Shameless Plug and the Bowl Season

On December 6th and 7th, the University of Iowa Mock Trial team will be hosting its annual competition on campus. Some of the best teams in the country will be present. If you are interested at all about mock trial - it's a great public speaking, drama, and analytical thinking activity - come check us out at the IMU and EPB this weekend. If you know any local lawyers or journalism professors/TAs that might be interested in judging a defamation case let me know.


Now for something completely different...


I'm always torn this time of year when it comes to collegiate football. The BCS systems is a crock of shit. Too much weight is given to pre-season polls which swoon over brand-name institutions. If you don't start in the top 10, it's almost impossible to get into the championship game under the current system. The purest in me says, damn it use a tournament just every other collegiate sport or competitive activity.

But here's my dilemma. I love the bowl season. It's like the grand finale during the 4th of July fireworks display. The teams have weeks to prepare and the waiting only makes the games that much better. The beauty of college sports is the ever-present hope that the underdog will succeed. The bowl season gives you ample opportunity to see the over-rated favorite get crushed or the last-second field goal that sends bitter rivals to their knees in tears.

Yeah it's over-commercialized. So what if it relies on a computer program no one understands and bowls chose teams based on revenue. The games are good. More importantly, the sheer number of quality games makes off-season almost bearable. I'll admit that this season will be sweeter than last season when the Hawkeyes stayed home, but that didn't affect my ability to spend dozens of hours watching college football last winter.

Besides, once college football is over we are left with Hawkeye basketball to keep our sports fix alive, which is the real reason people in Iowa get depressed in the winter.