Abercrombie Presses Obama for NCAA Playoff

Rep. Neil Abercromibe (D-Hawaii) wrote a letter to President-elect Obama urging his future Department of Justice Antitrust Division to investigate the Bowl Championship Series (BCS).

Abercrombie highlighted Obama’s previous criticism of the BCS in interviews on 60 Minutes and Monday Night Football, in which Obama advocated using a playoff to determine college football’s national champion. Abercrombie sent the letter Nov. 20.

In it, Abercrombie charged that the BCS violates the Sherman Antitrust Act as “an illegal restraint of trade.” Earlier this year, Abercrombie introduced a bill (H. Res. 1120) seeking to banish the BCS in favor of a playoff on the same grounds.

“The anticompetitive effects of the BCS far outweigh its procompetitive benefits,” Abercrombie wrote.”The most obvious anticompetitive effect is the vast difference in revenue generated in the postseason between the BCS and non-BCS schools (members of Conference USA, Mid-American, Mountain West, Sun Belt, and Western Athletic Conferences), which do not have an annuall-guaranteed slot in a BCS game.”

The BCS–the system current in place–uses computerized rankings to place college football teams in bowl games, including the national title game. Many coaches agree with Abercrombie, pointing out that it disadvantages smaller schools. The University of Hawaii, Abercrombie’s post-graduate alma mater and home-state school and a member of the Western Athletic Conference, falls into the non-BCS category.

The BCS violates the Sherman Antitrust Act by giving an unfair advantage in revenue to BCS schools, Abercrombie wrote, pointing out that non-BCS schools must use more money from general school funds to cover athletic department costs, thereby taking money away from academics and school administration. In addition, Abercrombie wrote, a non-BCS school lacks the competitive reputation of a BCS school to gain athletic recognition and step out of its second-tier status.

“The BCS generates hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue annually, and this money is disproportionately awarded to the six BCS conferences. Sixty-six bowl-eligible schools–just more than half of the Division 1 Football Bowl Subdivision–shared 85% of the $217 million generated by the 2006-2007 postseason bowls, about $185 million,” Abercrombie wrote.

Proponents of Abercrombie’s bill (and many college football fans) believe that an NCAA Division 1 championship playoff would allow non-BCS schools to challenge and potentially unseat the usually dominant BCS schools. In his letter, Abercrombie contended that a playoff will not happen without the support of the U.S. Department of Justice.

–Lauren Vernon