave Christensen, is apparently off the market with reports coming that he will become the new coach at Wyoming. Christensen, a native of Everett, was a walk-on at UW from 1980-82. Sources said UW never contacted him.
(c) 2008 NorthWest Cable News
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