BCS Fumbles on Female Representation

It caught more than a few AWSM members by surprise this week. The BCS released the final 114-member panel for its weekly poll on college football rankings - and there wasn't a single woman on the list.

AWSM registered its concerns Wednesday to Harris (the poll administrators) and to the BCS. The BCS responded, noting there were a few women in the 300-person pool for the panel. They would not give AWSM President Joanne Gerstner a specific number. Each conference nominated people for the panel, and Harris did a random selection for the final group.  The panel is a mix of former coaches, players, administrators and media. The BCS shares AWSM's concerns about the omission of women. They would like to develop a strong list of women for next year's pool, with no promises as to who will be on the final panel. Joanne has been asked to find women for that pool. If you are interested in being part of next year's Harris poll for the BCS, please e-mail me at president@awsmonline.org. We need to get involved, so there are no excuses for future panels. We demand women be represented.