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What is it worth?

By Wheeld1, Section College
Posted on Wed Nov 30 2005 at 3:24 PM EST
More on: (all tags)

The age of the BCS lottery machine is upon us.  The difference between winning and losing has a lot more to do with money than it does with the score.  It's hard to know what drives a good team anymore; the money or the winning.

Notre Dame won a hardfought match up against a tough Stanford team 38-31.  The game came right down to the very last drive.  With 1:45 left, Stanford finished off a touchdown drive that put them that had 31-30.  Despite the pressure, Notre Dame went right back down the field.  Stanford seemed to be helpless as Darius Walker and Notre Dame steamrolled into the end zone. img src="http://www.sportscolumn.com/storyimages/NotreDame.jpg" It was almost as if someone had placed all the money at stake at the end of the field for Notre Dame to see.The margin of victory had to be very tenuous for a university with so much riding on the game. Apparently on this night money seemed more important than the score.

Notre Dame's likely invitation to a BCS bowl will be, and has, been met with some controversy.  You see, there is another team out there that many feel is more deserving.  Notre Dame has two losses, while the only team to beat Oregon was the #1 ranked USC.  Just like their game against Oregon State, everything seems to be in a fog.  Img src="http://www.sportscolumn.com/storyimages/Oregon.jpg" However, as money was the issue for Notre Dame it is the same for the BCS.  Oregon may deserve it more, but $14.5 million is not going to be paid out to just anyone.  Everything seems to come down to one game.  Notre Dame's one win over Stanford, Oregon's one loss, and the difference between the two.  This is the problem with the BCS.  Instead of one game deciding who is the best, one game decides who gets the money.  Oregon knows that they are probably the better team, but they have to take a backseat to the money.

So, how much is one game worth?  If you ask Notre Dame and the BCS, it is worth about $14.5 million.  If you ask Oregon, it is the difference between riding shotgun and in the backseat.