Spurrier votes for Duke
The USA Today coaches poll is out. Four ACC teams were included, but none higher than No. 10 Florida State. That sounds about right, with some good teams, but no great teams, in the conference this season.
What doesn't sound right is that Duke received a vote. Let me repeat that - Duke received a vote.
It's no secret who voted for the Blue Devils, which finished 1-10 last season. South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier, who used to coach at Duke, has given a vote to his former team for a number of years now. He says it's his way of saying he appreciates everything the school did for him.
The coaches poll already has enough problems - including the fact that it expects coaches to know enough about teams they aren't even playing to accurately rank them - before one of its coaches admits to voting for a team simply because they have a soft spot in their heart for the school.
Granted, in the end, one vote for Duke won't affect the outcome of the title game this year. But it does call into question the accuracy of a major component of the BCS. We all knew it was an opinion poll, but now it's a biased opinion poll.
If this was basketball where the polls don't matter, then no big deal. But this is a sport that determines its two championship teams based on polls and computers.
Just a little more fuel for the fire for those arguing that the BCS is a joke.
- Patrick Hite