UF President Slams Greg Oden, Big Ten, BCS

Actually, you can add Michigan and Jim Delany to that list.

Here's the full story. University of Florida president Bernie Machen has been pushing for a playoff system for college football since before Florida was selected to play in the BCS National Championship against Ohio State. In fact, he started putting the wheels in motion before Florida won the SEC championship game against Arkansas in late '06.

That he still campaigns for a playoff today, despite the fact that Florida ended up being lucky enough to get selected to the title game instead of Michigan, says volumes about his passion for the subject. And in this recent CBS Sportsline interview, Machen used both barrels of his verbal shotgun to express his thoughts.

More after the jump. (You'll be entertained, I promise.)

SPLN: On another subject, is there any way to explain the athletic success at your school the past two years?

Dr. M: More and more schools are going to try to copy our model. It's a family oriented, team-oriented system. There are kids who started on some tournament teams this year that we backed away from because of the academics.

We're the ones who started this thing about the storefront schools (giving away degrees). I started that because I got (mad) that some of our competitors were taking kids that we knew didn't belong in college.

What's going to happen I hope is that everyone starts to realize, you can win the right way. You can graduate your athletes.

SPLN: That raises another question. What did you think of Big Ten commissioner Jim Delany's open letter comparing the Big Ten to the SEC?

Dr. M: It's ridiculous. What a homer. I was at Michigan (as provost and dean of the school of dentistry). I know how they get in at Michigan. Don't talk to me about the Nobel laureates at Michigan.

Just look at Greg Oden's class schedule this semester. The Big Ten has fought the conference playoff, then they (complain) because Ohio State doesn't have a game in 48 days. (Actually 51 between the last game of the season and the BCS title game. The Big Ten traditionally ends its regular-season football schedule before Thanksgiving).

Full disclosure here: obviously, I'm an SEC and Florida fan, but I happen to agree with most of what Dr. Machen is saying. Jim Delany's inferiority complex shines brightly in his ridiculous diatribe blasting the SEC (and Orson from EDSBS wrote a brilliant and brutal dissection of Delany's idiocy which perfectly sums up my feelings on the matter) and I have absolutely no problem with Machen calling him out on it. I agree that a playoff is good for college football and that the 12th game is a boil on the sport's hindquarters. I love Machen's emphasis on graduation. And I agree that the BCS is more concerned about self-preservation rather than what's good for college football.

But Bernie, you don't need to call out Oden, who has impressed me all year long as a well-rounded, respectful ~~43-year old~~ kid who is a true team player. His amazing talents have made the 2007 college basketball season all the more exciting and intriguing. And his class schedule is, frankly, none of your damn business, or at least, you shouldn't be picking on an individual player. I wouldn't appreciate it if the president of another school called out one of our players for something like, oh, say, firing a semi-automatic rifle into the sky after a nightclub scuffle. That's embarassing enough without having to deal with scrutiny from schools in other conferences.

So, Bernie... keep it real, man. I appreciate everything else you said. KEEP SAYING IT! We need a playoff. And we need to graduate student athletes. But when you're heaving stink bombs at the enemy, leave the kids out of it.

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)

4-08-2007 @ 1:01PM

Matt Burris said...

I'm not sure I agree with the whole wording for "lucky enough to get selected to the title game instead of Michigan"

The Gators demolished Ohio State, Michigan could barely keep up with them. That's not luck, that's just superiority. The Gators rightfully got into the BCS championship, and proved it when they slapped around the Buckeyes 41-14.

Other than that, game on. The UF President hit the nail on the head, and I'm glad he's as passionate as he is. He continues to strive for excellence, education, and a sports powerhouse philosophy tied in with family.

4-08-2007 @ 1:43PM

Nate said...

What else is he gonna do not support the playoff system thing. He really had no other choice I don't think it speaks volumes about him though. Or it could be that he thinks the sec is the supperior conference to every other because florida won its 2nd national championship. I do support the playoff system because I would like to see every team have a fair chance with no factors like a longer layoff or anything like that just teams going head to head to determine the best like in college basketball.

4-08-2007 @ 2:21PM

jim said...

Well Greg Oden is big ten so thats why he brought it up..but he didnt need to and somehow I doubt all the guys at UF are taking pre law

He punks out the big ten and the self rightous Jimmy D so thats all that matters

4-08-2007 @ 2:20PM

it could be that he thinks the sec is the supperior conference to every other because florida won its 2nd national championship

THEY ARE!!!

4-08-2007 @ 2:42PM

noleeps said...

This from a moron President who has football players at his school spitting on people and shooting guns. The University of Florida is known for its toothless men and women who marry their cousins. Give us a break, Mr. President. Get back to the homestead and cook some vittles for the cousins.

4-08-2007 @ 3:05PM

Naw I dont think they are supperior conference there are plenty of harder conferences a team could play in Boise State for example the only team that went without a loss this season now they won their big game and went without a loss must make their conference the best.

4-08-2007 @ 3:07PM

The U will be BACK! said...

I agree 100% with the UF Preident up to the point where he calls out Oden on his schedule. He had no reason to use Oden to make his point. That was absolutely disgusting, and he should be ashamed of himself for picking on a 19-year-old student, especially when he has those in his own athletic department who are not model citizens.

Despite what most of the hardcore UF fans may say about the validity of his statements, he really owes Oden an apology.

4-08-2007 @ 3:13PM

lol said...

Maybe he just fears Oden will return and murder the florida basketball team.

4-08-2007 @ 4:11PM

bslbjholt said...

We all listened to the florida juniors going pro news conference. They are not graduating, and they sure did not sound like a bunch of Rhoades scholars either, so dont throw rocks when you are in a glass house. Remember Florida accepted Kwame Brown true scholar athlete there him and Donnell Harvey.

4-08-2007 @ 6:03PM

J N J said...

YOU KNOW WHAT........OHIO STATE AND ODEN MUST THINK THAT WE ARE ALL STUPID AND CAN'T FIGURE OUT THINGS FOR OURSELVES. TO THINK THAT WE ARE SUPPOSED TO BELIEVE THAT ODEN IS 19 YEARS OLD IS OUT RIGHT SHAMEFUL. GOOD GOD ALMIGHTY..........IF ODEN IS NOT CLOSER TO THIRTY YEARS OLD THEN 20 YEARS OLD HE NEEDS TO CONSIDE TAKING SOME KIND OF MEDICATION TO STOP THIS RAPID AGING PATTERN HE SEEMS TO BE GOING THROUGH. OR AT LEAST THAT'S WHAT HE AND OHIO STATE WANTS US TO BELIVE. COME ON NOW.........DID YOU SEE THE SHOT OF HIS LITTLE BROTHER SETTING NEXT TO HIS MOTHER? SO PUTTING TWO AND TWO TOGETHER IF ODEN IS 19 THEN HIS LITTLE BROTHER MUST BE AROUND NINE YEARS OLD. ALTHOUGH HE PROBABLY IS A TEENAGER. CAN YOU JUST IMAGINE ODEN SETTING IN A HIGH SCHOOL CLASS JUST LAST YEAR? NOT NEXT TO MY DAUGHTER!

4-08-2007 @ 7:06PM

RKM said...

Calm down.

4-08-2007 @ 7:45PM

Nate: As impressive as Boise State are and how they ended the season, I don't think you can compare their schedule to what the Gators went through last year. A conference isn't measured by how good a single team does, but how good all the teams within that conference are.

4-08-2007 @ 7:58PM

I was just hearing the same thing from alot of gator fans since they won the national championship so I said it jokeingly. Of course what you said is true I dont think any one conference is the best there are only conferences that can have good years. The sec had a very good year and I think the big ten had a decent year as well as the rest of the conferences. I just dont think one is the best because next year and years after that new recruits will come in and the sec may not be as good a conference as another or whatever. I dont know forgive me for straying off topic I just dont like it when people say that that one conference is the best.

4-08-2007 @ 8:15PM

gharm20 said...

All caps isn't necessary. SEC is a more dominant conference right now. Playoff has been necessary forever. To single out Oden is disrespectful. Michigan never deserved a shot anyway. 4.5 months of baseball and hockey highlights sucks until it starts all over and I can't wait.

4-08-2007 @ 9:42PM

Adrian Cawley said...

I don't see how anybody could say that someone's schedule is something that we shouldn't talk about. We seem to forget the student part of student athlete. I am sure Florida is just as guilty of it as Ohio State. Oden has obviously used Ohio State to waste a year so he get get to the NBA though. How fair is that too all the other guys that could have gotten that scholarship and it might have made a difference in their lives?

4-08-2007 @ 9:56PM

Todd said...

These comments would be laughable if they weren't so scary. Here is university president who is so righteous that he takes a shot at his former employer and at a student athlete. He suggests that he knew all about impropriety at Michigan while he was there. Did he do anything about it? Did he speak up? I doubt it. In order to keep himself on the self promotional career path he laid low and waited until his position there allowed him to progress to something bigger and better. Next, he takes a pot shot at a kid that by all indications is a good kid and student. As a university president, it would be far more useful if his time was spent being a leader rather than making off the cuff remarks about a college kid that he is supposed to be advocating for. If his comments were posted somewhere without the author being identified, people would think it was just another Gator talking to the rest of us like they invented football and basketball in the last two years. He makes reference to family, graduating and academics. The majority of his basketball team is leaving for the NBA early and a couple football players just got arrested. I guess this confirms that to get to his position you need a big ego and a healthy dose of butt kissin' and back stabbin'.

4-08-2007 @ 10:07PM

It isn't really a waste year or a waste of money. I bet greg oden has got the program more money then they used on that one athletic scholarship. Buckeye basketball wasn't something people really paid to much attention to from what I noticed (I live in Ohio by the way). This year I seen lots of people wearing Greg Oden's #20 Jersey that money goes to the program. I noticed more people talking about Buckeye Basketball meaning they were watching it noticeing it of course they get money for the tickets and such. The pontiac scholarship things that Greg Oden has earned. They must have made enough money to make up for that scholarship and more.

4-08-2007 @ 10:37PM

To Adrian (Poster #16):

There is no excuse for a university president to single out a college player who has not spoken a word publicly about him or his university, or done nothing to warrant being singled out. The issue SHOULD HAVE BEEN how an entire athletic conference is potentially lacking in its commitment to academics. However, The UF Pres. maliciously turned the focus to the class schedule of a single individual, Oden, when his schedule is absoutely no ones business. And the only thing worse is how people are actually attempting to justify it.

It just goes to show that the offensiveness and vile nature of something is sometimes hard to recognize when it is not directed at you.

4-08-2007 @ 11:08PM

Bob said...

SEC allows more marginal academic-challenged athletes than Big Ten bc of lower SAT/ACT test score requirement to gain entrance to that particlar university.

4-09-2007 @ 12:08AM

Bob: Proof? Or did you not link to any proof because you're pulling it out of your ass?

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