Friday, June 12, 2009.

It's been duly noted that Boise State president Bob Kustra has written an extensive essay on the inequities of the BCS bowl system on BSU's website. It's on Boise State.edu, not Bronco Sports.com. But it also got a full page today in the Sporting News Today daily online edition. It's aimed at the BCS Presidential Oversight Committee, which meets next week in Colorado Springs. Kustra doesn't pull any punches in his opening paragraph. "There is considerable irony in the fact that in the highest temple of political correctness, American higher education, the BCS worships the false idols of monopoly, inequity and greed at the expense of the virtues of fairness, access and competition," writes Kustra.

"You would think that when Boise State opens its football season against the University of Oregon on September 3, the dream of a national championship would beat in the heart of every player, coach, alumnus and fan," Kustra says. "Instead, there will only be a faint pulse thanks to the constraints placed upon us by the BCS." He makes all the standard arguments about the rankings--and Boise State's and Utah's undefeated seasons. And the horrible disparities in revenue distribution. Kustra's bottom line: create a playoff system like in other NCAA sports. He knows he's preaching to the Congressional choir.

You can't undo it now, but one of the problems is that BCS conferences had to sit by and watch as every Tom, Dick and Harry school that wanted to move up to Division I-A and share in the perceived riches was allowed to do it--from the 1990's on. Some had the wherewithal to make the transition, but some did not. It's created a watered-down product in the mid-major conferences and has caused the BCS schools to protect their pot of gold from those they think have not earned it.

If the NCAA had blocked admittance to schools that didn't meet certain standards, maybe all the FBS schools could be under one umbrella now. Shouldn't an institution at the highest level of college football, for example, be able to average at least 20,000 fans a game? Turnstile count? No smoke-and-mirrors? That would reduce the pool by 25 schools right there based on 2008 attendance. BCS conferences might suggest the line of demarcation should be 25,000. The BCS team with the smallest attendance last season was Duke: 28,727 a game.

Not to forget special teams when the Boise Burn take their 8-2 record to Tri-Cities tomorrow night. The Burn have not only scored liberally on kickoff returns, they've also taken advantage of those weird bounces off the nets on kickoff cover squads to put points on the board. But it all comes down to Terrance Sanders, who finally has enough kickoff returns to qualify for the af2's leaderboard. And boom--Sanders is right there, leading the league in average runback (32.1 yards) and kickoff returns for touchdowns (six).

In a league that has been adversely affected by folding franchises, this is good news. The ECHL, which had been down to 19 teams, tentatively has 20 now for the 2009-10 season, as an expansion franchise has been awarded to Kalamazoo, MI. The Kalamazoo Wings are actually moving from the UHL and will begin ECHL play in October in the Northern Division. The West Division, which includes the Idaho Steelheads, is down to four teams with the Phoenix Roadrunners having dissolved at the end of the regular season.

Former Idaho Stampede star and current assistant coach Randy Livingston, already rumored to be in line for a head coaching job in the D-League, is getting a look in the NBA. The Times-Picayune of New Orleans says Hornets head coach Byron Scott is considering Livingston for a vacant spot on his staff. Livingston helped work out New Orleans draft prospects Tuesday. He's said to be a candidate for the top job with the D-League's expansion Maine Red Claws.

Tomorrow's Ironman 70.3 Boise isn't necessarily trying to fool Mother Nature, it's just trying to find the best of both worlds: good conditions for the athletes and a fan-friendly experience for spectators. Instead of an early-morning start, the race begins at 2PM this year--that should make the swim at Lucky Peak a little more bearable. The weather will be important during the biking and running portions of the event. Last year, competitors were blessed with a 67-degree day, 10 degrees below normal, with light rain during the half-marathon. The forecast for tomorrow is for abnormal skies but normal temperatures, with thunderstorms likely and a high of 77. That's not unfriendly enough to keep a large throng from showing up at the finish line at BoDo.

Back to football, kind of. BSU fans might want to become recruiters for the Boise Hawks. They could encourage Nevada quarterback Colin Kaepernick to play in Memorial Stadium this summer, taking him out of the Wolf Pack's player-run practices and maybe disrupting the beginning of fall camp. Kaepernick was drafted in the 43rd round by the Cubs yesterday--and if he were to sign, Boise would be a possible destination. Uh, he's not going to do that. Kaepernick hasn't played baseball since he threw fastballs in the low 90's for Pittman High in Turlock, CA.

This Day In Sports...June 12, 1997:

In a drastic but long-awaited departure for a tradition-governed sport, the San Francisco Giants beat the Texas Rangers, 4-3, in the first regular-season interleague game in baseball history. A sellout crowd at Arlington watched Nolan Ryan and Willie Mays throw out ceremonial first pitches before the game, which started two hours earlier than three other interleague games that night.

(Tom Scott hosts the Scott Slant segment Sunday nights at 10:30PM on KTVB's Sunday Sports Extra and anchors five sports segments each weekday on 1350 KTIK/The Ticket. He also handles color commentary on KTVB's telecasts of Boise State football.)

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