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When did college football become a business?
Posted on 1/6/24 at 8:18 am
Posted on 1/6/24 at 8:18 am
It seemed that when I was growing up (I'm 52 now fwiw), college football was about loyalty, tradition, pageantry, tailgating and fun on gamedays with fellow fans, etc. It just seemed more innocent.
Before I get accused of being the "stay off my lawn" guy, I'll admit that perhaps I'm just being naive and it's always been a big business and I'm just old enough now to realize it.
It just feels tainted now and I don't get near the enjoyment from it. Is there an event or year that changed everything?
Before I get accused of being the "stay off my lawn" guy, I'll admit that perhaps I'm just being naive and it's always been a big business and I'm just old enough now to realize it.
It just feels tainted now and I don't get near the enjoyment from it. Is there an event or year that changed everything?
15
Posted on 1/6/24 at 8:27 am to AUveritas
Just watch the NFL.
The best players are there and the teams trade the player vs players trading themselves.
The best players are there and the teams trade the player vs players trading themselves.
Posted on 1/6/24 at 8:31 am to AUveritas
quote:
I'll admit that perhaps I'm just being naive and it's always been a big business and I'm just old enough now to realize it.
I think you said it best yourself. Sure, if we go far enough back (pretty dang far back at this point) it might have truly just been about those things you said. But those things don’t build 86,000 seat stadiums. Money builds those stadiums. Money gets those games broadcast to millions of people. We’re getting upset now that athletes are starting to treat it like a business, just as their coaches and administrators have been doing for decades. Who can blame them?
Posted on 1/6/24 at 8:32 am to AUveritas
NIL has a lot to do with it. A football player is no longer just a student athlete but a businessman, responsible for marketing a brand and managing large sums of money. Colleges who want a chance to win have to spend big bucks to get the best players.
Posted on 1/6/24 at 8:36 am to AUveritas
I'd start with the SEC-ESPN TV deal in 2008.
Our "SEC" run of titles hasn't helped either. More money = more stuff to spend it on and higher expectations.
It's just evolved.
Our "SEC" run of titles hasn't helped either. More money = more stuff to spend it on and higher expectations.
It's just evolved.
Posted on 1/6/24 at 8:37 am to AU238
quote:
We’re getting upset now that athletes are starting to treat it like a business, just as their coaches and administrators have been doing for decades. Who can blame them?
But it's more than just players. Schools have no loyalty to coaches, coaches have no loyalty to schools, schools have no loyalty to conferences, conferences have no loyalties to tradition and rivalries. It's much bigger than NIL.
Posted on 1/6/24 at 8:39 am to Wendell T. Stamps
quote:
I'd start with the SEC-ESPN TV deal in 2008
I do suspect ESPN has played perhaps the biggest role in making college football what it is. College football used to be a regional sport. ESPN made it a national one.
Posted on 1/6/24 at 8:46 am to AUveritas
We complain about ESPN but for many fans its the only way they get to watch their team on TV more than a couple times each regular season. Guess we just made a deal with the devil.
This post was edited on 1/6/24 at 8:47 am
Posted on 1/6/24 at 8:52 am to AUveritas
quote:
But it's more than just players. Schools have no loyalty to coaches, coaches have no loyalty to schools, schools have no loyalty to conferences, conferences have no loyalties to tradition and rivalries.
That was exactly my point. We might be talking past each other here
Posted on 1/6/24 at 8:55 am to AU238
We are. I just misread your last couple of sentences. My bad.
Posted on 1/6/24 at 9:03 am to AUveritas
1869
Posted on 1/6/24 at 9:08 am to AUveritas
Read the book The Coach Who Strangled A Bulldog about Harvard’s early 20th Century teams. It will obliterate any misconceptions you have that college football was ever about anything other than money.
I haven’t yet read The Rumble of 1869, but I expect it will provide further confirmation of same.
I haven’t yet read The Rumble of 1869, but I expect it will provide further confirmation of same.
This post was edited on 1/6/24 at 9:11 am
Posted on 1/6/24 at 9:51 am to NewYrkTiger
When coaches started making umpteen millions.
Washington Post article 1982
Washington Post article 1982
quote:
Bryant's $450,000 Tops U.S. Coaches
Paul (Bear) Bryant, Alabama football coach, is the highest wage-earner in college football, getting a base salary and benefits totaling $450,000 yearly, the Miami Herald reported in yesterday's editions.
Bryant earns an estimated $104,000 base salary, and receives about $300,000 in television and radio benefits, according to a survey of the nation's collegiate coaches by the Herald.
Other top 20 notables are Tennessee's Johnny Majors at $128,500; Florida's Charley Pell at $123,000; USC's John Robinson and Penn State's Joe Paterno at $102,500, and Georgia's Vince Dooley at $100,000.
Posted on 1/6/24 at 9:55 am to AUveritas
I would think division 2 might be better and more what the op misses. But thats a guess.
This post was edited on 1/6/24 at 10:02 am
Posted on 1/6/24 at 10:03 am to AUveritas
quote:
When did college football become a business?
Big money thrown around with TV deals. Big money thrown at coaches. Coaches with no loyalty. Not a business
Money thrown at players. Players with no loyalty. Business.
I mean what kind of question is this? It’s been a business for a LONG time.
Posted on 1/6/24 at 10:17 am to AUveritas
When we went from 4 year scholarship to 1 year scholarships was step 1. Now we have free agency and 1 year commitment. The fix is actually simple, 2 year contracts would be a start.
Posted on 1/6/24 at 10:27 am to AUveritas
Probably 100 years ago when we were arguing over players pay. I think think is what got the IB canceled.
Posted on 1/6/24 at 1:32 pm to AUveritas
when the first ticket was sold
Posted on 1/6/24 at 1:40 pm to allin2010
Canceling the stupid covid year and implementing sitting out a year after transfer would fix a lot of shite.
Posted on 1/6/24 at 2:31 pm to blzr
Obviously there are multiple answers.
1. When Cable TV expanded and more games were shown each week. Then the regular guy was saying I know we will see Bama/UT, but what about MSU/Vandy.
2. Then the SEC started the Championship Game which increased revenue and exposure.
1. When Cable TV expanded and more games were shown each week. Then the regular guy was saying I know we will see Bama/UT, but what about MSU/Vandy.
2. Then the SEC started the Championship Game which increased revenue and exposure.
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