lucylily's blog: "ght"

WASHINGTON -- Playoffs and tournaments long have determined champions of every college sport from baseball to bowling. The exception was major college football. That ended Tuesday. Come 2014, the BCS is dead. A committee of university presidents approved a plan for a four-team playoff put forward by commissioners of the top football conferences. For years, the decision-makers had balked at any type of playoff because they said it would diminish the importance of the regular season. If only two teams had a chance to win a championship in the post-season, even one loss could be too many. That made for some very high stakes regular-season games. As recently as 2008, Southeastern Conference Commissioner Mike Slive proposed the type of plan adopted Tuesday, and it was quickly shot down. Four years later, minds changed. The 12 university presidents stood shoulder to shoulder on a stage at a news conference in a posh hotel in the nations capital and delivered the news. "Its a great day for college football," BCS Executive Director Bill Hancock said. "As soon as the commissioners realized they could do this and protect the regular season, the light went on for everybody." The move completes a six-month process for the commissioners, who have been working on a new way to determine a major college football champion after years of griping from fans. The latest configuration is certain to make even more money for the schools than the old system -- and not satisfy everyone. "There were differences of views," said Virginia Tech President Charles Steger, who headed the BCS presidential oversight committee. "I think it would be a serious mistake to assume it was a rubber stamp." Nebraska Chancellor Harvey Perlman was the most notable holdout. He had said he preferred the status quo or a tweak of the Bowl Championship Series. Perlman said the playoff still wouldnt be his first choice, but he was not going to stand in the way of progress. "This is the package that was put forth and we will strongly support it," he said. Instead of simply matching the nations No. 1 and No. 2 teams in a title game after the regular season, the way the BCS has done since 1998, the new format will create a pair of national semifinals. Many college football fans have been clamouring for a playoff for years, and the BCS has been a constant target for criticism. Lawmakers have railed against it. A political action committee was formed, dedicated to its destruction. The Justice Department looked into whether it broke antitrust laws. Even President Obama said he wanted a playoff. Now its a reality. No. 1 will play No. 4, and No. 2 will play No. 3 on Dec. 31 and/or Jan. 1. The sites of those games will rotate among the four current BCS bowls -- Rose, Orange, Fiesta and Sugar -- and two more to be determined. One of the new sites will likely be wherever the newly formed bowl created by the SEC and Big 12 is played, Slive said. The Cotton Bowl, played at the $1.1 billion Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas, has long wanted to be part of the BCS and is expected to make a strong push to be in the semifinal rotation. The winners of the semis will advance to the championship on the first Monday in January that is six or more days after the last semifinal. The first "Championship Monday," as it was called in the BCS release, is set for Jan. 12, 2015. The site of the title game will move around the way the Super Bowl does, with cities bidding for the right to host. The teams will be selected by a committee, similar to the way the NCAA basketball tournament field is set. The mens tournament has 68 teams, and 37 at-large bids. The football committee will have a much tougher task, trying to whittle the field down to four. This season, 125 schools will play at the highest level of college football. Among the factors the committee will consider are won-loss record, strength of schedule, head-to-head results and whether a team is a conference champion. The selection committee will also play a part in creating matchups for the games at the four sites that do not hold a semifinal in a given year. "I think its tremendous progress," Washington State coach Mike Leach, a playoff proponent. "Five years ago there wasnt even dialogue about a playoff. Instead of diving in the water, they dipped their toes in. I think its going to be ridiculously exciting and its going to generate a bunch of money. I wish they dived in." The BCS had given automatic qualifying status to six conferences, the SEC, Big Ten, Big 12, Atlantic Coast Conference, Pac-12 and Big East. That allowed those leagues better access to the big, high-payout games than the other five conferences, such as the Mountain West and Conference USA. Automatically qualified status is gone and the commissioners believe the new system will create more interesting games beyond the ones that determine the national title. "What the system now is, several semifinals, championship game and some access bowls. By creating a couple of access bowls, people will be able to play high-quality opponents in big venues with big brands," Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany said. No one has put a hard number on it yet, but this new format figures to more than double the TV revenue of the current BCS and Rose Bowl contracts. Those pay out about $155 million annually. The commissioners want to lock in this format for 12 years with a television partner. The current four-year BCS deal with ESPN runs through the 2013 season. The new format will be presented to potential TV partners in the fall, starting with ESPN. "I think we have found what we think is the right place and it stabilizes the post-season for a length of time that I think is healthy for the game," said Slive, whose members have won the last six BCS championships. There are still some details to work out -- such as who will be on the committee and what new bowls will be involved in the semifinal rotation -- but all the decision-makers are on board. Lower divisions of college football already have a playoff, but the highest level has always used bowls and polls to determine its champion. Those days are coming to an end. "We believe this new format will be good for student-athletes, for the alumni and for our institutions," Steger said. "Its a best of both worlds result. It captures the excitement of the playoff while protecting the regular season." LeGarrette Blount Patriots Jersey . The Dutch needed a spark to ignite its sputtering campaign after losing 3-2 to Bayern Munich last week followed by a lacklustre 2-1 defeat to Bulgaria on Saturday. It came in the form of Ibrahim Afellay, who was playing his first international in nearly a year after recovering from a serious left knee injury. Aaron Dobson Womens Jersey . "Team B" went on a spending spree adding an MVP candidate at shortstop, a top-notch starting pitcher and a blue chip closer. Team A kept its payroll in the $70 to $80 million range. http://www.footballpatriotsteamshop.com/womens-legarrette-blount-nike-jersey-qo-60.html . -- Authorities in Texas have issued two arrest warrants for Ryan Leaf, declaring the former NFL quarterback is a fugitive from justice. Jerod Mayo Jersey . Mathieu, who was injured throughout 2011, edged the key points with the third-seeded Wawrinka converting just two of nine break chances in the second-round match. A former top-20 player, Mathieu is ranked No. womens Tom Brady Jersey . -- Brad Keselowski is talking the talk of a title contender.DALLAS -- After Vince Carter pumped up the crowd, O.J. Mayo kept knocking down shots. Mayo scored 30 points, including a career-high seven 3-pointers, and Carter got the fans going in Dallas home opener with a powerful dunk and high-flying block to help the Mavericks remain unbeaten against Charlotte with a 126-99 victory on Saturday night. "He was locked in," Carter said of Mayo. "He was worried about his shot a couple of days ago, and even early in the game. And I just said, Just shoot. Just shoot it like youre 5 for 5 instead of 1 for 5." Mayo fed off Carter, too. He had a three-point play and his first 3-pointer less than a minute after Carters emphatic first-quarter dunk -- reminiscent of his "Vinsanity" days -- over Bobcats centre Bismack Biyombo. Carter then brought fans to their feet again by chasing down Kemba Walker and sending his breakaway layup attempt into the stands in the second quarter. Dallas, which improved to 16-0 all-time against Charlotte, trailed 53-52 when Mayo put the Mavericks ahead for good on a 3-pointer with 1:01 left in the first half. Shawn Marion followed with a three-point play, and Darren Collison hit a running 34-footer at the buzzer for a 61-53 lead. Collison started the second half with another 3-pointer, and Mayo finished the 24-8 run with a 3 that made it 76-61. The Mavericks scored 36 points in the third quarter after getting outscored by Utah 37-13 in that period in their first loss Thursday. "Once we got on the plane, a couple of us popped in the film and saw that our energy, effort, we were so casual during the entire third quarter, so we wanted to come out with an attack mentality and really just get after it," Mayo said. Carter had 18 points, and the 14-year veteran was 4 of 8 from 3-point range. The Mavs had 16 3-pointers as Rick Carlisle became the third coach to win 200 games with Dallas. Don Nelson (339) and original Mavericks coach Dick Motta (329) are the others. "You make 16 3s, youre not going to lose many games, and it was a bit of a deodorant for some of our other transgressions," Carlisle said. "We look to make strides, mild as they may be, and get better." Ramon Sessions led Charlotte with 22 points. Former Mavericks centre Brendan Haywood had 14 points and 11 rebounds. Dallas centre Chris Kaman made his debut as a reserve. He got off to a slow start after missing two weeks with aa strained right calf, but he was a different player in the second half.dddddddddddd He made all five of his shots in the third quarter, including an alley-oop dunk on one of Collisons 10 assists, and finished with 16 points on 8-of-9 shooting. "I missed the last four preseason games and the first two, so Im kind of like a new player out there," said Kaman, expected to be a critical component as the Mavericks try to hold on until injured star Dirk Nowitzki returns. "Im just trying to fit in where I can and do what I can do." Collison also had 18 points. Former Charlotte coach Larry Brown, now at SMU after he was fired by the Bobcats two years ago, watched courtside as the Bobcats fell behind 31-19 after the first quarter before going on a 17-4 run for a 36-35 lead. Sessions had eight points during the spurt, including the go-ahead bucket. "It was a wonderful first half," Charlotte coach Mike Dunlap said. "But unfortunately in the third quarter we gave up 36 points, so we hang our hat on our defence so we know where to start." Carlisle wasted no time going to Kaman, calling on him less than two minutes into the game. Carters entrance about five minutes later had a much bigger impact. After his big dunk, he hit a 3-pointer in the final seconds of the first quarter. "I think they just move the ball," Dunlap said of the Mavericks. "There are three or four teams that we show film of and the Mavericks is one of them. They call it their flow offence. They do a great job of moving the ball to find the open shooter." Walker had 10 points and was held to 10 shots a night after scoring a career-high 30 to lead the Bobcats past Indiana in their opener. "They played him different, so what he did was he adjusted his game," Dunlap said. "I really like the way he played. He didnt force things." NOTES: Mavericks G Rodrigue Beaubois was inactive after twisting his left ankle in practice Friday. . Shawn Marion had two blocks on Haywood in the first quarter. The Mavericks used the amnesty clause to dump Haywood in the off-season. . Bobcats G Gerald Henderson left in the third quarter with a left foot sprain and didnt return. . Mavericks TV announcer Mark Followill is out indefinitely after getting injured in a bike accident Saturday in Dallas. Hes been with the Mavericks for 12 seasons. ... Dallas is the only NBA team that hasnt lost to Charlotte. ' ' '