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USA Today
2 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Big Ten coach calls out anti-West Coast bias in College Football Playoff system
Big Ten coach calls out anti-West Coast bias in College Football Playoff system The first season of the 12-team College Football Playoff certainly created plenty of controversy. While ultimately, most people felt as though the selection committee took the correct 12 teams, the process of getting there was anything but smooth. This week, a Big Ten head coach called out the committee for alleged bias against West Coast schools. Interestingly, however, the coach in question is not in charge of a West Coast program himself. Rather, the man behind the comments, was, of all people, Penn State head coach James Franklin. "There's a lot of challenges," Franklin said, via CBS Sports. "You've got East Coast people voting on this, and they haven't watched enough of the West Coast games based on the time. All the different rankings that are out there. In my mind, a formula makes the most sense because it takes the bias out that we all have." Franklin's proposed solution to the matter was going back to a BCS-style formula to determine the rankings. "It's funny, because I think there's all these complaints about the BCS, but then we go to this, and I think it goes back to really, my answer is, the problem is, everybody voting and everybody involved in the process—whether you want to be biased or not, we all are biased. I think in a lot of ways, you could make the argument a formula could be better. But we didn't love the formula. So we went to this other system." USC fans know all too well, however, that leaving the rankings to the computers does not always work out. After all, back in 2003, the Trojans infamously got screwed out of the BCS Championship Game despite being ranked No. 1 in both the AP and Coaches Polls. However, Franklin's point about the current system having major issues is certainly a valid one. Perhaps one day, college football will be able to come up with a method of selecting a postseason field that will not inevitably make people mad. Right now, however, that day feels like a long way in the distance. As for Franklin, his comment was not entirely altruistic. Given that Penn State plays in the same conference as four West Coast schools, USC, Oregon, Washington, and UCLA getting more national respect could certainly help the Nittany Lions' resume in seasons to come.
New York Times
02-03-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Kansas' Zeke Mayo receives hateful messages after loss to Texas Tech
Kansas guard Zeke Mayo received a series of hateful messages following Saturday's 78-73 loss to No. 10 Texas Tech, he shared on social media, prompting KU athletic director Travis Goff to come to his defense and leading coach Bill Self to issue a statement about the criticism surrounding the team. After the loss, which dropped the Jayhawks to 19-10 overall, Mayo shared screenshots of direct messages he received, which included threats, racist comments and a death wish. Mayo also included a statement about his recent play before deleting his X account. He shot 1 of 7 from the field and finished with five points (and five turnovers) against the Red Raiders on Saturday. Advertisement 'I 100% deserve all the criticism in the world,' Mayo wrote on X. 'My performance was beyond pitiful today, and has been for a while now. I work my ass off everyday to be great, but I can't be perfect all the time. I'm sorry to our fans and my teammates, I will continue to get better.' Later Saturday night, Self posted his own message on KU's social media channels that said, in part, 'We all could do a lot of things better. But I'll roll with these guys every day and be proud of it. Any criticism about the team should be directed at me. I'm the head coach.' A statement from Coach Self following today's game vs. Texas Tech: — Kansas Men's Basketball (@KUHoops) March 2, 2025 He also wrote, 'we need to be focused on basketball and not things being said outside of basketball that have absolutely zero merit.' Self's post did not reference Mayo directly. Goff, the athletic director, responded to Mayo's post and said the people sending him messages 'aren't Jayhawks.' 'Driven by gambling and hate. They've never competed a day in their life,' Goff wrote. 'To Zeke and all our guys — the Jayhawk family loves you and will always ride with you through thick and thin.' An NCAA study released in October about digital hate directed at athletes called its findings 'jarring.' Following the study's release, NCAA president Charlie Baker called on fans to 'do better' and on social media companies to do more in combatting hate online. Kansas has struggled this season, falling out of the Top 25 for the first time since 2021 following a 34-point loss to BYU on Feb. 18. Kansas has lost six of its past 11 games. The Jayhawks, who are 10-8 in the Big 12, were the preseason No. 1 team in November in both the Associated Press and Coaches Polls. KU travels Monday to No. 4 Houston.
