Lawmakers want probe of college football bowl system

[goodknightfl]

yeah thats what we need politicans in the mess.  they are so good at fixing things

[USF_Grouper]

What right does the government have to tell the NCAA how to award a championship?  I mean there is no requirement that it be a fair and open process.  If the NCAA wanted to it could award the national championship to the winner of the papajohns.com bowl.  A some friends of mine won the local YMCA basketball league, should the NBA be required to invite them to the playoffs this year?

[Guest]

...Not saying they have a strong case against the BCS... but it can't just be summarily dismissed because of the perceived strength of the talent level of the various programs.

That may be true, but is this really - at the end of the day - about removing the caveat of 'having a chance'?

This is much more complex than removing the caveat, it's about money. TV money, bowl games, revenue sharing.

This is business. No one is going to volunteer to cut the pie in any more pieces than is absolutely necessary.

Why would they? What's their incentive?  Remember...this is just like the NCAA tournament. That 65th team...that

would be Hawaii or Boise State. Not saying you don't have a chance...but "chance" is in the eye of the beholder.

Just asking...:satan

Well... next year... the UCF Knights basketball team... the FAU Owls basketball team... the Buffalo Bulls basketball team have the right to play for the national championship -- even if they go 20-20 and only win their conference.  Their football teams do not have the same right.

In this case, "chance" is not in the eye of the beholder.  The rules set up by the bowls, conferences, and TV networks automatically exclude 53 of the 54 teams not in a conference with an automatic bid before two-a-days ever begin. The 54th team is only permitted if it manages to meet certain criteria, same with Notre Dame.

(Technically, a 7-6 SEC or Big 12 Champion gets to play in the BCS, while a 10-2 MAC Champion does not.  How can anyone really say that would be fair??)

You have to think "on paper" not "in reality."  The talent level and histories of the programs have no bearing on whether a team should have the opportunity to win the national championship.

The only reason... ONLY reason... I prefer the current system is that shifting to a playoff would cut the post-season opportunities from the current 64 teams who play in bowl games to 16 teams or fewer in a playoff.

But that doesn't mean the BCS is not violating fair trade practices.

[Guest]

What right does the government have to tell the NCAA how to award a championship?  I mean there is no requirement that it be a fair and open process.  If the NCAA wanted to it could award the national championship to the winner of the papajohns.com bowl.  A some friends of mine won the local YMCA basketball league, should the NBA be required to invite them to the playoffs this year?

Well, in this case, the NCAA does not award the championship.  In fact, the official NCAA Division I Football Champion is Appalachian State.

The BCS system is merely a "National Invitation Tournament" -- however, it sells itself as the National Championship when, in fact, it's not.

Ultimately, because it's a private corporation (yes, the BCS is organized as a corporation) made up of other corporations, and corporations have legal obligations, the government has the right to investigate.  It probably can't legislate, as it would likely be unconstitutional.  But if the BCS commits fraud, collusion, or other illegal acts in violation of fair trade laws, the federal government has the right and probably the obligation to act.

In the end, this is all much ado about nothing.  The conferences, BCS or not, are organized by the member institutions.  If the institutions who didn't get into the BCS have a problem... they can work through the conference system to make changes, in what is really a democratic & bureaucratic process.

[WoolyBully]

...(Technically, a 7-6 SEC or Big 12 Champion gets to play in the BCS, while a 10-2 MAC Champion does not.  How can anyone really say that would be fair??)

Ahhh...fairness is over-rated.

It's always the guy who comes up short complaining something isn't fair. From a marketing standpoint, is there

as much interest ($...across the board) in a 10-2 MAC team as there is in a SEC or Big 12 team?

I'd love to get inside the decision making process, just see what the discussion is like. Given that the NCAA

doesn't provide a method for a championship - and the IA schools signed off on this - are we revisiting our

initial decision?

Do those guys sitting behind big wooden desks know something they're not saying....

[Guest]

...(Technically, a 7-6 SEC or Big 12 Champion gets to play in the BCS, while a 10-2 MAC Champion does not.  How can anyone really say that would be fair??)

Ahhh...fairness is over-rated.

It's always the guy who comes up short complaining something isn't fair. From a marketing standpoint, is there

as much interest ($...across the board) in a 10-2 MAC team as there is in a SEC or Big 12 team?

Now you see, you managed to stumble upon how the feds could say this violates fair trade practices.

You're not wrong in saying there would be more money for the BCS team than the MAC team, but that is the crux of the problem the feds could investigate...

(In the real world, because all conferences signed the new agreement with the "mid-major" loophole, there probably isn't a fair trade case against the BCS... but people here asked how could the feds get involved.  Just trying to illustrate the case against.)

[WoolyBully]

all conferences signed the new agreement with the "mid-major" loophole,

That's my line of thinking. You all signed off that you would accept this method/org as the

established IA championship venue, and now you're complaining about the agreement you

signed?

I went back and read up on the various machinations this thing went through from the

early 90's. It's continually refined.

Bottom Line: I don't see this going anywhere.

[lerbut23]

Maybe the college athletic directors can get together and do something about these outrageous gas prices.