Who's on the committee that votes for the four playoff contenders? Here's a table that will provide a quick glance for clues about their backgrounds and how they will lean in their voting. (Note that the 13-member committee is currently short a member, and that the prior Chairman Jeff Long (who was raised and went to college in Ohio) has been replaced by Kirby Horcutt.
| Member | last job | college | prior job | college | undergrad | grad sch |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barry Alvarez | AD | Wisconsin | Coach | Wisconsin | Nebraska | Nebraska |
| Jeff Bower | Coach | So Miss'ippi | Asst Coach | Okla State | So Miss'ippi | So Miss'ippi |
| Herb Deromedi | AD | Cent Mich | Coach | Cent Mich | Michigan | Michigan |
| Kirby Horcutt | AD | Texas Tech | AD | Miami (FL) | Kansas State | Oklahoma |
| Tom Jernstedt | Exec VP | NCAA | VP (38 yrs) | NCAA | Oregon | Oregon |
| Bobby Johnson | Coach | Vanderbilt | Coach | Furman | Clemson | Furman |
| Jeff Long | AD | Arkansas | AD | Pitt | Ohio Wesley | MIami (OH) |
| Bob Mullens | AD | Oregon | Deputy AD | Kentucky | West Virginia | West Virginia |
| Dan Radakovich | AD | Clemson | AD | Georgia Tech | Indi of Penn | Miami (FL) |
| Condolezza Rice | Prof | Stanford | Secr State | DC | Denver | Notre Dame |
| Steve Wieberg | Reporter | USA Today | (30 yrs) | Missouri | ||
| Tyrone Willingham | Coach | Washington | Coach | Notre Dame | Michigan State |
The Big 10 is not well represented-- only one-- Barry Alvarez. Although Coach Deromedi of Central Michigan went to college at Michigan, and Coach Willingham at Stanford, Notre Dame and Washington did attend Michigan State.
The South has five with Jeff Bower of Southern Mississippi, Bobby Johnson of Vanderbilt, Furman and Clemson, Jeff Long the Ohio boy now at Arkansas, Bob Mullens currently at Oregon but from Kentucky and West Virginia, and Dan Radakovich of Clemson and Georgia Tech.
The Plains have two: Chairman Kirby Horcutt, AD of Texas Tech and college at Kansas State and Oklahoma, and USA Today reporter Steve Wieberg out of Kansas City who attended Missouri.
The West Coast contingency is the strangest grouping: NCAA executive VP Jernstedt attended Oregon, Bob Mullens from Kentucky and West Virginia is the current AD at Oregon, Secretary of State Condi Rice currently a professor at Stanford but educated at Denver and Notre Dame, and Tyrone Willingham coached at Washington and Stanford, but also at Notre Dame, and went to college at Michigan State.
Bottom line: There is a serious lack of representation on the committee for the 14-member Big Ten and the 16-member SEC.
