NCAA can’t say no to beer ads, fantasy sites

On Thursday, the NCAA’s executive committee decided it couldn’t eliminate alcohol advertising nor stop the incorporation of college sports into the fantasy games and decided, essentially, to retain the status quo.

Pressure mounted from many corners, pleading with the NCAA to change a policy that allows networks to sell 60 seconds of commercial time for alcoholic beverages each hour they’re on the air. Ads can only be sold for beverages containing 6 percent or less of alcohol – almost exclusively beer – during the NCAA’s national championships.

The NCAA also requires all beer ads in stadiums or arenas to be covered during its championships, does not permit the sale of beer, wine or liquor during the games and has advised its member institutions to follow the same code.

In April more than 100 university presidents wrote to NCAA president Myles Brand, calling the beer ads that appeared during the men’s basketball tournament “embarrassingly prominent.”

A similar number of football and men’s basketball coaches, some with national-championship pedigrees like Bobby Bowden, Jim Tressel and Urban Meyer, sent their own letter.

The other hot topic was fantasy games. Until now, college sports were pretty much exempt.

That changed when CBS Sports, which has an $11 billion television deal with the NCAA, revamped its college football game by using individual names and stats instead of school names and positions.

Miscellany

New TV deal for IRL

The Indianapolis 500 and four other IndyCar Series races will be televised by ABC Sports at least through 2012 in a contract extension announced by the Indy Racing League.

Also, the Versus cable channel, will carry at least 13 IndyCar races annually for the next 10 years. The move to Versus means ESPN will no longer carry IRL races.

•The Los Angeles Clippers acquired still another player during their busy off-season, signing free-agent point guard Jason Williams.

•Qualifying golf medalists Amanda Blumenherst and Stephanie Na each won two matches to advance to U.S. Women’s Amateur quarterfinals in Eugene, Ore.