BCS and the government yet aGAIN

Status
Not open for further replies.

DerHntr

All-Conference
Sep 18, 2007
15,746
2,523
113
don't they have better things to do damn it?

<div class="yn-story-content">
<div class="yn-story-content">

WASHINGTON - Shortly after winning last year's <span id="lw_1256148408_0" class="yshortcuts">presidential election</span>, <span style="BORDER-BOTTOM: medium none; BACKGROUND: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; CURSOR: hand" id="lw_1256148408_1" class="yshortcuts">Barack Obama</span> said he was going to "to throw my weight around a little bit" to nudge college football's <span style="BORDER-BOTTOM: #0066cc 1px dashed; CURSOR: hand" id="lw_1256148408_2" class="yshortcuts">Bowl Championship Series</span> to move to a playoff system.</p>

On Wednesday, <span style="BORDER-BOTTOM: medium none; BACKGROUND: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; CURSOR: hand" id="lw_1256148408_3" class="yshortcuts">Sen. Orrin Hatch</span> took him up on that.</p>

Hatch asked the president to launch a <span style="BORDER-BOTTOM: medium none; BACKGROUND: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; CURSOR: hand" id="lw_1256148408_4" class="yshortcuts">Justice Department investigation</span> into the way the BCS - a <span id="lw_1256148408_5" class="yshortcuts">complex system</span> of <span style="BORDER-BOTTOM: medium none; BACKGROUND: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; CURSOR: hand" id="lw_1256148408_6" class="yshortcuts">computer rankings</span> and polls that often draws criticism - crowns its national champion.</p>

"Mr. President, as you have publicly stated on multiple occasions, the BCS system is in dire need of reform," Hatch, R-Utah, wrote in a 10-page letter, obtained by The Associated Press.</p>

Hatch, who held a hearing on the BCS in July, told Obama that a "strong case" can be made that the BCS violates <span id="lw_1256148408_7" class="yshortcuts">antitrust laws</span>.</p>

Under the BCS system, some conferences get automatic bids to participate in top-tier bowls while others don't, and the automatic bid conferences also get far more of the revenue. Hatch's <span id="lw_1256148408_8" class="yshortcuts">home state school</span>, the <span id="lw_1256148408_9" class="yshortcuts">University of Utah</span>, is from the <span style="BORDER-BOTTOM: medium none; BACKGROUND: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; CURSOR: hand" id="lw_1256148408_10" class="yshortcuts">Mountain West Conference</span>, which does not get an automatic bid. The school qualified for a bid last season but was bypassed for the national championship despite going undefeated.</p>

The system "has been designed to limit the number of teams from non-privileged conferences that will play in BCS games," he wrote.</p>

Hatch said that the BCS arrangement likely violates the <span id="lw_1256148408_11" class="yshortcuts">Sherman Antitrust Act</span>, because, he argued, it constitutes a "contract, combination in the form of trust or otherwise, or conspiracy, in <span id="lw_1256148408_12" class="yshortcuts">restraint of trade</span> or commerce," quoting from the law.</p>

He said that the system "artificially limits the number of nationally-relevant <span style="BORDER-BOTTOM: #0066cc 1px dashed; CURSOR: hand" id="lw_1256148408_13" class="yshortcuts">bowl games</span> to five. The result is reduced access to revenues and visibility which creates disadvantages to schools in the non-privileged conferences." Hatch is the top Republican on the Senate Judiciary's subcommittee on antitrust, competition policy and consumer rights.</p>

The senator said that the hundreds of millions generated by college football "are hardly trivial sums," given that many schools use such revenue to fund things like other athletic programs.</p>

The White House declined to comment. The <span id="lw_1256148408_14" class="yshortcuts">Justice Department</span> and BCS officials had no immediate comment.</p>

Hatch's letter comes a few days after the BCS released its first standings of the year. And on Monday, a group of <span id="lw_1256148408_15" class="yshortcuts">college football fans</span> launched the Playoff PAC, with the hope of electing more lawmakers who will pressure the BCS to switch to a playoff system. Several lawmakers have introduced bills this year aimed at forcing a playoff system, but none of the bills has moved.</p> </div>
</div>
 
D

Dawg725

Guest
But as a responsible citizen of this country...there are WAY bigger fish to fry than the BCS system. God this admin is so 17ing incompetent.

edited cause i cant spell
 

urethrafranklin

Redshirt
May 28, 2009
199
0
0
i like to think that but the truth is that these guys have staffs that allow them to have opinions and work on things they care about without actually ever working on them. i doubt he said little more than "hey you, write a letter, and you, yeah you, read it"
 

DerHntr

All-Conference
Sep 18, 2007
15,746
2,523
113
i was pointing to the idea of them actually following through with what he suggests within the letter. following through with it is the problem since it includes time and resources that should be focused elsewhere.
 

DerHntr

All-Conference
Sep 18, 2007
15,746
2,523
113
he knows how to pull the right strings with this administration. it is actually quite funny to me.
 

GhostOfJackie

Senior
Apr 20, 2009
3,731
618
113
But this really had nothing to do with the administration. Our congress "both parties" need to get their heads out of their asses and start FIXING what really needs to be fixed. Instead, they sit sit around, eat each other ********, and leave the people who elected them wondering what happened to all the promises. They need to stay out of football. It's one thing I can pay attention to and enjoy that some joke governmental agency has not put their filthy hands all over. As of now, it's still clean. %+%#%%! pisses me off. Its easier to ***** about the cock-blowers we have in congress than it was to ***** about Croom.

Obama needs to stay out of football and stick to basketball, smoking cigs, and expanding government. You stick to what you're good at and those seem to be the only things he is good at.
 

davatron

Redshirt
May 28, 2007
892
0
0
What world were you living in? Both parties are a goddamn joke.

You can thank Orrin Hatch(R) for this because he got pissed of that Utah went undefeated last year and didn't get a slice of the NC.

So, who gets picked as the "College Football Fairness Czar"?
 

AssEndDawg

Freshman
Aug 1, 2007
3,183
54
48
DerHntr said:
don't they have better things to do damn it?
They couldn't do two things at once! When did the people in this country get the idea that we can only do one thing at a time? the NCAA is essentially a monopoly that the government allows which not only gives them certain rights but demands that they exercise some over-sight. I am concerned about the government screwing things up but in all honesty if it forces the NCAA to go to a playoff I don't give a ****. It's the right thing to do and I hope they get it done.
 

DerHntr

All-Conference
Sep 18, 2007
15,746
2,523
113
what i am suggesting is they have a TON of other things that they have to do all at the same time (this is greater than two things by the way) and they should focus their concern on those other things.

does this to do list look a bit strange to you?

War
Health Care Reform
Economy
National and State Bugdetary Crisis
Bowl Championship Series Reform
National Security
Immigration Reform
etc....
 

AssEndDawg

Freshman
Aug 1, 2007
3,183
54
48
There are 435 voting representatives, 100 Senators and 1 President

Each of these people has people working for them. Some, such as the President, have hundreds if not thousands.

Now I'm pretty sure they can manage to %!@% up all that other stuff on your list while at the same time forcing the NCAA to do a playoff. It may not be as important as some of those other things but that is not to say it couldn't also get done. I do several unimportant things every day but they gotta get done at some point. It can't all be war and health care reform.

Your list does look strange but it is disingenuous. If we were to stack up EVERYTHING the congress and President are working on there would be lots of things along the same level as fixing the BCS. Many dealing with far less money than college athletics and affecting far fewer people. USA USA, bring us a playoff!
 

SLUdog

Redshirt
May 28, 2007
2,149
9
38
could leave an form another league. There is the NAIA right now. But do we want multiple college sports leagues?
 

GhostOfJackie

Senior
Apr 20, 2009
3,731
618
113
The government would screw up a free lunch. Imagine what they could do to college football. The first step to communism is the government taking away the right to bear arms.The next step (in my world) would be putting their dirty little hands into college football. It's one of the only things we have left.

Well that and Erin Andrews videos.
 

DerHntr

All-Conference
Sep 18, 2007
15,746
2,523
113
well shucks ya'll...they are doing a bunch of other unimportant **** too. might as well do this one since it makes me happy.
 

AssEndDawg

Freshman
Aug 1, 2007
3,183
54
48
DerHntr said:
<table summary="user post and replies"> <tbody class="expandable post reply odd DerHntr" id="post-id-5.1.1.2"> <tr> <td class="th poster-name firstcol">
</td> <td class="th post-subject"><span class="post-title">i like your two wrongs makes a right argument</span></td> </tr> </tbody> </table>
I am for a playoff. It's just an opinion. It's not "wrong". The entire conversation was about the playoff, why act all surprised that I'm talking about the playoff? The secondary point was you saying the government should be doing "more important things" as if there were some cap on how many things they could do. Oh noes, a huge government bureaucracy made up of tens of thousands of people is trying to multitask! What ever will we do?

I even admit there is a fair chance they will screw it up. But still, the NCAA is never going to do it on their own so in my opinion I'm ok with the government taking a small part of their time to try and force the NCAA's hand. I think anyone against a playoff is a socialist. "Let's let everyone win!" Well I say ********, there should be only one winner in any season, it's the American way damn it!
 

DerHntr

All-Conference
Sep 18, 2007
15,746
2,523
113
and my opinion is congress doing unimportant **** is wrong. there. two wrongs make a right if they are doing some unimportant **** then they can do this one unimportant thing for you so that you are happy. i am not being silly. but that is my opinion too.

what it boils down to is you and i disagree on the function of the government. i like for them to stay out of our lives as much as possible and you don't seem to mind that much. i don't need or want their help for my football enjoyment.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.