The Times' annual survey of college football coaches

The term used by a lot of major-college football coaches for the drawn-out NCAA investigation of former USC star Reggie Bush and his parents' housing arrangement while he starred with the Trojans?

How about: "A joke."

That, and variations of it, showed up frequently in responses to The Seattle Times' fourth annual survey of Football Bowl Subdivision (formerly Division I-A) coaches. Participants this year included the Bowdens, Bobby of Florida State and Tommy of Clemson; Mark Mangino of Kansas; Joe Tiller of Purdue; Dan Hawkins of Colorado; Rich Brooks of Kentucky; Chris Petersen of Boise State; and Bret Bielema of Wisconsin.

The coaches also weighed in on topics as diverse as "bad" bowl games they've attended, favorite movies and film stars, and some jobs that make them appreciate what they're doing now.

Complete the following sentence: The Reggie Bush/NCAA affair is ... "

The coaches left little doubt they believe USC has been allowed to skate in the Bush matter. These responses were representative:

" ... a debacle."

"a comedy act."

"a joke, because the NCAA will not punish USC."

"dubious."

"ridiculous."

We once asked which bowl game provided the best experience. Which one that you've attended provided the worst?

Perhaps understandably, coaches shied away from this one, but the Outback, Humanitarian, Aloha and Liberty Bowls got dishonorable mention. Then there was the coach who cited the GMAC Bowl, explaining, "Mobile is dead."

Let's say you don't win that elusive national championship before your career is done. Whom would you most like to see win one who hasn't done it?

Lots of replies here, but the only multiple mentions were of Iowa's Kirk Ferentz, Purdue's Tiller, Georgia's Mark Richt and Wake Forest's Jim Grobe.

Whom do you consider the best commissioner among the leagues of college football?

Mike Slive of the SEC got 31 percent of the votes. Other popular choices were the ACC's John Swofford, the Big Ten's Jim Delany and the WAC's Karl Benson.

Is college football oversaturated on television?

Not surprisingly, 86 percent of respondents said no. One of those who replied affirmatively wrote, "Yes. It's like, if you aren't on, something's wrong."

What's the one measure you could take in your sport that would cut costs appreciably without hurting the product?

A lot of coaches — 42 percent — were like-minded; they want an early signing date for letters of intent to supplant or augment the February date. Another indicated his school saves $20,000 annually by not having his team stay in a hotel the night before home games.

What's your all-time favorite sports movie?

Those that drew multiple mentions were "Rocky," "Hoosiers," "Tin Cup," "Field of Dreams" and "Brian's Song."

Who's your all-time favorite movie actor?

Most mentioned were Clint Eastwood, Gene Hackman, Paul Newman, Jack Nicholson, John Wayne and Morgan Freeman.

Who's your all-time favorite actress?

Favorites were Julia Roberts, Demi Moore, Meryl Streep and Ann-Margret.

What concert would you go out of your way to attend?

The Eagles — named by 20 percent of coaches — obviously made an impression. To a lesser extent, so did Elton John and Bruce Springsteen.

What's the No. 1 thing on your "bucket list"?

The "bucket list" is the pursuit unrelated to football you would like to see/do/accomplish before you die. Lots of dreams here, including:

• Drive a race car.

• Visit Normandy.

• See the Roman Colosseum.

• Play St. Andrews Old Course.

• Learn to play guitar.

• Visit the Azore Islands.

• Meet the Pope.

• Star in a movie with Jessica Biel.

What sports figure do you really admire, in or out of football?

Tiger Woods swamped the field, getting 37 percent of responses. Others prominently mentioned were Jack Nicklaus and the late Walter Payton.

What's the worst job you've ever had outside football?

The coaches provided some laughs with this one. Among the responses:

• "Throwing hides in a hog-processing plant."

• "Working in a chicken house without air conditioning, vaccinating chickens."

• "Working for the water department for the City of Colorado Springs — too much sitting around; they get after you for doing too much work."

• "Cleaning 16 horse stalls in a Thoroughbred ranch."

• "Pulling greenchain in a sawmill."

• "Stock boy in a supermarket ... broke a lot of eggs."

• "Stock boy at grocery store ... very hard work and very underpaid ... chasing kids stealing candy to unloading watermelons."

Bud Withers: 206-464-8281 or bwithers@

seattletimes.com