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Myth: "The BCS/CFP ruined college football by making all other bowl games irrelevant."
Posted on 1/4/21 at 8:33 pm
Posted on 1/4/21 at 8:33 pm
(ETA: Altered title to make it clear I don't agree with the premise.)
I have never understood this opinion.
In any given year, how many bowl games would have a realistic impact on the MNC? Every once in a while you might have a #1 vs #3 matchup that would leave the door open for an upset and #2 having a chance to win a different game and move up. Usually, though, #1 was playing a much easier opponent and there was little chance of an upset.
In any case, all but (at most) 2-3 bowls were exhibition anyway, just like now. A nice trip, PR for the schools, and a chance to lock in a high finish and gain momentum for the next year.
To my eye, all that has happened is that the CFP games are elevated much higher, but not at the expense of the others.
If there is anything driving lower bowl apathy, it's the sheer volume of games with barely qualifying teams, along with the opt-outs, and a general fragmenting of entertainment.
What am I missing?
I have never understood this opinion.
In any given year, how many bowl games would have a realistic impact on the MNC? Every once in a while you might have a #1 vs #3 matchup that would leave the door open for an upset and #2 having a chance to win a different game and move up. Usually, though, #1 was playing a much easier opponent and there was little chance of an upset.
In any case, all but (at most) 2-3 bowls were exhibition anyway, just like now. A nice trip, PR for the schools, and a chance to lock in a high finish and gain momentum for the next year.
To my eye, all that has happened is that the CFP games are elevated much higher, but not at the expense of the others.
If there is anything driving lower bowl apathy, it's the sheer volume of games with barely qualifying teams, along with the opt-outs, and a general fragmenting of entertainment.
What am I missing?
This post was edited on 1/4/21 at 8:38 pm
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Posted on 1/4/21 at 8:36 pm to Ag Zwin
Nope,political BS did
Posted on 1/4/21 at 8:37 pm to Ag Zwin
quote:
What am I missing?
Nothing, I've said basically the same thing on this board several times. I think a culture shift and players being more cognizant of money has been what killed bowl games, not the system we use to determine national titles, because, like you said, the number of meaningful games in the national title race during bowl season hasn't decreased. The system is just an easy place to point the finger to draw attention to expand the playoffs again so more money can be made. Adding 4 more teams to the playoffs doesn't make the other bowls more meaningful, but rather less.
I do agree that when the number of bowls essentially doubled, simply making a bowl no longer meant much when you can go 2-6 in your conference, beat 3 directional nobodies, and an FCS team and make a bowl. I remember not too terribly long ago teams going 7-4 or 8-3 and not getting invited to bowls. I remember when getting invited to a NYD was a big freaking deal. It's sad so many people don't care about bowl games anymore.
This post was edited on 1/4/21 at 8:39 pm
Posted on 1/4/21 at 8:38 pm to Ag Zwin
A&M fans should be happy for their season and winning their bowl.... but let’s real A&M hasn’t played much less won anything of significance in a very long time.. for elite programs playing a N6 bowl it is a letdown. I’m not a fan of it but it is what it is.
UGA, LSU, UF have had multiple opt outs leading up to a “big game” like a sugar, fiesta, etc. Again not supporting it it just stating all bowls not in the playoffs have significantly lost value.
UNC isn’t remotely elite and playing in the orange meant nothing to their best players, those days were fans threw oranges to the field celebrating a potential bid for that bowl are long gone.
UGA, LSU, UF have had multiple opt outs leading up to a “big game” like a sugar, fiesta, etc. Again not supporting it it just stating all bowls not in the playoffs have significantly lost value.
UNC isn’t remotely elite and playing in the orange meant nothing to their best players, those days were fans threw oranges to the field celebrating a potential bid for that bowl are long gone.
This post was edited on 1/4/21 at 8:41 pm
Posted on 1/4/21 at 8:39 pm to Ag Zwin
quote:
What am I missing?
The fact that before the BCS/CFP fewer programs actually cared about the MNC. The goal for most teams was to win the conference, go to a good bowl game and, if they were lucky, get voted #1 by one of the major polls. ESPN changed all that. Over the last 20 years it became more about who was #1 than it did anything else. Less attention was paid to the other bowl games as a result. Now they are all but irrelevant.
Posted on 1/4/21 at 8:40 pm to r2d2
quote:
AA&M fans should be happy for their season and winning their bowl.... but let’s real A&M hasn’t played much less won anything of significance in a very long time.. for elite programs playing a N6 bowl it is a letdown. I’m not a fan of it but it is what it is.
--
UNC isn’t remotely elite and playing in the orange meant nothing to their best players, those days were fans threw oranges to the field celebrating a potential bid for that bowl are long gone.
What in the absolute frick makes anything in my OP an A&M issue?
Good lord, do you people wake up in the morning telling your kids how much you hate A&M?
This post was edited on 1/4/21 at 8:42 pm
Posted on 1/4/21 at 8:42 pm to Ag Zwin
Utilizing current scientific methods
[Dramatic music]
College football does not need any changes.
[Dramatic music]
College football does not need any changes.
Posted on 1/4/21 at 8:42 pm to Ag Zwin
quote:
What in the absolute frick makes anything in my OP an A&M issue?
Good lord, do you people wake up in the morning telling your kids how much you hate A&M?
I said I’m not a fan of these “big” games meaning so little now but they do. Just pointing out evidence to support it.
Posted on 1/4/21 at 8:44 pm to Ag Zwin
They were already terrible.
Posted on 1/4/21 at 8:45 pm to Ag Zwin
You’re missing nothing except maybe that it’s really all talk. Who gives two poops? It’s just a bunch of ‘stay off my lawn’. If someone doesn’t care about the games move the eff on and don’t care about them but obviously they don’t keep expanding the number because no one is interested. People bitch and moan about weak non-conference matchups then when provided with some interesting non-cons suddenly it’s ‘who cares?’.
In summation, don’t like ‘em, don’t watch ‘em. No one cares that you don’t care.
In summation, don’t like ‘em, don’t watch ‘em. No one cares that you don’t care.
Posted on 1/4/21 at 8:45 pm to Ag Zwin
I agree with you. In the years Ohio State didn’t make the playoffs almost no one opted out (only Denzel Ward I believe) and the team played just as hard as they did during the season. It’s a culture issues at schools and the programs with a lot of opt outs aren’t moving up the ladder.
Posted on 1/4/21 at 8:46 pm to Ag Zwin
I think that the playoff may’ve made participation in the top bowl outside the bracket a bit worse but I don’t think it is the primary reason.The primary reason is the NFL changing the rookie draft pick pay scale considerably some time in the mid-10s with a significant drop off in expected contract value by the end of the first round. An injury can potentially cost a player a ton of money and the bowl games are exhibitions. Furthermore, I think social media has changed the context for player contact with the public. In the 00s, it was not uncommon for a litany of players to not play - sometimes under vague “NCAA eligibility issue” disclaimers - and nobody really knew why. Now the players just get on the twitters and tell everyone they’re peacing out and prepping for the combine.
Posted on 1/4/21 at 8:47 pm to Ag Zwin
Having 35 bowl games is what made the vast majority of bowl games irrelevant.
There needs to be a dozen bowl games, that’s all. Get it back to where making a bowl means something. Like it used to be.
There needs to be a dozen bowl games, that’s all. Get it back to where making a bowl means something. Like it used to be.
Posted on 1/4/21 at 8:49 pm to RollTide1987
quote:
Over the last 20 years it became more about who was #1 than it did anything else. Less attention was paid to the other bowl games as a result. Now they are all but irrelevant.
Since when has any sport not been about winning? What team doesn’t want to finish #1 when they start their season? I’d disagree that it has anything to with the competitive nature of the sport and point to the fact the we now have 40 bowl games, many of which have been added in your 20 year time frame. A bowl game used to mean something. Now, when you’re an NFL prospect, who cares about playing in the weed eater bowl for a 7-6 team?
There have been other changes in player’s perception of their value and an increase in awareness of the gains/losses they expect from an NFL future due to an injury in an exhibition, but bowl season lost its luster when it became a watered down, uninteresting, money grab for the networks trying to show as much football as possible.
Posted on 1/4/21 at 8:49 pm to Sid E Walker
quote:
There needs to be a dozen bowl games, that’s all. Get it back to where making a bowl means something. Like it used to be.
I think the NCAA also just needs to let everyone keep practicing if they wish during bowl season, since this is always brought up about the advantages of going to bowl games.
Posted on 1/4/21 at 8:51 pm to CaptainMorgan
quote:
Since when has any sport not been about winning? What team doesn’t want to finish #1 when they start their season? I’d disagree that it has anything to with the competitive nature of the sport and point to the fact the we now have 40 bowl games, many of which have been added in your 20 year time frame. A bowl game used to mean something. Now, when you’re an NFL prospect, who cares about playing in the weed eater bowl for a 7-6 team?
Add to that, there also used to only be 4 major bowls. Now there are 6. Seeing non conference champion 9-3 teams make the Sugar Bowl is just stupid. Bowls like that used to be reserved for conference champs or top 5-8 at-large teams, not for teams that used to be playing in the Citrus or Gator Bowls.
This post was edited on 1/4/21 at 8:52 pm
Posted on 1/4/21 at 8:54 pm to Sid E Walker
quote:
Having 35 bowl games is what made the vast majority of bowl games irrelevant.
There needs to be a dozen bowl games, that’s all. Get it back to where making a bowl means something. Like it used to be.
Yep. It should only be top 25ish. Hell, do top 30 and have 15 bowls fighting for final top 25.
Posted on 1/4/21 at 8:57 pm to r2d2
quote:
said I’m not a fan of these “big” games meaning so little now but they do. Just pointing out evidence to support it.
Amazing how so many people have suddenly decided bowl games are “meaningless”... so I guess they shouldn’t be played?
Well LLLLLSU’s season was equally “meaningless” after the first game so maybe the team should have opted out of the rest of the season...OH...WAIT!... For that matter, all games except the last one in CFB is to varying degrees “meaningless.”
Odd thing is I really enjoyed the bowl games this year... they were good entertainment and interesting matchups. So my guess is that “meaningless football games” pretty much means “LSU stinks.”
So next time some supposed fan of CFB starts muttering about “meaningless bowl games,” just say “I’m sorry your Tigers let you down this year.. I’ll cry for you little corn dog.”
This post was edited on 1/4/21 at 8:59 pm
Posted on 1/4/21 at 9:00 pm to CaptainMorgan
quote:
Since when has any sport not been about winning?
Since when do you have a sport with 100+ teams playing in the same league where more than half of them know they have absolutely no shot at a national championship before the season even begins? Major college football is unlike any other sport in world in that there is no official championship for said sport. The championship of college football has evolved dramatically over the years. Up until the 1950s, despite the fact that the AP had been voting for well over a decade, there was no agreement on what a national championship was. Beginning with the establishment of the Coaches Poll in 1950, the waters began to get less muddled on that score, but it took over 80 years from that first game against Princeton and Rutgers in 1869 until there was some agreement on what a national championship even was in the sport.
Posted on 1/4/21 at 9:00 pm to FightinTiga
quote:
Nope,political BS did
Bingo and the dumbest part about it is that ESPN owns the rights to most of the bowls, yet trumpeted this "these games are meaningless and players should sit " shite.
ESPN and their quest to destroy college sports makes no sense as ESPN will die with them.
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