Hatch asks Obama for probe of BCS

Hatch asks Obama for probe of BCS

WASHINGTON -- Shortly after winning last year's presidential election, Barack Obama said he was going "to throw my weight around a little bit" to nudge college football's Bowl Championship Series to move to a playoff system.

Yesterday, Sen. Orrin Hatch took him up on that.

Hatch asked the president to launch a Justice Department investigation into the way the BCS -- a complex system of computer rankings and polls that often draws criticism -- crowns its national champion.

"Mr. President, as you have publicly stated on multiple occasions, the BCS system is in dire need of reform," Hatch, R-Utah, wrote in a 10-page letter, obtained by The Associated Press.

Hatch, who held a hearing on the BCS in July, told Obama that a "strong case" can be made that the BCS violates antitrust laws.

Under the BCS system, some conferences get automatic bids to participate in top-tier bowls while others don't, and the automatic bid conferences also get far more of the revenue. Hatch's home state school, the University of Utah, is from the Mountain West Conference, which does not get an automatic bid. The school qualified for a bid last season but was bypassed for the national championship despite going undefeated.

The system "has been designed to limit the number of teams from non-privileged conferences that will play in BCS games," he wrote.

The Justice Department said it would review the letter and respond. The White House declined to comment.

The chairman of the BCS Presidential Oversight Committee, Harvey Perlman, said, "Like a majority of presidents, commissioners, athletics directors and coaches, we stand behind the BCS as the best way to identify a national champion."

Alan G. Fishel, an attorney for the Mountain West Conference and Boise State University, backed Hatch's effort. "If the government can look at the concentration of money in railroads, telecommunications and software developers, then why not the big business of college sports in America?" he said.

Charlotte's goal: home for ACC final

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- The city of Charlotte is enlisting its heavy hitters in the business community in an effort to become the permanent home of the ACC title game.

Former Bank of America CEO Hugh McColl and ex-Charlotte mayor Harvey Gantt were appointed honorary co-chairmen for the game, which will be in Charlotte in 2010 and '11 after a two-year stay in Tampa, Fla. The game was held in Jacksonville, Fla., before that.

Commissioner John Swofford said he wouldn't be opposed to having a permanent home for the game, which has struggled to draw fans.

UConn, WVU players to honor Howard

STORRS, Conn. -- Connecticut and West Virginia willwear helmet stickers Saturday in memory of UConn cornerback Jasper Howard, who was stabbed to death just hours after the Huskies' 38-25 win over Louisville last week. UConn (4-2, 1-1) will wear Howard's initials, JH, on their helmets, and West Virginia (5-1, 1-0) will have his number, 6, on theirs. There also will be a moment of silence in Morgantown, and the two teams will then meet on the field to embrace or shake hands before the game begins.

Meanwhile, Boston College's DeLeon Gause will wear No. 6 on in memory of Howard. Gause went to Miami Central high school and played against Howard's Miami Edison.

Elsewhere

• Alabama coach Nick Saban said his kickers won't use tape to spot field goals and extra points. South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier pointed out that Alabama's Leigh Tiffin used white tape to spot kicks in last week's game. Spurrier reported it to the Southeastern Conference and said he was told by the conference that what Tiffin did was against the rules.

Saban said he didn't know Tiffin was using the tape and said it isn't worth risking a 5-yard penalty. However, he said Tide coaches have found Tiffin wasn't alone in spotting the ball.

• Penn State linebacker Sean Lee is practicing and expects to play this weekend against Michigan despite tweaking his sprained left knee last week. The defensive captain for the No. 13 Nittany Lions missed three games with the injury before returning for last week's win over Minnesota. Lee played mostly on passing downs, finishing with two tackles.

• The Southeastern Conference suspended officials from last weekend's Arkansas-Florida game after the crew was involved in its second controversial call of the year. Referee Marc Curles' crew called a personal foul on Arkansas defensive lineman Malcolm Sheppard in the fourth quarter as the Gators were rallying for a 23-20 victory. The league said there was no video evidence to support the call. The same group of officials called the LSU-Georgia game earlier this month, which included a late unsportsmanlike conduct penalty the league said shouldn't have been called.

-- From Wire Reports