The attempt to indicate that the blue bloods of college football are actively trying to keep smaller programs out, or that there is going to be a collapse from within by the BCS, is not quite as dramatic as the authors imply. As everyone knows, the BCS has modified the number of games it holds and the qualifications for the sole reason of making sure quality teams from outside the 6 AQ conferences are included. And just because the conference commissioners have different ideas about the college football postseason doesn't mean that they are about to have a knock-down drag-out fight in the middle of the BCS meetings. Changes have been made, and will continue to be made, in order to improve the system that is in place. Creating a 16 team playoff does not improve the overall system in place, and thinking that a few teams with small stadiums or BCS internal strife will change the overall system is useless and completely misguided.
Chapter 15 tells the nice story of Boise State, its blue turf and its rise to prominence. Quite honestly, I love the Boise State story, and they are so much fun to watch. The fans in Boise love their team and they have one of the best coaches in the country. The authors note that, thanks to TV and the internet, quality high school football players now know about most teams across the country, and now teams like Boise St, TCU and Utah are attracting top level talent. While the results on the field are high quality, I attribute it the success to extraordinary coaching. Go to Scout.com or Rivals.com, and you can quickly see that the top high school players are still going to the historically successful schools. Recruiting websites are certainly not exactly correct all of the time, but those sites serve as the main barometer of how successful teams have been in recruiting. So while the fans may be able to watch Boise State on ESPN on Wednesday night and love it, the players are still choosing the larger schools by and large. However, the BCS has recognized Boise St, TCU, and Utah's level of achievement, and rewarded these teams by expanding the number of schools that can play in BCS games (thanks to Tulane's Scott Cowen ). Let me be clear, the BCS has not been made more selective because of their success, the BCS has granted greater access to those teams outside of the AQ conferences because of their success, and it is important to note that there has never been any rule or regulation in place excluding non-AQ conference teams from the BCS title game. BCS critics like to claim that it is impossible for for non-AQ schools to reach the championship game and this reason alone is why none have won the national title, conveniently ignoring the facts that; a) there is no rule excluding those teams, and b) only 1 team outside of the current AQ conferences has won a national championship since World War 2.
Apparently, conference commissioners having different ideas and organizations hiring legal help to defend their cause is a bad thing. That idea is purported in Chapter 16 and just doesn't make any sense. The conference commissioners are leaders of 8-12 schools, reached that level in their career because they have good ideas, and all of a sudden they are all supposed to agree on exactly how a complicated system like the BCS is supposed to function? That doesn't make any sense. Of course they are going to disagree, and that is a good thing! Disagreements foster discussion which create avenues for good ideas to become implemented. It probably won't lead to a 16 team playoff (nor should it), but the system can still improve. Also, with all the people attempting to claim antitrust violations and just trying to bring the BCS down in general, are you surprised they have hired lobbying firms, PR and legal help in order to defend their cause? All the while, conferences like the Mountain West and teams like Utah and TCU are not really actively fighting the BCS. They are joining the AQ conferences to get a larger slice of the pie. If teams and conferences are interested in changing the system, they need to act. Take a history lesson on things that have created change in this country. Going through the legal system generally doesn't do it. It usually takes bold and firm action. If you don't like the BCS or the NCAA, form your own group, or something similarly drastic. There are 54 teams in non-AQ conferences. If they all joined together and quit the NCAA to form their own group, don't you think that would garner a little more attention than trying to file an antitrust suit? The antitrust thing has been going on since 2003 and is not likely to bear any fruit. Have some guts to make real change. While I don't agree with what they are striving for, I always respect people and groups who fight hard for what they believe in.
The authors are really reaching for arguments against the BCS at this point. These weak chapters do them no favors. The BCS has opened its doors to the non-AQ schools and conferences, not closed them, and there is certainly not enough disagreement within the confines of the BCS to bring it down. If anything, the recent multi-billion dollar TV deals that have been signed will work to keep the system in place. The TV deals have been signed to televise games in the regular season because they are meaningful and valuable. It is nice to see a meaningful regular season for a change.
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