Obama Raps Bowl Championship Series: 'We need a playoff'

[DeepModem Mom]

Source: CNN

President-elect Barack Obama left no doubt about his position on the hottest topic in the world of college football. "We need a playoff," Obama told reporters after being asked about Florida's 24-14 victory over Oklahoma in Thursday night's BCS championship game. "If I'm Utah, or if I'm USC or if I'm Texas, I might still have some quibbles."

Since its inception in 1998, the NCAA's Bowl Championship Series has weathered criticism from nearly all directions. The BCS is the system that chooses the contenders for college football's most prominent postseason games: the Fiesta, Orange, Rose and Sugar bowls, as well the National Championship game, which this year put Oklahoma against Florida. The BCS relies on a compilation of polls and rankings instead of, to the consternation of many, actual competition.

Florida, Oklahoma and Texas all finished the season with one loss. Texas actually handed Oklahoma its one defeat in October on a neutral field. When the BCS computer system put Florida and Oklahoma in this year's national championship game, the annual back-and-forth over whether to have a college football playoff system was reignited. Utah was the only college football team to finish the season undefeated, but its conference is considered less competitive and therefore was put at a statistical disadvantage in the BCS.

Friday was not the first time Obama stated his preference for a playoff system. "It would add three extra weeks to the season," Obama said in a "60 Minutes" interview just after his election. "You could trim back on the regular season. I don't know any serious fan of college football who has disagreed with me on this. So, I'm going to throw my weight around a little bit. I think it's the right thing to do."

Each year, Republicans and Democrats alike are angered by what they see as inherent unfairness in the BCS arrangement....

Read more: http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/01/09/political.football/index.html

[bluestateguy]

1. I guess Obama is trying to suck up to Texas

Always good to be thinking of 2012.

[DJ13]

5. nah, USC would wipe the floor with Texas

Hm, Obama has a point!

[Bicoastal]

2. It's not fair--how can he be such a nerd AND a jock at the same time?

x(

[Tempest]

3. Reporters are asking him about it?

No wonder the country is in the shape it is.

[DeepModem Mom]

4. According to the article, Congress has attempted legislation on the issue. I'm not...

a student of all this, but seems it's of importance to lots of folks. Of course, there's lots of passion -- and money -- involved in college football (and, indeed, all sports).

[Tempest]

6. Republicans, especially in the south want legislation

Another reason the country is such sorry shape.

[jus_the_facts]

7. You can just leave the "especially in the south" part out of your statement....

....the S.E.C. has dominated the BCS system and we share the profits with all the schools in our conference too..not JUST the winner of THE GAME as all the other conferences do...also the S.E.C. has a playoff...it's called the S.E.C. Championship game...if we decided to get rid of that game...and had just playoff games...there would be many years there might ONLY be S.E.C. teams in the National Championship games....think about it. :think:

[DavidDvorkin]

8. We need a president who doesn't talk about sports.