Congress Switches Focus to BCS Flaws

The Associated Press had an article on ESPN.com a few days ago regarding the BCS and its discussion in Congress. You can read the article here: http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=4015667

According to the article, Congress is preparing to hold hearings to discuss the validity of one of the most controversial subjects in sports. Senator Orrin Hatch of Utah and Republican Joe Barton of Texas are spearheading the assault on the BCS and its much maligned formula for selecting teams for the BCS games. 

As we all know, the 2008 season was a perfect example of some of the many flaws the BCS is currently plagued with. 

After yet another very competitive season across the board, the BCS was left with the task of selecting two teams to compete for the national championship. The scrutiny was the consideration of about five teams worthy of a shot, with only two would getting the nod.

Perhaps the most controversial of aspect of this was the late jump Oklahoma made over Texas in the BCS poll even after a Sooner loss to the Longhorns at mid-season. The computers favored Texas, but the other two-thirds of the formula, which are all human based, gave Oklahoma the green light for a date with Florida.

The argument is simple: a playoff is needed to determine a REAL national champion.

Wait a second Congress, aren't we in the middle of one of the worst economic downturns since the Depression?

Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't there a failing housing market and a credit crisis that needs to be addressed? 

Isn't there corruption on Wall Street that needs to be controlled? A deficit to be sliced?

While many college football fans were furious following the final results of the season, especially those in Texas and Utah, I would like to think that even more people are worried about the state of the economy.

Don't get me wrong, I've been a huge advocate of a playoff system in college football for about three years now and will continue to voice my displeasure with the system in place. However, I don't believe Congress should be wasting valuable time and resources on fixing college football at the moment.

Besides, even if a Senate committee determined the BCS is corrupt by next season it would still take a few years to start seeing real changes. It isn't an easy fix.

My recommendation to Congress is fix the economy first and then you can fix college football.