College Capsules: MWC commissioner: BCS changes could take 5 years
HENDERSON, Nev. — The top administrator of the Mountain West Conference said Wednesday that it could take five years to change the way college football championships are decided.
Acknowledging the MWC was still sore about undefeated Utah being shut out of last year’s national championship game, Commissioner Craig Thompson vowed to keep lobbying Congress, Bowl Championship Series administrators and college football’s 10 other conferences for a revamped playoff system.
"We feel a change needs to be made and inclusion needs to be broader," he said.
In the meantime, Thompson said conference board members decided not to penalize athletes by balking at signing a broadcasting contract and walking away from the existing postseason bowl system. The Mountain West on July 8 became the last conference to sign a broadcasting deal with ESPN for the 2011-14 seasons.
"We couldn’t take our kids voluntarily out of the chance to play in a BCS bowl game," Thompson said during a state-of-the-conference address to media members at a Las Vegas-area casino resort. "As much as we would like to see change in the system, it is the only system."
At issue are the number of automatic bids awarded to conferences for postseason play in top-tier bowls, and the money those appearances bring.
Six conferences — the ACC, Big East, Big 12, Big Ten, Pac-10 and SEC — get automatic BCS bids, plus about $18 million each.
The Mountain West, which doesn’t get an automatic bid, calls the system unfair. It has proposed an eight-team playoff featuring first-round play in the four top current BCS bowls — Sugar, Orange, Rose, Fiesta. Winners would advance to a championship.
In a telephone interview, BCS administrator Bill Hancock acknowledged criticism of the current system, which picks two top BCS teams for a championship game based on two polls and six computer rankings.
"We know the BCS is not perfect," Hancock said from Kansas City. "But it is the best proposal that has been presented that meets the needs of all 11 conferences."
Last year’s championship matched 12-1 Florida against 12-1 Oklahoma, while undefeated Utah beat Southeast Conference powerhouse Alabama, 31-17.
"The fact is, six conferences had individual bowl deals before the BCS," Hancock said of the system that began in 1998. "The BCS has to offer them at least as good a deal as they had before, or they wouldn’t participate."
Hancock added that the other five conferences can earn an automatic qualification, depending on their teams’ performances over a four-year span.
Thompson vowed to "fight within and challenge within, and try to coerce and convince and cajole ... our fellow 10 conferences to change the system over the next couple years."
Thompson, the only commissioner the Mountain West has had since the conference started in 1998, said he was proud of the rising level of play by the nine conference schools — TCU, BYU, Utah, Air Force, UNLV, Colorado State, New Mexico, San Diego State and Wyoming.
He said the MWC would continue its $265,000 contract with a Washington lobbying firm to keep the BCS issue before Congress, which held hearings on the matter May 1.
But he said MWC efforts weren’t connected with calls by Utah state Attorney General Mark Shurtleff and Utah Republican Sen. Orrin Hatch for investigations of whether the BCS violates federal antitrust laws.
"I don’t know what those people are going to do," Thompson said, adding that he felt that as league commissioner the best way to elbow into the BCS was for MWC teams to win games.
"If you perform and you win games and you’re playing quality opponents and you’re beating the Oklahomas, the Alabamas, the UCLAs, the Michigans, and all the people we’ve beaten," he said, "that should be our statement."
Army adds 3 more football games at Yankee Stadium
NEW YORK — The Army football team will play Rutgers, Air Force and Boston College at Yankee Stadium in addition to the Black Knights’ matchup there against Notre Dame.
Army announced the three games Wednesday, two days after it said it would face the Fighting Irish at the new ballpark on Nov. 20, 2010. The Black Knights will take on Rutgers on Nov. 12, 2011; Air Force on Nov. 3, 2012; and Boston College on Nov. 8, 2014.
Pairing with the storied venue will bring national exposure to a proud program that has struggled on the field in recent years. The Black Knights played at the old Yankee Stadium 38 times from 1925-69, but the ballpark hadn’t hosted college football since 1987.
"If you’re a young man thinking about the service academies, this is part of the equation," Army coach Rich Ellerson said.
Notre Dame will be the home team for its game, and Army will be the home team for the other three games. Army is working out details to add a 2013 game, as well.
The Black Knights’ opponents are hardly complaining about the change in venue. Air Force athletic director Hans Mueh flew in for Wednesday’s news conference at the ballpark.
Rutgers coach Greg Schiano succinctly explained the benefits for his school: "Two words — Ray Rice." The former Scarlet Knights star running back, who now plays for the Baltimore Ravens, hails from New Rochelle, N.Y., about 15 miles from the stadium.
"It sends a good message in a state where we’ve had a lot of success recruiting," Rutgers athletic director Tim Pernetti said.
Army also announced a new television deal with CBS College Sports Network for 2010-14. The contract will allow the Black Knights to play all their home games on Saturday afternoons.
Army athletic director Kevin Anderson wanted to avoid weeknight games, which have become more common in college football because of TV.
CBS College Sports Network now has the rights to games for all three service academies.
WCC tournament to stay in Las Vegas
SAN FRANCISCO — The West Coast Conference tournament is staying in Vegas.
The WCC and the Orleans Arena signed a three-year contract extension to keep the men’s and women’s conference basketball tournaments in Las Vegas through 2012. It’s a significant step for a mid-major league looking to make more of an impact nationally, considering the top conferences play their tournaments at neutral sites.
"My philosophy is if you can support a neutral-site model, it’s the best model," WCC commissioner Jamie Zaninovich said Wednesday in a phone interview from Las Vegas following a formal announcement of the deal.
"We have found we have the right fan base, the right arena and the right destination. The three things we look at are financial success, student-athlete and fan experience and exposure. If you can accomplish those three things on a neutral site, you have to do it if you want to be a major player in college basketball."
The WCC sold out the Orleans Arena this past March for its first tournament not played at one of the conference’s eight schools, setting WCC records for both total championship attendance (33,320) and single-session championship attendance (7,845).
The Western Athletic Conference also will hold its conference tournaments at Orleans for two years starting in 2011, so the two events will be played in back-to-back weeks.
"It will be like March Madness for nine days leading up to Selection Sunday," Zaninovich said. "I think that’s great for college basketball and great for us. We’ll work closely with the WAC. It should be a great atmosphere."
Zaninovich said officials at the Orleans Arena went out of their way to accommodate the WCC’s needs, agreeing to make "tweaks" to the facility to "make it more basketball friendly."
"We’re ecstatic — 2009 was a little bit of an experiment because we hadn’t been to a neutral site, and it’s a city we don’t even have a school in, so it was uncharted waters," Zaninovich said.
The WCC presidents were in favor of a long-term commitment to the Las Vegas venue.
"The Orleans Arena has established itself as the leading neutral-site college basketball venue in Las Vegas and we are very proud of our success and look forward to the fantastic seasons ahead," arena executive director Darren Davis said. "We are thrilled about the return of the WCC to the Orleans Arena."
-- Janie McCauley
Basketball
St. John’s Mason gets extra year
NEW YORK — Anthony Mason Jr. was granted a medical hardship by the Big East Conference on Tuesday and will rejoin the Red Storm for a redshirt senior season in 2009-10.
Mason played in just three games last season after tearing a tendon in his left foot. He had surgery in December and was cleared to return to the court for offseason voluntary workouts in early June.
"Having been out for almost the whole year, I watched and learned a lot," said Mason, the son of former New York Knick Anthony Mason. "I can’t wait to go out and perform with my team on the court this season."
Mason was a Big East honorable mention pick after his junior season in 2007-08 when he led the team in scoring with a 14.0 average.
For the last seven months, Mason’s recovery from the injury and rehabilitation from the surgery was followed by a camera crew from MTV. Mason will be featured in an upcoming episode of the MTV "True Life" documentary series, titled, "True Life: I’m Rehabbing My Sports Injury."
Georgetown to play Washington in Wooden Classic
ANAHEIM, Calif. — Georgetown will play its first West Coast game in eight years against Washington, and UCLA plays Mississippi State in the 16th annual John R. Wooden Classic on Dec. 12.
The complete field for the doubleheader at Honda Center was announced Wednesday.
Georgetown hasn’t played in California since visiting UCLA in 2001. It will be the Hoyas’ first meeting with defending Pac-10 champion Washington.
The Huskies return to the doubleheader named for the former UCLA coach for the second time. In 2005, they beat New Mexico State.
The Bruins and Bulldogs will meet in the second game. UCLA is 9-3 in 12 Wooden Classic appearances. Mississippi State played in the 2004 event, losing to Arizona.
