[Rally]

I doubt that Capital One's marketing execs have any particular animus toward Stanford. But if you worked in a corporation and were designing a competition, the main purpose of which was to advertise your company's products, you'd want a different winner each year. The first year that, say, Ohio State wins the award, that's a news story in Columbus, and free advertising for your company. The 16th consecutive year that Stanford wins, it barely registers as news. And it's even better to have separate awards for men's sports and women's sports - twice the free publicity.

I seriously doubt the local pub at the winners town matters a hill of beans to Cap1.  The ESPN show and in and through ESPN are all that matters.  Unless they are dumb enough to think most of the wealthy people in, say, Columbus, both of them, will pour their money into Cap1 because they gave the Buckeyes a cup.  Maybe, but . . . .

[Rally]

I doubt that Capital One's marketing execs have any particular animus toward Stanford. But if you worked in a corporation and were designing a competition, the main purpose of which was to advertise your company's products, you'd want a different winner each year. The first year that, say, Ohio State wins the award, that's a news story in Columbus, and free advertising for your company. The 16th consecutive year that Stanford wins, it barely registers as news. And it's even better to have separate awards for men's sports and women's sports - twice the free publicity.

I seriously doubt the local pub at the winners town matters a hill of beans to Cap1.  The ESPN show and in and through ESPN are all that matters.  Unless they are dumb enough to think most of the wealthy people in, say, Columbus, both of them, will pour their money into Cap1 because they gave the Buckeyes a cup.  Maybe, but . . . .