Surprising to nobody, the BCS and big-time conferences have once again decided that they like their fat paydays better than they like the indentured servants on whose backs they're getting rich.At a recent meeting, BCS officials shot down a "plus-one" proposal from SEC Commish Mike Slive. Apparently, the BCS folks "like where [they] are". They like it because the major conferences are making money hand-over-fist, and any move toward a play-off would mean a more even distribution of money.
The playoffs versus bowls argument has been done to death, and despite the overwhelming logic and reason behind moving to a playoff, religion is religion, and the fans of the bowl system continue to insist that the world is flat. When you dispense with all of the strawman arguments, though, what you're left with is a simple fact: the national champion is determined by journalists, coaches' assistants, and computers.
The BCS had a chance to take a step towards fairness to the student athletes who are powering a multi-billion dollar industry (for mere peanuts, comparatively). Instead, they chose their pocketbooks.
On September 4, 2004, the Auburn Tigers took the field to face Louisiana Monroe. They won that game 31-0 and, despite a grueling conference schedule, won every single time they stepped on the field after that, right up to (and including) a 16-13 win over #10 Virginia Tech in the Orange Bowl. The Auburn players did everything they could do. They beat all comers. In any other sport, if a team wins all of their games, at the end of the season they're crowned champions.
Auburn had to settle for the "Peoples National Championship", a viewers choice award dreamed up by an Auburn fan from Opelika, Alabama, and there's absolutely nothing just about that. Would the Tigers have won a plus-one game? Would they have won a four or eight-team playoff? There's no way to know, but what we do know for sure is that those players were never given the chance. Some voters and some computers decided that they weren't good enough.
To look at a group of student athletes and tell them "I'm sorry, I know you won all of your games, but you just didn't win pretty enough for the media... but enjoy your bachelors degree!", it's just not right. But to the major conferences, that's a small price to pay for the giant checks that come rolling in during Bowl Season.
Unfortunately, after the BCS's recent decision (made from a resort in Hollywood) the end is nowhere in sight.
ADVERTISEMENT
_thumbnail.jpg "NASCAR Cowboy Hats")
Reader Comments ( Page 1 of 1)
1. "Student athletes"--HAHAHAHAHA. That's funny.
But it is typical of students today (too many of whom I have to deal with) to believe that they are entitled not just to free education and three to four years of coddling and kowtowing, but to be paid beyond that.
If you really want to dispose of the hypocrisy and corruption of college athletics, drop the "college" part of it and make genuine minor leagues for football and basketball. Otherwise you're just pointing out an open sore and ignoring the gangrene that's set in everywhere else.
Posted at 10:57PM on Apr 30th 2008 by Jess Nevins
2. Well, I've gotta say I'm in complete agreement with that one, Pete. It's entirely possible that some folks were afraid that the Big Ten and Pac Ten would pull out, and then who would the SEC bomb in the title game, every year?
Posted at 9:37AM on May 1st 2008 by Acid Reign
3. I agree with the point that people should use the term, "student athlete" loosley these days when refering to most college football players. However, they are merely following a predetermined path which must be traveled in order to become a professional. Many "student athletes" don't want to be in college any more than they have to in order to seek profesional employment. The NFL is denying many athletes the right to ply their trade at the professional level. This results in large numbers of college athletes having to play in college and make college athletic depts millions of dollars before they can make millions for themselves. If you are the best mathmatician at Princeton and are 18 any accounting firm would hire you ASAP and pay you for your services. Yet if you are a football player you are basically forced to offer your services to a college athletic dept in order to gain access to the professional level.
Posted at 10:53AM on May 1st 2008 by johan
4. I quit following college football a couple of years ago. Not going to waste my time following teams then have some computer jockeys tell me who the champs are. All comes down to GREED - screw the fans.
NOT FOR ME.
Posted at 12:28PM on May 1st 2008 by Sports Fan
5. I always thought that a 4- or 8-team playoff would be like the Brinks truck continually reloading cash into an ATM. Yes the BCS makes a lot of money... but goodness a playoff would bring in unheard of sums of cash. The TV rights alone would be of a stunning value. And frankly, as long as the NCAA stays out of it... you could structure it so that the big conferences still make the vast majority of the money, with pittances paid to the non-BCS conferences.
Posted at 10:11PM on May 2nd 2008 by Bobby
6. And your point is?
Posted at 5:39AM on May 5th 2008 by idlegolfer