Ask any red-blooded American, liberal or conservative, and he or she will tell you that the most pressing matters our nation faces are the economy, national security, and … straightening out the BCS mess. OK, I’m being facetious with that last one. But our president-elect did weigh in on the lack of a playoff system in college football’s top division on “60 Minutes” last night, calling for an eight-team tournament to crown a national champion:

“If you’ve got a bunch of teams who play throughout the season, and many of them have one loss or two losses, there’s no clear decisive winner. We should be creating a playoff system. …

“It would add three extra weeks to the season. You could trim back on the regular season. I don’t know any serious fan of college football who has disagreed with me on this. So, I’m going to throw my weight around a little bit. I think it’s the right thing to do.”

BCS coordinator John Swofford responded:

“For now, our constituencies—and I know he understands constituencies—have settled on the current BCS system, which the majority believe is the best system yet to determine a national champion while also maintaining the college football regular season as the best and most meaningful in sports. … We certainly respect the opinions of President-elect Obama and welcome dialogue on what’s best for college football.”

I agree with Obama on the need for a playoff, but should the president of the United States involve himself in matters of sports? Kind of reminds me of when President Nixon allegedly sent in plays to Washington Redskins coach George Allen, or when President Clinton tried to intervene in the 1994-95 baseball strike.

C.J. Mahaney of Sovereign Grace Ministries points out that “too many pro athletes who profess Christ appear theologically ignorant, have little or no involvement in the local church, and have no pastoral oversight in their lives.” As for former Washington Redskins wide receiver Art Monk, who was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame Sunday, Mahaney calls him an exception: “Monk’s [acceptance] speech appears to be the fruit of good pastoring. If more professional athletes participated in churches where sound doctrine was taught, there might be more examples like Art Monk and [fellow Redskin and HOF inductee] Darrell Green. … The quiet sports star stepped in front of thousands of fans and used the moment, not for self-congratulation, but to glorify God.”

Here’s an excerpt from Monk’s acceptance speech: (more…)