re: The new “opt out” bowls

Bowls were a goal not that long ago. Becoming Bowl eligible was a big deal. It allowed you to practice for an extra few weeks. It also allowed you to do more spring or preseason type practices. It was a grind. Especially since you had to stay in Athens for most of Christmas break. On the plus side, you got a nice check along with swag like watches, warm ups, jackets, and other random stuff. Going to the bowls was fun. You were treated pretty well and had some down time to frick around and party. Agents have made them mean less as they can advance the kids a lot more $$ than they would get at a bowl game. They may mean less to some fans who expect excellence from their sports teams, whilst wallowing in their mediocre lives too I guess... Either way, by it now being “acceptable “ for agents to advance money and talk kids into opting out of Bowl games, the games themselves are losing their value to the fans.
I will also add that coaches leaving before the season is over is also an issue, but you can look to the same source for that issue as well. Agents/greed....