Watts Has Been Paid $620,000 to Lobby for the BCS

Nobody understands the game like J.C. Watts.

As a quarterback, he guided Oklahoma to consecutive Orange Bowl victories. After playing professionally in Canada, he returned to his home state and ran for office, representing Oklahoma's 4th district in the U.S. House of Representatives for eight years.

He started a lucrative lobbying and consulting firm in 2004 and counts the Bowl Championship Series among his clients.

Watts has encouraged the BCS to engage Congress in the debate over college football's quirky system for determining a national champion, which included last week's hearing before a House subcommittee.

"When they get called into hearings, it is in some sense pretty good, because then you get to explain and take the time to walk people through what is actually there, which is what we do in a member's office, or catching them at dinner, or when you corner them at the airport," he said.

According to Politico, the BCS has paid Watts $620,000 over the past five years.

"My responsibilities are just to try to help the BCS navigate through this," he said.

Watts said it "seems strange" that Congress would even bother with something like the BCS.

"They have phenomenal issues they have to deal with. Health care, wars, financial crisis, and even if you take this financial crisis out of the mix, they still have tremendous responsibilities."

Comments

[wheaton4prez]

With arguments like, "why uphold the law when we are losing money," the BCS is definitely getting their moneys worth.

[Carl Spackler]

Uhhh. Whatever. Politics is all favoritism. Why else are unions (unsecured creditors of car companies.. think credit cards) getting much larger stakes in their car companies than senior bond holders (think your mortgage)?

The BCS will be in both pockets before a playoff contingent develops more resources (think no Money Tank designed to take out the BCS in favor of a playoff).