Football playoffs

BCS plus 1 doesn't add up

Major college football playoffs? It's just the BCS plus one.

The NCAA has conducted genuine playoffs for Division II and III football since 1973, so there's no great mystery on how to do it.

The new format will automatically swindle 12 other worthy conference champions and at-large teams out of the opportunity to compete for the national championship.

Look for the Big Ten, Big 12, Atlantic Coast and Southeastern conferences to hog it all.

— Kenneth N. Carlson, Lynnwood

New format, same old bias

Sports Illustrated recently trumpeted the news that a four-team college football playoff is "a historic event" that will "change the game forever."

My projected scenario? The totally unbiased selection committee will choose one team each from the SEC (well, they may still get two), Big Ten, Big 12 and ACC, and everyone else will wonder what might have been.

Sounds cynical? Well, that's the psychic hangover one experiences after being force-fed the B-*-S for 15 years!

— David Arntuffus, Shoreline

College sports

UW draft no success story

Columnist Jerry Brewer ("All mixed up," Tuesday) calls Washington's two possible first-round NBA draft picks (both players with less than three years total in college) "an unprecedented success story for (coach Lorenzo) Romar's Huskies." Really? The Times also reports Stanford University's "unprecedented" win of its 18th consecutive Director's Cup, signifying the nation's top overall athletic program.

Stanford's approach is to create and develop winning student athletes at every level. Romar's (and Washington's) approach is to recruit basketball players who use school as a steppingstone to the pros. That's a success story?

— John B. Matthews, Medina

NBA Finals

Can't cheer for Heat, LeBron

Happily, the Oklahoma City Thunder lost in the NBA Finals, but the reason I hate them and could never root for them isn't because they were stolen from us (OK, maybe a little). The reason I hate them is because they made me cheer for Miami, a team I really hate. Now we have to sit around all summer and listen to LeBron James bloviate about the inevitability of his wonderfulness.

— Rhett Gambol, Seattle

Abbreviated championship

Congratulations to the Miami Heat. Congratulations, LeBron James and Dwyane Wade, and everyone contributing their part in winning the NBA championship. You've done it, finally. This time the big one didn't get away and no one can take it from you. It is a glorious time.

But there is that tiny asterisk. The one that indicates you won that championship during a shortened season. That ornery qualifier makes it clear that these were not comparable conditions. After all, 66 games do not measure up to 82. So much can happen, so much can change in 16 games. Next year you have a chance get into the record books without a modifier dangling next to it.

— Michael E. White, Brush Prairie

Mariners

Bring Moyer back to Seattle

To Mariners management: Please bring Jamie Moyer home to finish his career in Seattle. We are not in contention, and fans will flock to home games when he is the starting pitcher. We love Jamie the way we love Edgar Martinez. Moyer would be a great influence for the younger pitchers and would be the bridge to a bright future.

— Russ von Hagen, Seattle

Ichiro deserves more respect

Judging from the number of stories devoted to Ichiro's role on the Mariners, it appears as though The Times has identified Seattle's most important civic issue. Apparently, the M's outfielder (whose diminished average is still the highest on the team) has the audacity to continue playing. While Ichiro may not be the player he was, he has — for the last 10 years — been one of the few reasons to pay to see a Mariners game. Can't we treat him with a bit more respect, particularly when there are so many others on the team who don't come close to earning their salaries?

— Maggie Harada, Woodinville

Diving

Amazing grace with a twist

They fly through the air, twisting, turning, somersaulting until they land in the water 30 feet below. Not a ripple, not a sound until they emerge to the roars of the spectators.

They're the Olympic men and women hopefuls who perform amazing dives — I mean a 4-½ somersault from the 10-meter platform! And they often begin their dives in a handstand position on that platform.

Diving, a graceful art form, defines beauty, strength and courage. Unlike other sports, there are no slide tackles or helmet bashing — only one person (or two) performing in sync with the diving platform, the air around him, and the water below.

Congratulations to all the divers this past week who define the word awesome!

— Suzanne G. Beyer, Bothell