ESPN....I can't take them.

I'll make this short. As short as I can. To be honest. I think I could write a book. And one day I will. Tommy Tuberville, coach of Auburn Football, recently called out ESPN for affecting the way the football rankings work.

Maybe he explained himself badly or something, I don't know. But the ESPN rank and file acted out exactly as the usually do. They got offended and made Tuberville look like an idiot.

If the playing field was level, this would be fine. I mean if it was a fair debate between one guy from ESPN and Tommy. And if it was on a neutral station and they had a chance to talk about it, that would be fine. But ESPN is 24 hour 3 channel, radio, and internet. And Tommy Tuberville is, well, just a coach. So ESPN has every chance to make Tommy look bad and all Tommy can do is try to coach his team.

This is mostly what Tommy's problem is anyway. ESPN's dominance over the sports world is so widespread and pervasive, he contends, that it can actually influence the voters as to who goes to the championship game. ESPN will defend themselves not by saying it isn't true, but by blaming college football for having a system that allows them to screw with the system. Think about that.

You know what? ESPN is screwing up sports. Its not their fault. I don't think they have made any unethical decisions. Its just that their dominance has created a bad byproduct. That byproduct is this stange world of sports where people care more about off the field "drama" then on the field games. Where people are football fans and not fans of a team. Where people are fans of single players on teams they never cared about more than a team from their hometown. It has become the world wrestling federation all over again. Only this time its not scripted. However anyone who knows anything about media editing, directing and general presentation knows that you can take anything unscripted and make it into whatever you want.

The fact is, I'm not mad at what they do. Just at their refusal to acknowledge it.

-T