NCAA Football

Congressman Pushes for BCS Hearings (and Why This Is a Bad Idea)

Posted Jan 14, 2009 5:10PM By Shane Bacon (RSS feed)

Filed Under: NCAA FB Gossip, Bowl Games

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Like the majority of college football fans, I am in favor of a playoff. While nobody has come up with the perfect solution to this BCS madness, anything is better than ending the year with four good teams (Florida, Utah, Texas and USC) winning their bowl games and ending their season with either one or no losses.

So yes, the BCS needs to be tweaked. I think that is a truth that most would agree on. What doesn't need to happen? Congress spending time debating the issue, but according to Rep. Edolphus Towns (D-N.Y.), that's exactly what they'll be doing.

Congress spending time on the BCS issue -- like they did with the performance-enhancing drug talks of 2006 -- seems ill-timed. While I thought it was a waste of time back in '06, at least there were a few truths with the baseball talks:

-- Steroids are/were being used too much in sports, which is/was a problem.

-- Our youth looked up to these (gargantuan) athletes.

-- Our youth were using steroids because athletes were using them, thus harming their bodies when they really didn't have a clear understanding of what the substances could do to them.

I thought the hearings back in 2006 proved a few things. One, athletes can be intimidated by Congress. Two, if Congress wants, they can get to the bottom of most things. And three, athletes will lie about anything if it keeps them looking good.

The problem with involving The Committee on Oversight and Government Reform with the Bowl Championship Series is that there isn't anyone to blame. Do you blame the committee that came up with this format? No, because when it was first introduced everyone loved the idea of having "one true champion." The problem is, that hasn't really happened and it has become a system of mockery and scorn. We wanted to "fix" college football and while the BCS has tried, it has failed.

We don't need Congress spending their precious time trying to figure this thing out. President-elect Barack Obama has stressed his interest in putting an end to the BCS and adding a playoff system, but I think it is best left to the bowl committee.

I mean, would I go to the athletic director of my college just because I felt I was fouled in a pick up game at the rec center? Exactly.

h/t CFT

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