Anti-BCS group launches new ad targeting Fiesta Bowl

A political action committee that favors a college football playoff system announced Monday it will launch an television ad campaign against one of the Bowl Championship Series' (BCS) marquee games.

PlayoffPAC is taking aim at the Fiesta Bowl in its newest campaign. Two of major college football's five undefeated teams are playing each other in the game, but not for the national championship.

Matthew Sanderson, a PlayoffPAC official, told The Hill the ad "Is [designed] to draw attention to the fact that certain teams are shut out from the national championship game from the get go."

The Fiesta Bowl, which will be held on Monday night, features a match-up between Texas Christian University and Boise State University. Both teams are considered "mid-major" squads.

The ad will air later this week in the Dallas-Fort Worth area (where TCU is located), the Boise, Idaho area and the Salt Lake City area. PlayoffPAC could not provide an accurate cost estimate for the ad because it is still purchasing airtime.

The Utah Utes went undefeated last year but did were not selected to play for the national title.

The ad also comes as major players in Washington have joined fans in calling for a college football playoff system. Critics of the BCS say that the system unfairly favors the major conferences and unfairly rewards them with the bulk of bowl revenue and publicity.

BCS defenders say that the system preserves the history of the game and places a premium on the regular season. 

Major conference undefeateds Texas and Alabama were selected by the BCS' complex ranking system to play for the national title on Jan. 7. 

The ad excerpts a November interview with BCS Executive Director Bill Hancock about undefeated teams that aren't selected to play in the national championship game.

"Yes they're undefeated but, you know, not everyone can play," Hancock says.

Sports radio host Dan Patrick replies "That's not a great consolation prize bill, you know that."

Hancock says "Well you had a great season, you should be proud of it. That's all we ever said to people."

PlayoffPAC last week filed a complaint with the state of Arizona alleging that the Fiesta Bowl encouraged employees to donate to political candidates and then were reimbursed by the bowl.

BCS spokesman Ari Fleischer responded saying that "political attack ads" don't have a place in college football.

"The last thing college football needs is political attack ads," he said in an e-mail. "Leave the politics in Washington and let the student-athletes play football."

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This post was updated at 6:43 p.m.

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