Coaches poll farce

We have continuously defended the BCS and the bowl system. But this news doesn't help.

Any and all credibility that we would like to heave upon the coaches' USA Today Top 25 football poll has quickly vaporized. Starting in the 2010 season, the final regular-season ballots in the poll will no longer be made public.

The alleged voting by the coaches has been highly scrutinized in the past. Too often the coaches vote with their heart and not logically. And let's face it, how much does Urban Meyer really know about Oregon State? This also leads them to vote in favor of conference opponents, and not who is best.

This decision to hide the ballots and keep them from the public means all of the coaches who vote can be even more devious. Don't think for a second that Rich Rodriguez won't manipulate his ballot in a way that benefits him the most.

Why does all this matter? The coaches' poll is part of the BCS equation. So this adds fuel to the fire for all the BCS haters, and makes it harder for us to keep defending the system.

The Ol' Ball Coach gets it.

"I thought we would stay public on that last vote, I sort of think we ought to stay public, you know. It keeps everybody pretty honest so I don't know, that was surprising," said South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier.