Idaho's Democratic Congressman-elect Walt Minnick should not be allowed to take office. After all, he's a Democrat in one of the reddest states in the union who was pitted against an extremely conservative and loyal Republican incumbant Congressman.
Oh sure, Minnick may have won the election by some 5000 votes or so, but it is a contest that should have never been held. The odds against a Democrat taking the very conservative 1st District were just too long to put an underdog politically inexperienced businessman in that position. Even if incumbant Rep. Bill Sali lost that election, it doesn't really matter because we all know Sali should have won.
Ridiculous? Perhaps, but what I have just laid out for you is the logic of the College Football Bowl Championship Series that appears determined to keep an undefeated Boise State out of a major bowl game. Instead, football fans will be graced with an easily forgettable Orange Bowl on New Year's Day which appears likely to pit a 2-loss 16th ranked Cinncinati team against whichever ACC team can avoid a 4-loss season. Over in the Pac-10, 3-loss Oregon State is 'win and their in' the Rose Bowl. Ridiculous indeed!
Sports is supposed to be a 'Meritocracy.' "May the best team win" ... but in the BCS, it is a 'Moneytocracy' which puts undeserving teams in the big bowl spotlight while undefeated top 10 Boise State goes overlooked.
It wasn't supposed to be like this. The BCS was supposed to be a alliance of college football's power conferences that would vastly increase the value of 4 major bowl games plus produce a national champion. The money has flowed, but the ACC and Big East conferences have been very weak links in the BCS. The non-BCS Mountain West conference is better than either of them, and you could argue BSU has a better football team than the teams that will emerge as champions of the ACC, Big East, and possibly even the PAC-10.
Respect is also an issue. Despite Boise State's impressive win two years ago against Oklahoma in the BCS Fiesta Bowl, like a Democrat in Idaho, the Broncos in 'Blue' still don't get much respect in the 'Red' world of the Oklahomas and Alabamas. Some in the BCS conferences say they could go undefeated as well if they played Boise State's schedule. I'm not so sure. At the very least, Top-25 ranked Oregon on the road is a tough game, and would that really be true if that schedule included a game against Boise State?
Two years ago after Idaho Statesman columnist Dan Popkey infamously said the Broncos wouldn't win the Fiesta Bowl against a stacked Oklahoma team that included running back Adrian Peterson, he later explained he had bought into the illusion of the 'BCS mystique.' Well, I never did buy into it and still don't. If they can beat Fresno State at home, Boise State will have earned the right to compete in a major bowl game, but when it comes to the BCS, it's not about the merit, it's about the money.
I think that's hogwash, it is about merit. If they played USC, SEC teams, ACC teams, or even some Big Ten teams, then their strength of schedule would allow them in to BCS games.
Posted by: Joel | November 26, 2008 at 02:56 PM
Good tips on topic.I think that's hogwash, it is about merit. If they played USC, SEC teams, ACC teams, or even some Big Ten teams, then their strength of schedule would allow them in to BCS games.
Posted by: Manchester United | July 06, 2009 at 11:55 PM