Easy road into BCS: Big East

[Apis Bull]

Link:  Easy road into BCS: Big East

COLUMN - Easy road into BCS: Big East

by Steven Godfrey

The Life

June 25, 2004

Before I begin, a disclaimer:

Mr. Godfrey does in no way harbor any resentment toward the state of West Virginia, West Virginia University or their fans. He resided in the lovely, sulfur-stained villa of Scott's Depot (outside of Charleston) for three years during his youth and knows many lovely people from that area of the country, especially sassy Ajax bartenders with law degrees.

Now, onto the meat.

College football is our glorious, beloved game, but it is certainly flawed. Case in point: The BCS mess.

Now, I'm not about to rehash the current goings on with the current "Four plus One" revisions, mainly because I don't need to. All you need to know is that we're never going to get a playoff system for a variety of reasons. Some are legitimate concerns, but most are invented detractions by the fat cat bowl sponsors and their "committees," which basically consist of very rich old white men in horrible sport coats. They're the sole reason college football's post season is the mess that it is, and it all goes back to money.

This year's best example? The couch-burning hill folk of West Virginia.

If you've picked up one of the many preseason football guides from companies like Lindy's or Athlon, you might notice the Mountaineers are a Top 15 preseason pick in most publications, and Athlon even has them as high as No. 5. Make no mistake, the Mountaineers aren't this year's Auburn (a 2003 preseason national title favorite that turned bust), but they're also not Top 5 material either. Still, they're almost a lock to play in either the Fiesta or Sugar Bowl come January.

What gives?

Money, silly.

To be more specific: West Virginia (8-5, 6-1 Big East in 2003, including a 41-7 loss to Maryland in the Gator Bowl) will be the default winner of an absolutely vacant seven-team Big East conference. Due to last year's blockbuster deal that sent Miami and Virginia Tech packing for the ACC, the Big East had to scramble for replacements (Cincinnati, Louisville, South Florida) that won't show up until 2005. Next season, Boston College will also defect to the ACC to complete their new two-division, 12-team format with a conference title game and to make room for the new guys, Temple will get the boot.

What does this all mean? It means that one of the following seven teams will receive an automatic bid to one of the BCS games in January, while the SEC and Big 12 titans will get shafted: West Virginia, Pittsburgh, Connecticut, BC, Syracuse, Rutgers or Temple. Not exactly a murderer's row, and certainly not worth an automatic BCS bid. But because of the "we promised; we signed it in blood" contract the BCS has with the big six conferences, just because the Big East is depleted, they can't be forced out of their automatic bid.

Ergo, West Virginia could easily set up shop in the Top 15. Conference titles, no matter how questionable, will always help your polling cause.

But, just like you can bet on WVU showing up in the BCS, you can also bet on them getting throttled by Ohio State or Miami or Texas. Not if, but when that happens, a cry from teams in much stronger conferences (specifically the SEC and Big 12) will come that the spotlight, revenue and prestige of a BCS slot was wasted on WVU. Sadly (and no offense to the Mountaineers) they'll be right.

The questions that arise from such disparities between the newly pillaged Big East and every other conference are completely valid ones. Don't blame the ACC; They just wanted to create a conference big enough to compete with the SEC and Big 12.

More power to 'em.

But, if you can't field more than seven teams, three of which might even crack the Top 20, you should have your automatic bid swiped. Under the existing BCS rules (surprise!) there's no way to balance bids, as contracts are locked until a renewal period in 2006.

If you're so inclined, look up the West Virginia schedule.

A road to glory it ain't (though they did sign a now non-conference game with V. Tech). Then figure out how many teams in the SEC could play that schedule and come out with one loss or less. I've got at least six, if not seven, that could.

Hmm. It's probably not too late for Ole Miss to defect to the Big East. In this system, if stepping down reaps bigger rewards, why not?

[Markeymark]

Well, opinions are like nosehairs, everyone's got 'em.

The truth will come out next January. And heck, nobody really BELIEVES the BCS is trying to field the best teams, right?

[smazza]

good for WV

[bulls96go]

this is the bcs

live with it