In the realm of athletics, President-elect Barack Obama has become most closely identified with basketball. But he plainly loves sports of all kinds — and follows the action closely.
In an interview yesterday, Mr. Obama predicted that Florida would defeat Oklahoma in tonight’s BCS championship game, especially if its speedy running back Percy Harvin is healthy. But he reiterated his support for a college football playoff system and noted that other schools beyond Florida and Oklahoma can lay claim to being number one no matter who wins tonight.
“I think Utah has a pretty good claim. They’re undefeated,” he said. “I think USC, which had a great Rose Bowl, beat Penn State pretty badly. They’ve got a pretty good claim to being number one. Florida and Oklahoma, I think, both have a claim. Texas, at this point, has got to feel like, ‘Well, we did OK, too.’ I think–I think a football playoff system makes sense. I’ve spoken about this quite a bit, and I think if you look at knowledgeable sports fans, they agree with me.”
Mr. Obama said he’d have his hands full attempting to rescue the American economy. But he has gotten in a little practice in bowling lately on the Nintendo Wii his daughters received for Christmas. Mr. Obama, who famously struggled in bowling during last year’s Democratic primaries, said he performs better in the video game.
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— Guttersniper.When it comes to Obama and bowling, the answer is clearly Yes Wii Can.
I enjoy sports. I am a baseabll fan. I coach little league and Babe Ruth. I am a Packer fan and a Giant fan.
I enjoy Super Bowl parties. I enjoy the game.
I don’t care a bit about who is the best team in college each year. Trying to model the college situation with the pro situation makes no sense. The pros only have a small number of teams, which allows for a reasonable comparison of record and opponent strength. College teams can play a hundreds of opponents with very little overlap to compare. And Not even the pro playoff system is perfect. Take a careful look at the playoff teams and their records. Look at the records of some of the teams that did not make it. Reasonable and valid, but hardly perfect.
If the system is going to subject college players to more risk, more injury, then the players should be paid a nice salary. These indentured servants should get a union.
What is next? the playoffs for the best high school?
I think it is stupid for the president to get involved in this meaninglessness.
— rmcShouldn’t have voted for McCain/Palin Oklahoma?
— Joe Mbesides…oklahoma is the land of cre-magnon republicans. PE obama can easily pick against them.
— JP, milltown, njHe knows Sports. We need a President at a time national health crisis when 2/3 of this country is obese.
— BondSomebody should have asked him how those short white boys from Harvard beat Boston College last night in BC`s home gym.. BC beat Carolina at Tobacco Road.
— Charles B. TiffanyMaybe change is a fact of life for the future. If the Crimson can beat the Eagles than mayhap” The Lion will lay down with the lamb.”
One question. Why do people even ask him such banalities? Doesn`t he have enough to worry about rather than enfureating drunks from Enid to Guthrie?
Charles B. Tiffany
Kissimmee, Florida
That’s what Oklahoma gets for voting for McCain last year.
— UtenaI remember when President Nixon declared Texas #1 when Penn State was also undefeated. I know Mr. Obama will not fall into that trap.
— Keith Browni don’t see why he would even care about the basketball games he needs to worry about the government offical things he has going on right now.
if you ask me if he has free time he can get out but right now i don’t think he has all the time in the world, so he shouldn’t be going out to games to see them.
also if we wanted to know about his wii skills we would have asked…thats something you keep to yourself.
-kimberly scott
— kimberlyBy Jove he`s right!
Utah is undefeated
What do you know about that?
— HoboClownObama, I am so glad to know you are up to date with our national sports scene. Now how about you spend that time getting up to date with your new Job. WE DONT CARE WHAT YOU THING ABOUT THE GAME. Stop paying attention to sports and start figuring out how your going to fix this economy and the middle class you fight for.. Your honeymoon is over.
— T.M. WebsterGo Gators!
— Susan#5 Bond “He knows Sports. We need a President at a time national health crisis when 2/3 of this country is obese.”
Yeah, I think Mr. President Change should impose daily food rations for Americans. You don’t give them much food and you make basketball mandatory. Forget about jobs.
— Ann@rmc - you really need to lighten up. Besides your point:
“I don’t care a bit about who is the best team in college each year. Trying to model the college situation with the pro situation makes no sense.”
Couldn’t make any less sense…ever heard of March Madness? Jeez, if they can do it in college basketball, college baseball, etc…then why can’t they do it for college football. Use some common sense buddy.
— YMMI just hope he knows more about the economy than he does college football!!!!
BOOMER SOONER!
— KellyI’m impressed - Obama has now spent more time discussing football than the situation in Gaza.
This Is Change We Can Believe In! They Said We Couldn’t Do It!
— Jenniferobama the messiah obviously has as much exprerience with forecasting sports games as he does experience in politics what an idiot
— Bryan BerlandLike I care who Bin Laden picks. He may be about to be president, but he’s not my president. He should keep his big nose out of sports, obviously something he knows nothing about. Then again, if he says the sun rises in the east each day I will think he’s wrong and not support him.
by the way Charles, I’m in Enid and i’m neither drunk nor “infuriating” (note my correct spelling of the word).
Boomer Sooner
— KM, Oklahoma#13 - this is what always happens when people have valid criticism. I think Obama and Axelrod sent out memos to their “volunteers” that any time Obama is criticized they need to pretend they’re a Republican and say very offensive or inflammatory things. This will make people attack the person pretending to be the Republican instead of criticizing Obama but they don’t realize it’s so obvious people can figure it out. “He is a Muslim who hates our country!” “He is Bin Laden!”
This is not going to work anymore - I realize they think people are stupid but they’re not. I really think Obama, Axelrod and Rahm “I went to Israel during the last war to be an auto mechanic” Emanuel need to find a new strategy.
— JenniferJennifer@1:59 pm, does it bother you that your comment is unintelligible? It should. What are you trying to say to (about?) Ann @ 12:29pm ie poster #13? What has bin Laden to do with her comment?
And for that matter, what do Obama, Axelrod, and Emanuel have to do with her comment, except that she targets Obama?
— lois.liberal.jonesMy response was to KM and the number was correct but they changed the number on responses after that - I explained that but for some reason they didn’t post it but it shouldn’t have been that difficult for you to figure out who I was responding to because they’re the only person who mentioned Bin Laden here.
I’m saying Obama and his team better find a better way to handle criticism because this won’t work anymore - their “volunteers” need new training.
— JenniferHillary says Oklahoma will win by 30 points.
— David GuinnLol @ 1:06 pm KM, Oklahoma. Wow, no wonder people dislike Republicans so much.
You know who didn’t catch Osama Bin Laden? George W. Bush, thats who.
— charPaterno refused to play Texas in the Cotton Bowl to settle the issue in 1969. He knew then we would have kicked his tail.
— Texas FightWell, Jennifer, thanks to your explanation your post is no longer unintelligible. Alas it is still nonsensical. Who knows who KM, really is, but clearly you don’t know much about Oklahoma. I do, however, so I must tell you that, happy though it would make you to imagine KM as some Democratic disinformation campaign, KM’s comments are entirely representative of your fellow Republicans in the heartland.
— lois.liberal.jones