BCS Blog 10/31/10

Here is the BCS top 10 released on 10/31:

1.Oregon       (W 53-32 @ USC)
2.Auburn       (W 51-31 @ Ole Miss)
3.TCU           (W 48-6 @ UNLV)
4.Boise State (W 49-20 vs. LA Tech)
5.Utah           (W 28-23 @ Air Force)
6.Alabama     (BYE)
7.Nebraska   (W 31-17 vs. Missouri)
8.Oklahoma  (W 43-10 vs. Colorado)
9.Wisconsin  (BYE)
10.LSU        (BYE)

Here is my BCS top 10 for 10/31:
1.Auburn
2.Oregon
3.Boise State
4.TCU
5.Utah
6.Alabama
7.Nebraska
8.Oklahoma
9.Wisconsin
10.Ohio State

In my opinion, Auburn is the best team in the nation, they have played the toughest schedule in the toughest conference in college football.
Oregon has had an impressive margin of victory in the majority of their games and are a close second.
I think Boise State should be number three, they continue to win week in and week out and should have a shot at the national championship if Oregon goes down. The only way Boise should not play for the national championship is if Auburn and Oregon win out, or if one-loss Alabama defeats Auburn and goes on to win the SEC Championship Game. This should put Alabama above Boise, leaving Boise out of the big game once again.
TCU had another impressive win over another hapless opponent, which should leave them at number four. They have the toughest test of their season coming up this week, playing (5)Utah.
I agree with the rest of the standings except for (10)LSU.
Alabama is coming off of a bye week and will play a tough game in Baton Rouge against the number ten LSU Tigers this weekend, who are also coming off of a bye.
Nebraska took down (12)Missouri after their big win over then number one Oklahoma, moving them up from  14 to 7, switching spots with Missouri.
Oklahoma bounced back with a 43-10 blowout over Colorado, leaving them in the top 10 mix.
Wisconsin is coming off of a bye week and will play at Purdue and then host Indiana in the next two weeks and should be 9-1 after those two games.
Ohio State should be number 10 in my opinion. They blew out Minnesota on the road, giving them the boost into the top 10.

Impact Game of the Week:
(6)Alabama @ (10)LSU
(10)LSU had a tough loss at Auburn and will host (6)Alabama after a bye week. This has the potential to have the biggest impact on the BCS this week if LSU can take down Alabama, which would basically give Auburn the SEC West Division and make the Iron Bowl less meaningful. If Alabama can win on the road in a tough environment, Auburn and Alabama will be on a collision course for the SEC West and a chance to play for the national title.

Listener supported shortage

Many businesses and organizations have felt the impact of the economic downturn in the United States during this past decade.  Possibly one of the hardest hit areas are the non-profit organizations.

            One such non-profit organization is WKCL Radio located in Ladson, SC outside of Charleston.  WKCL has been debt free and working under the same owners for 30 years.  They serve the Charleston area and are one of the oldest radio stations in the area.

One of the main ways radio stations stay up-and-running is through business advertising during on-air programming. Due to FCC rules, WKCL is unable to sell advertising to businesses and still be considered non-profit.  This can be a problem in raising funds to support the radio station.

“We cannot do commercials,” said JoAnn Cantrell, on-air personality for WKCL Radio. “We are restricted by the FCC on some things. We can announce businesses that support the station but we cannot make a call to action, we can’t say in our on-air commercial ‘Go by to see Jiffy Lube’ or announce any calls to action, we can just state what the company is, what they do, and how you get in touch with them, and their location.”

            WKCL has a commitment to staying a non-profit organization.  The owner of WKCL has had many offers to buy the station but has turned all of them down.

            Donations have made a significant drop from the norm at WKCL in the past few years.

            “We are about 25 percent down from what we normally are,” said Cantrell.  “We’ve usually had the same amount per donation but less people are giving.  People give one time gifts but it varies on what people are able to give. We have a $10,000 gift on the way. The average is about $20-25 a month per contributor.”

            It has been tough on the contributors to WKCL to continue their annual giving.  The downturn in the economy has caused Americans to cut down in unnecessary spending and to start tightening up their budgets.  Charitable donations are one of the first areas that families can cut from their budget

            “It has been tough on us to continue our giving to WKCL in the past few years,” said Cindy Kinard, a WKCL contributor.  “We’ve tried to give what we can but our donations have become less frequent lately.”

            To continue airing music and programming as usual, the radio station has to continue to update and repair older equipment. This is one of the most important aspects of a radio station.  Without proper funding, this has been a problem for the station.

            “Our main transmitter has been running 24/7 for 21 years now,” said Cantrell. “We’ve had to fix it several times and have not been able to purchase a new one due to the lack of donations.  The life span of a normal transmitter is about 20-22 years.”

            WKCL is not the only organization that has had a shortage in donations.  Many organizations around the Charleston area and around the nation are finding problems finding other ways to fundraise.  Many organizations have been forced to change ways they find money.

            “There are a couple of other stations in the Charleston area that were completely listener supported,” said Cantrell, “but now they get commercials and they are not totally non-profit, they accept donations and also offer advertising  to make profit.”

            The shortages in donations have been a problem for both the non-profit organizations that receive and rely on them to stay running and for the people who donate to them. The shortages in donations have led to WKCL cutting out some programming.

            “WKCL used to have a good segment on Sunday mornings about family activity ideas,” Cindy Kinard said, “but now they have removed it due to low funding.  We used to enjoy that show and got some really good ideas from it.”

            Despite the shortages in funding, Cantrell is confident that the station will withstand the tough times and continue broadcasting to the Charleston area for years to come.

            “We’ve been around for a long time,” Cantrell said. “We have plenty of contributions and we will be alright.  We will persevere.”