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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 30, 2003)
NATM 'TTau# Sports ires )t fires or cing so® 'redestroi side town md of These fn id to tie said E ifety ofe ty fire o§ 00-acre fe blaze woi single bk it nearl p it fr® Forest!] commas:- The Battalion Page 1 B • Thursday, October 30, 2003 , senators say BCS unfair By Robert Gehrke THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Sooners not a lock for title game ve up. he sai: is we doc' saved, bo /our nairc. ton the! WASHINGTON —The Bowl Championship ieries shuts out too many schools in its goal of rowning a college football champion and needs o be repaired, senators told representatives of he bowl system Wednesday. “I don't know if you guys know how it looks ofans of teams that aren’t part of this system,” aid Sen. Joe Biden, D-Del. “It looks un- American. It really does. It looks unfair. It looks e a rigged deal.” Created in 1998 by the six most powerful col- T''T"“ ege conferences, the BCS guarantees that the ™ hampions of those conferences will play in one tf the four most lucrative postseason bowl [antes, leaving only two at-large berths. This year, TCU is 8-0 but was only 12th in he latest BCS standings and could be shut out of a lucrative bowl. Former BYU coach La Yell Edwards said the 3CS system also makes it harder for teams out- :ide the alliance to recruit, since there is little hance the players will ever be able to compete Jor a national championship. Division I-A football is the only college sport ot to have a playoff system. BYU, which won the national championship n 1984, is the only team other than Notre Dame utside the six BCS conferences to have won a lational championship since 1945. In the 20 years before the BCS started, only me school other than Notre Dame that is not cur- ently in the Big East, ACC, Big Ten. SEC, Big 12 irPac-10 played in one of the series’ four bowls. Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, a BYU graduate, aid the current system raises enough questions See BCS on page 3B SPORTS IN BRIEF Pierson named Big 12's Newcomer of the Week Texas A&M freshman defender Linda Pierson was named Big 12 Soccer Newcomer of the Week, the league office announced Tuesday. Pierson led the A&M defense to its 10th shutout of the season against nationally- ranked Colorado on Sunday, 2-0. Against CU, Person scored the game’s second and final I, her third of the season, to put the game of reach. Pierson has started and played in til 17 games this season. Kansas’ Caroline Smith was named Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week, and Iowa State’s beth Chapman was named Defensive Player )fthe Week. Longhorn-Husker game meaningful in conference race NOTEBOOK Rob Phillips T hey’re the consensus No. I team in the nation. They own the top spot in the Bowl Championship Series rankings, have the Heisman Trophy front-runner as their quarterback and boast a defense widely considered one of their best ever. So why not book the Oklahoma Sooners (8-0, 4-0 Big 12) in advance for the Nokia Sugar Bowl, the site for this year’s national championship? The answer: A surprising two-year losing streak to rival Oklahoma State that could extend to three years this weekend. The No. 14 Cowboys (7-1, 3-1) have spoiled Oklahoma’s national title hopes the past two years, but now have their own Sugar Bowl aspira tions. The winner of Saturday’s “Bedlam Game” in Stillwater, Okla., takes sole possession of first place in the Big 12 South and plants itself firmly in the national title picture. Both teams have high-powered offenses, but the edge may go to the Cowboys’ terrific triplets — quarterback Josh Fields, halfback Tatum Bell and wide receiver Rashaun Woods. The real question is whether a suspect Cowboys defense can con tain Oklahoma quarterback Jason White, who has thrown 25 touchdowns and just four interceptions this season after suffering two career-threatening knee injuries the past two years. The Sooners’ defense has been one of the nation’s best since coach Bob Stoops arrived in 1999, but the offense sputtered in 2001 and 2002 without a consistent passing attack. With White healthy, the offense has blossomed this season, rank ing second in the nation with 44.3 points per game. A more complete Oklahoma team could prove too much for Oklahoma State to extend its upset streak to three games. Kickoff is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. Saturday on ABC. Another Austin Showdown In addition to Oklahoma’s annual “Bedlam Game,” Saturday’s contest between No. 12 Nebraska and No. 16 Texas will have significant bearing on both Big 12 division races. Nebraska (7-1, 3-1) has a one-game lead over Missouri in the North and seems to be peaking JP Beato III • THE BATTALION Oklahoma State wide receiver D'Juan Woods makes a catch against Texas A&M last Saturday. Woods and the Oklahoma State Cowboys will try to take the front seat in the race for the Big 1 2 South against Oklahoma this weekend. after outscoring its last two opponents by a com bined 76-12. The Huskers’ only blemish is a 41- 24 loss to Missouri three weeks ago. But a loss to Texas (6-2, 3-1) would drop the Huskers out of sole possession of first place and into a battle with Missouri. Kansas and Kansas State for the North’s top spot. UT, on the other hand, can get back into the South race with a win over Nebraska and an Oklahoma loss. The Longhorns have won two straight since coach Mack Brown declared fresh man Vince Young the starting quarterback over Chance Mock. Kickoff is scheduled for 11 a.m. Saturday on ABC. Reeling Raiders Three weeks ago, Texas Tech (5-3, 2-2) appeared the only team in the Big 12 with enough offensive punch to crack Oklahoma’s defensive armor and challenge for the South title. Tech’s groundbreaking offense, led by quarter back B.J. Symons, leads the nation in points per game (45.1) and passing yards per game (513.5). The defense has floundered recently, however, resulting in a 5L49 loss to Oklahoma St. and a 62-31 trouncing by Missouri. Tech faces a must-win game Saturday against a dangerous Colorado team that challenged Oklahoma until late in the fourth quarter last week. A third straight loss ends Tech’s hopes for a divi sion crown. 6^ Si., tXr. liSh Put. SC QriMe . HALLOWEEN PARTY I g Costume Contest?! aural FREE BREAKFAST BUFFET AT MIDNIGHT! For more details call 846-0211 Relax, Rejuvenate and Unwind. Let the professionals at Riviera Day Spa take care of all your spa needs! 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