Bertman: Sounds like BCS notion
June 29, 2004
OMAHA, Neb. — So why all of a sudden is the northern bloc fighting for competitive equity in college baseball? It’s not like the southern bloc just began dominating last year.
After 1983, which was the last year that teams were selected by geographic regions for the College World Series, southern or sun belt schools have owned Omaha.
“It’s like Tulane suddenly wanting to get into the BCS (Bowl Championship Series),” LSU athletic director Skip Bertman said. “That’s basically a mini version of what we’re talking about. The Big Ten wants a piece. They see now that college baseball can be a money maker. Some schools want a piece of the pie that schools like LSU and South Carolina have been getting. The coach at Ohio State (Bob Todd), for example, says he can draw for a Michigan game or for some other league games, but it’s too darn cold so they want the schedule started later. So it’s really about money now.”
Interestingly, Big Ten commissioner James Delany, who has been leading the Big Ten’s baseball charge against unfairness, is a chief power broker of the BCS that shuts out many schools like Tulane from its elite dance, or treats them like Big Ten baseball schools.
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