The Year College Football Ate Itself ...

[CajunNation]

https://www.wsj.com/sports/football/...isher-dc80521f

We’re approaching a seismic new chapter, and yet the field feels fragile. The NCAA, slow to everything, is laying the groundwork for a “super league” approach, with the biggest, best-funded schools breaking away from the lesser-funded riff raff to create their own system. Television networks—the hands behind the curtains here—will surely want a say in who makes the cut. Feelings are sure to get hurt. In any reorganization, low-rated schools are going to get dropped.


I’m probably a hopeless naif, but maybe there’s opportunity here—for the craziest schools to run off and for the rest of the colleges and universities to tap the brakes and return to a version of athletics that’s less lucrative, but saner.

The sooner, the better.

[R1Letterman]

The idea that the rise in football revenur has been "lucrative", if none of the money is saved or moved to academics, was it really lucrative.. more was raised but more was spent... lucrative basically just for pockets of coaches and athletic dept staffs

[RedTails]

The universities that do not move to the super league should take the opportunity to introduce radical new ideas that will compete with the greedy bunch forming their own semi-pro league (i.e. promotion/relegation). Also, lean in hard on "college" athletics and maybe even challenge the super league's ability to market itself as "college" athletics.

While it would seem to many that we are getting left behind, there will be a power vacuum when the greedy bastards leave and lots of opportunities could present themselves.

[Cajun Bullet]

Welcome to the Woke & Joke Movement of College Football. The beginning of the end as we once knew it to be.

[Duckster]

Its like cost based budgeting. The more $$ made, the more must be spent. College athletics has been an arms race for years. In the last 10 years media dollars have exploded for the P4/5. And its still not enough.

[MountainDew]

Sustainability. That's the word I keep coming back to when I see the current state of college football. Is this sustainable? I'm not an expert by any means but I just don't see how this can continue. The math ain't mathin'.

[CajunNation]

Sustainability. That's the word I keep coming back to when I see the current state of college football. Is this sustainable? I'm not an expert by any means but I just don't see how this can continue. The math ain't mathin'.

They(SEC/B10) are consolidating media value. Every time they want to add someone, they ask the networks for permission. As long as the numbers work, they get the go ahead. They are nearing the end of that track. Right now they are fighting over a few ACC schools. After that, the numbers don't work for anymore additions. In order to get to their super league, they are going to have to either expel members or form another league by invite only.

The problem is this house of cards is built on funny money called streaming. This is a repeat of the dotcom bubble. Currently, projected revenues are nowhere near where they need to be in all streaming platforms. Hollywood/Disney has bet big on this, and the money is simply not there. The money will not be there either for an NFL lite.

It will all collapse.

[HoustonCajun]

Its like cost based budgeting. The more $$ made, the more must be spent. College athletics has been an arms race for years. In the last 10 years media dollars have exploded for the P4/5. And its still not enough.

An arms race that is clearly being won by a select number of schools. Look at the Final 4 teams. Alabama, Michigan and Texas all have 100,000+ stadiums and unlimited funds. Washington has a 70,000+ stadium and will likely enlarge the stadium now that they are in the National Championship game and are moving to the BIG 10. How do schools like UL with small budgets and small stadiums compete with that and never really have a shot at a national championship? Even some current P5 schools can't compete and will likely end up on the outside looking in. It will be interesting to see which schools are left out, starting with Wash State and Oregon State. Giving 1 G5 school a shot at the Final 12 starting next year and others playing some meaningless bowl games doesn't really solve the G5 problem. Maybe it is time to reorganize G5 schools and create their own national championship as many are now calling for.

Would a G5 championship follow the new P5 model? There are currently 6 G5 conferences, SBC, CUSA, AAC, MAC, MWC and starting next year the PAC (2). As lower end P5 schools are removed from the P5 conferences, they will join those existing conferences. Have a 12 team championship bracket similar to the P5 with the 6 conference champs automatically in and 6 at-large teams and crown a G5 National Champion. And, give it a better name than G5.

[Turbine]

The only way the super conferences win (in the long run) is if the NFL goes exclusively with their players.

[CajunNation]

If the bastards officially create their super league, FBS will continue as is, minus the bastards. I agree with you that at some point a playoff model will be used in place of the Bowl model for FBS.

The MWC/PAC2 will become 1 league give or take a few. The ACC and the Big12 will be left out just like the rest of us. That is a group of 7 conferences. All champs get in and 9 at large.

[CajunNation]

The only way the super conferences win (in the long run) is if the NFL goes exclusively with their players.

Will never happen.

[R1Letterman]

The only way the super conferences win (in the long run) is if the NFL goes exclusively with their players.

They dont really care about long term nfl success…. case in point: see jamarcus russell and johnny “football” manziel

[HoustonCajun]

If the bastards officially create their super league, FBS will continue as is, minus the bastards. I agree with you that at some point a playoff model will be used in place of the Bowl model for FBS.

The MWC/PAC2 will become 1 league give or take a few. The ACC and the Big12 will be left out just like the rest of us. That is a group of 7 conferences. All champs get in and 9 at large.

There is already talk of the Big 12 and ACC merging to keep up with the Big 10 and SEC. The ACC will have to do something following Florida State being left out of the Final 4 and threatening to leave and sue the conference. Of course, that will create a massive conference of 33 teams (16 - Big 12) & (17 - ACC) which does not appear viable. The Big 10 will have 18 members next year and the SEC will have 16 for a total of 34 teams. That is 67 P5 schools out of 134 or 50%. 11 of those 67 P5 schools will make the playoffs. 1 of the 67 G5 schools will get in. Maybe it is time for a G5 championship. A P5 and a G5 playoff system will have 24 teams competing and can use bowl games for the bracket games. Or the G5 can create a 16 team playoff model as you suggested which would be favorable.

There were 82 bowl slots this year with only 79 eligible teams, so 3 ineligible teams were added. And this is outside of the 4 teams competing for the national championship. The bowl games are becoming a joke with 6-6 minimum records and players opting out with poor attendance. While it is better to be in a bowl game than not, it is no longer a great accomplishment.

Will bowl games continue to be viable in the future with players opting out and transferring (like Florida State this year) and 6-6 minimum records making bowl games a farce? There was only 14,485 announced attendance at the N.O. Bowl. Other bowls struggled with attendance as well. I don't know what the viewership was, but these games pretty much have meaning only to fans of the participating schools. Will sponsors continue to fund those games? Having a national championship for G5 with a 12 or 16 team playoff may be the only thing meaningful going forward and a true reward for G5 schools who have no real shot at a P5 national championship.

[Duckster]

The bowl reward system is unique however becoming less relevant with each passing year. If in a G5 playoff bracket, I'd vote for hosting a home playoff game at OLOL Cajun Field instead of going play in a bowl in first or second round. Maybe the finals you advance to NOLA bowl or Gator Bowl, etc. There could still be a several useful bowls alive and kicking.

[Esqueleto]

The bowl reward system is unique however becoming less relevant with each passing year. If in a G5 playoff bracket, I'd vote for hosting a home playoff game at OLOL Cajun Field instead of going play in a bowl in first or second round. Maybe the finals you advance to NOLA bowl or Gator Bowl, etc. There could still be a several useful bowls alive and kicking.

Agreed, and, as a fan, I'd rather travel to a Utah State, South Florida, or Fresno for a playoff game and experience their campus, town, and culture vs. playing those teams in Montgomery. Give me that all day long because, let's face it, they ain't letting the little guy in their party.