Former Clemson football coach Tommy Bowden said that former U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice "isn't qualified to be one of the 12 members" of the College Football Playoff selection committee, according to Heather Dinich of ESPN.com. Bowden yesterday at a meeting of the Knoxville Quarterback Club said, "If the selection committee wants to get it right, and find the most knowledgeable people about the sport of football, go get people who played the game and preferably coached the game. ... Just because she likes to watch football doesn't necessarily mean she knows anything about football." CFP Exec Dir Bill Hancock said, "Goodness gracious, Condi is [eminently] qualified to serve on this committee. She is brilliant and discerning and knows college football." The CFP selection committee tonight will release its first top-25 rankings on ESPN at 7:30pm ET (ESPN.com, 10/27). In Birmingham, Creg Stephenson notes Rice "is the only woman on the committee, which is comprised largely of current athletic directors and/or former coaches," including USC AD Pat Haden, Wisconsin AD Barry Alvarez and former Nebraska coach and AD Tom Osborne (AL.com, 10/27).
FIRST & LONG: In Dallas, Chuck Carlton writes Arkansas AD Jeff Long, who chairs the CFP selection committee, "pointedly noted" tonight's rankings "are just the first." Six more sets of rankings "will follow with the final rankings on Dec. 7 determining the four teams for the playoff." Long: "Bear in mind, whatever decisions we make ... in our first release of rankings, those will undoubtedly change." He added that the atmosphere in the meeting room yesterday "was far different than previous mock exercises -- more intense, deliberate and serious" (
DALLAS MORNING NEWS, 10/28).
TIRED OF HEARING ABOUT AN SEC BIAS: ESPN is televising the CFP games, and a sizable contingent of fans have insinuated that the net has a bias toward the SEC, in part because of its involvement with the SEC Network. ESPN's Chris Fowler, in advance of the first CFP rankings, said, "People around the country think that the committee can only operate with an agenda in mind. They don't believe there can be integrity, objectivity in the committee. … They think it's all agendas. They think ESPN is about agendas. They think it's a good idea that we love the idea that all these teams from one little region control the balance of power at the moment in college football. That's great for the SEC, that's great for the SEC Network, it's great for CBS. It's not good for anybody that televises a bracket. What's good for the sport overall, what's good for interest in a playoff and ratings is to have teams from all over the country represented." Fowler added, "I get defensive when stupid, uninformed stuff gets repeated again and again and people all over the world think somehow we have a stake in having three teams from this league get in" ("College GameDay," ESPN, 10/25). SEC Network’s Brent Musburger said, “Somebody said we’ve got SEC bias. Deal with it, they’re the best” (“South Carolina-Auburn,” SEC Network, 10/25).
