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I am confounded by the world of college football today. College football is special because it is college. Amateur in nature (or at least that is the stated goal). Traditionally based. Inclusive in that all regions of the nation share it. And equitable in a way that the NFL could never be.
For some insane reason, the very notion of conference and region and perverted into some sort of goal to make only the elite of the elite stand out and in setting up a virtual national system of organization that goes well beyond the structure of the post season.
Personally I loved the days of local conferences, where rivals were close by, where the conference and its region were intertwined, where road trips were easily made for away games. I loved the way the Big Ten represented the midwest and the Big Eight the Great Plains and the SWC represented Texas + one.
I loved the way that everybody was invited to the show: Ohio State and Northwestern, Oklahoma and Iowa State, Texas and Rice. I liked it when Tulane, like Vanderbilt, could comfortably be SEC.
The NFL, as professionals, look to the size of markets for their franchises and limit their numbers for economic success. Sure, they screw up on LA in that regard and Green Bay is an anomoly, but a helluva mascot, but they stay true to serving the needs of people.
Not so in college football and, through their conferences, extending to college b'ball, as well.
Are we really to have a power structure in college sports that allows the nature of the program to dictate a hierarchy?
The University of Nebraska, by size alone, should not be in the same league or level as the University of Vermont. But it SHOULD be at the same level as the University of Kansas. Or an even bigger University of Missouri.
But the recent Big 10/Big 12/Pac 10 shakedown could have created a true insanity in the heart of the old Big Eight country:
by nature of the program (and that would be football calling the shots, not KU's hoops program), Nebraska might have been set for elite, elevated status in college sports in one of the "super conferences" while KU and Mizzou picked up the pieces.
Who wins from that? What type of insanity would set up college sports in a way that the folks in Nebraska would have a home team to cheer because of pure Husker tradition and prowess, while the folks in Kansas and much bigger Missouri have no such vechile for their interest in the game. Is this nuts?
And while we are at it (and this is something I've raised before): why on earth are conferences so interested in increasing their "foot prints"? Does this REALLY increase revenue? If the Big 12 and the SEC were both truly major conferences, does it really help either if the Big 12 expands its footprint into SEC country and the SEC into Big 12 country. Wouldn't the Big 12 picking up New Orleans through Tulane and the SEC picking up Dallas through SMU off set each other...and thus not really benefit either conference.
Change is good when warranted it. It is also constant. But it doesn't need to happen if there is no reason to it. College sports, football in particular, are traditonal. and that is part of their selling points.
How difficult would it be to make an INCLUSIVE group of schools (perhaps 96 through 8 twelve team conferences) that could give us 8 conference champs to go into 4 special bowl games (you know the routine....Rose, Orange, Sugar, Fiesta) with the 4 winners go into a two round play off.
Wouldn't that honor both traditional conference and local region and inclusion?
Couldn't you easily have eight such conferences:
Northeast: Big East
Southeast: ACC
Mid South: SEC
Midwest: Big Ten
Great Plains: a reborn Big Eight
Southwest: the old SWC
Rockies; MWC
Pacific Coast: Pac 10
Imagine the Big Ten and Pac Ten continuing to meet in the Rose Bowl in round one. Of the new Big Eight going back to the Orange Bowl. Of the SEC in the Sugar Bowl. And if you'd like to make Phoenix the site of a national championship or the semi's, how about reviving the Cotton Bowl in the Cowboys Stadium and inviting the new SWC champ there.
And think, in doing so, we have created a home not only for Alabama, Ohio State, Texas, Oklahoma, and USC......but for Duke, Iowa State, Wyoming, Indiana, and Vanderbilt as well?
I don't know about others, but that sure seems logical to me. Unless, of course, it truly is only about $$$$$$$$$....in which case, I'd lose total interest anyway.
College football is a nightmare to do business with, so how in the world are they going to create a second NFL that people will actually watch? This is one of the reasons why I don't watch college football because the people that run the show don't know what they are talking about. You have Boise State undefeated one year and doesn't play in BCS. You have Texas losing one game, and playing in BCS. If the Detroit Lions went undefeated in the NFL, they would definantly have a fair shot at the superbowl because they earned it. lol. That is why I like NFL football so much better.
I agree with everything you said edsg25! College football is unique and I don't want it to be like the NFL. Many people tend to forget that these athletes are STUDENT athletes. They are not professionals. They go to classes, they pursue degrees, they hang out with their college buddies, etc. Like you said, college football should remain a sport that honors it's regional nature and special traditions within the conferences. There is a way to improve things without compromising the special nature of the sport. I don't like the BCS and would love a two round playoff like you proposed after the 4 major bowls. That would create a playoff system without putting any undue constraints on the student athletes. College basketball has a playoff system for example, so why not have that for football?
College football is a nightmare to do business with, so how in the world are they going to create a second NFL that people will actually watch? This is one of the reasons why I don't watch college football because the people that run the show don't know what they are talking about. You have Boise State undefeated one year and doesn't play in BCS. You have Texas losing one game, and playing in BCS. If the Detroit Lions went undefeated in the NFL, they would definantly have a fair shot at the superbowl because they earned it. lol. That is why I like NFL football so much better.
C'mon, Vision, if the Detroit Lions went undefeated in the NFL, there would be no Super Bowl. The nation would have died of shock.
I agree with everything you said edsg25! College football is unique and I don't want it to be like the NFL. Many people tend to forget that these athletes are STUDENT athletes. They are not professionals. They go to classes, they pursue degrees, they hang out with their college buddies, etc. Like you said, college football should remain a sport that honors it's regional nature and special traditions within the conferences. There is a way to improve things without compromising the special nature of the sport. I don't like the BCS and would love a two round playoff like you proposed after the 4 major bowls. That would create a playoff system without putting any undue constraints on the student athletes. College basketball has a playoff system for example, so why not have that for football?
Dave, I've mentioned this to you before: your part of the country had something every special in the old SWC days when Texas was its own world in college football (with a few hogs out in the pasture).
Didn't every one of those schools have its own hand signals...though none of the fame of Hook 'em Horns.
As for real exictement, there is no question that your school, TTU, went far more ape over getting membership in the SWC than it did going into the Big 12.
Dave, I've mentioned this to you before: your part of the country had something every special in the old SWC days when Texas was its own world in college football (with a few hogs out in the pasture).
Didn't every one of those schools have its own hand signals...though none of the fame of Hook 'em Horns.
As for real exictement, there is no question that your school, TTU, went far more ape over getting membership in the SWC than it did going into the Big 12.
Oh yeah, those SWC days were the good old days. You're right, it was very special and there were a lot of traditions that originated in that conference. In additon to the Hook 'em Horns hand signal, Tech's Guns Up hand signal and the Aggies Gig 'Em hand signal are still used today. Some of the pranks between the schools back in those days were also hilarious, some legendary. For example, one of the most interesting ones was how UT's mascot Bevo got his name. In case you didn't already know, way back in the early days of the conference UT lost to A&M and some Aggies literally branded the UT mascot steer's rear end with the final score..13-0. Some UT folks then branded him again to erase it and make the 13-0 into "BEVO"...lol.
The TV networks and big schools will be happy because they have gotten more money, those people would argue "only the strong survive". Plus some would say that the quality of the teams would be higher because more blue chippers would be heading to smaller pot of schools.
MY OPINON;
Here is a question.
What percentage of College students ACTUALLY GO OFF TO THE NFL???!!!
Only a small percentage. You tellin me we should overlook those other kids from playing on the big time?
It's obscene frankly. Once we hit super conferences, what's to keep more consolidation from happening. Less voices, less teams to look at. Like the banking and media industries.
Boise State and TCU maybe hot NOW but what about when the next shockwaves hit? Can they keep up the money train? What's to keep secretive clandestine board members from voting out places like Northwestern, Stanford or Wake Forest?
There needs to be a line set in the sand. You can only go so far. I think that despite being weakened and obscured, there IS still integrity in College Football. A special something that helps it stick out from the NFL. If we go to super conferences and start pricing schools out, I'd consider droping my support for the sport. It's just gonna turn into European soccer where only 2-10% of people in the TOP FLIGHT LEAGUES, not just soccer as whole, will be able to actually win it. Everyone else be damned for the sake of money.
C'mon, Vision, if the Detroit Lions went undefeated in the NFL, there would be no Super Bowl. The nation would have died of shock.
Yeah it is not ever going to happen I know. I'm just really not a fan of college football. I don't like how they rank teams, and how sports annalists are the official voters? Well that's why sports annalists like college football. If it was that way for the NFL, than the past three years consistantly would be; Brett Favre's team ranked #1, the Cowboys #2, the Chargers #3, The Colts #4, Patriots #5, and the good teams that wouldn't be high on the rankings would be the Steelers, the Giants, the Saints, "the last three superbowl champs." How much you want to bet that they wouldn't of even made a "bowl" game? In the NFL, you have to WORK to get a championship. I'm not saying that student athletes don't WORK, but look at Boise State. I would love nothing else than too see them play for a national championship, because they deserve it. It angers me like no other. And I'm not even a Boise State fan! I root for the Michigan Wolverines!
I'm just the kind of guy that likes too see "rags too riches."
that's actually one thing I look forward to in college football.
BUILDING OF PROGRAMS AND TRADITIONS
But in the kooky world of the BCS, if you don't already have 100s of years worth of tradition and foot soldiers of alumni to point to, you're a "nobody" or a "poser". I do admit that it's flawed in that way.
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