Post by bigdawgs on Dec 28, 2023 13:02:03 GMT -5
CBS Sports
College football's bowl season deteriorated in recent years thanks to the growing number of opt-outs and transfer portal departures as a result of injury worries and the sport's universally-hated recruiting calendar. This week's New Year's Six could be the inflection point that invokes potential solutions to the ongoing problem considering the Orange Bowl and Fiesta Bowl approach four dozen opt-outs, combined.
A plethora of Florida State's regulars opted out of Saturday's showdown with Georgia, including offensive skill players Jaheim Bell, Keon Coleman and Johnny Wilson. Furthermore, second-team quarterback Tate Rodemaker — now healthy after missing the ACC Championship Game — plans to enter the transfer portal and has pulled himself out of the contest as well.
Toss in nearly double-digit starters from Oregon and Liberty ahead of the Fiesta and games that looked great on paper leave a lot to be desired. Ryan Day and Ohio State haven't announced any players opt-outs ahead of Friday's Cotton Bowl with Missouri, but they're expected, given a few of the Buckeyes' draft-eligible juniors.
How does college football fix its opt-out problem and ensure the game's biggest stars are taking the field in the postseason? National analysts at 247Sports offer possible solutions:
BUD ELLIOTT: SPRING BOWL GAMES, DROP TIE-INS
The last thing ESPN and other sponsors want during bowl season is watered down games outside of the playoff. The creation of the 12-team playoff should help alleviate some of the "afterthought" connotation the four New Year's Six games have now in 2024 and beyond, according to Bud Elliott, co-host of the Cover 3 College Football Podcast, but there's more work to be done. Motivation is a driving factor for playing or athletes choosing the alternative in the postseason, he says. So, an altered calendar would potentially change the dynamic.
"Move the other bowls to the spring. Make them spring games," Elliott said. "Or, in the alternative, eliminate the bowl tie-ins. Allow the bowls to draft the schools who they feel will bring fans and want to play. For instance, FSU has way more than half of its starters opted out and does not want to play this game. Virginia Tech or Louisville are motivated to play a bowl, based on opt-outs, comments, etc. Teams have a decent feel for who might portal and who might not. (You) have to allow bowls to go outside of the traditional tie-ins if we want good matchups. But it will take a balancing of name value, etc."
BRANDON MARCELLO: SHORTEN BOWL SEASON
Brandon Marcello has a drastic change to college football's 41-game postseason — trim it down. And for those blaming portal departures to the recruiting calendar, you're going to have to deal with it with no significant moves in sight.
"I hate to say it, but there really are too many bowl games weighing down a buckling system, and it will be more evident if the structure remains the same with a 12-team playoff," Marcello sad. "Moving the transfer portal window is a non-starter, in my opinion, because of the academic calendar. You can not limit player movement at the end of the fall semester, which is in December and when teams are preparing for bowl games. It's a nightmare for timing with final exams, recruiting, the transfer portal and squeezing in bowl preparations. If that's too big of a problem for coaches and administrators to handle, then move the bowl season to the spring and expand the summer workout calendar.
"You can curb -- but not substantially dent -- player opt-outs by allowing the bowl games and conferences to pay players, but the cash will not be enough to keep everyone on board. Simply put, shrink the bowl season, move it to the spring and treat it as a showcase/preview for the upcoming season with big-time matchups — and pay the players. In the summer, provide 15 days of workouts/practices over the course of one month and then reconvene for preseason camps in August."
BRAD CRAWFORD: PLAYERS NEED ASSURANCES
Greed tends to ruin everything, right? The starring attractions — the players — need a piece of the pie.
"Truthfully, TV networks can afford to give back to the players this time of year and that could come in the form financial reward for appearing in the postseason," Crawford said. "There needs to be some sort of assurance that every participating player gets injury insurance as well. Former Notre Dame linebacker Jaylon Smith collected more than $1 million in injury insurance several years ago when he was hurt in the Fiesta Bowl. Leonard Fournette had an estimated $10 million in insurance polices during his college career at LSU.
"Moreover, is there not an obligation, too, on behalf of the players to represent their respective schools if they're under NIL deals? It's time to rework these contracts in a way that the 'season' includes the extra game. Paying the players is necessary to draw more interest outside of the playoff, and one way it could work for both sides — perhaps with advertising space during games or after big plays. Can you see it? Marvin Harrison Jr.'s big play, brought to you by Carl Jr.'s hamburgers. Something like that, with a sponsorship graphic. This would be a tougher sell for networks, however."
CHRIS HUMMER: FOLLOW THE MONEY, ALTER THE SLATE
Chris Hummer agrees with most previous sentiments, but says the essential part of the puzzle that hasn't yet been found is a way to enhance players' interest in the games, all 41 of them.
"There's a few ways to fix bowl season. The easiest solution, to me, is figuring out a way to pay players to participate," Hummer said. "Forget $500 bowl gifts, pay each player on every team via an NIL deal. Take it out of the bowl allotment for the schools and conferences. Easy.
"The second is more drastic: I'd love to see bowl games played in the spring or as a sort of season-opening showcase. I think the later scenario makes more sense. Big non-conference games are part of the fabric of the sport anyway. Why not open the season with a massive matchup in the Rose Bowl? That has real stakes. A jagged conference landscape makes that second scenario difficult, but I'm confident the logistics could be figure out."
College football's bowl season deteriorated in recent years thanks to the growing number of opt-outs and transfer portal departures as a result of injury worries and the sport's universally-hated recruiting calendar. This week's New Year's Six could be the inflection point that invokes potential solutions to the ongoing problem considering the Orange Bowl and Fiesta Bowl approach four dozen opt-outs, combined.
A plethora of Florida State's regulars opted out of Saturday's showdown with Georgia, including offensive skill players Jaheim Bell, Keon Coleman and Johnny Wilson. Furthermore, second-team quarterback Tate Rodemaker — now healthy after missing the ACC Championship Game — plans to enter the transfer portal and has pulled himself out of the contest as well.
Toss in nearly double-digit starters from Oregon and Liberty ahead of the Fiesta and games that looked great on paper leave a lot to be desired. Ryan Day and Ohio State haven't announced any players opt-outs ahead of Friday's Cotton Bowl with Missouri, but they're expected, given a few of the Buckeyes' draft-eligible juniors.
How does college football fix its opt-out problem and ensure the game's biggest stars are taking the field in the postseason? National analysts at 247Sports offer possible solutions:
BUD ELLIOTT: SPRING BOWL GAMES, DROP TIE-INS
The last thing ESPN and other sponsors want during bowl season is watered down games outside of the playoff. The creation of the 12-team playoff should help alleviate some of the "afterthought" connotation the four New Year's Six games have now in 2024 and beyond, according to Bud Elliott, co-host of the Cover 3 College Football Podcast, but there's more work to be done. Motivation is a driving factor for playing or athletes choosing the alternative in the postseason, he says. So, an altered calendar would potentially change the dynamic.
"Move the other bowls to the spring. Make them spring games," Elliott said. "Or, in the alternative, eliminate the bowl tie-ins. Allow the bowls to draft the schools who they feel will bring fans and want to play. For instance, FSU has way more than half of its starters opted out and does not want to play this game. Virginia Tech or Louisville are motivated to play a bowl, based on opt-outs, comments, etc. Teams have a decent feel for who might portal and who might not. (You) have to allow bowls to go outside of the traditional tie-ins if we want good matchups. But it will take a balancing of name value, etc."
BRANDON MARCELLO: SHORTEN BOWL SEASON
Brandon Marcello has a drastic change to college football's 41-game postseason — trim it down. And for those blaming portal departures to the recruiting calendar, you're going to have to deal with it with no significant moves in sight.
"I hate to say it, but there really are too many bowl games weighing down a buckling system, and it will be more evident if the structure remains the same with a 12-team playoff," Marcello sad. "Moving the transfer portal window is a non-starter, in my opinion, because of the academic calendar. You can not limit player movement at the end of the fall semester, which is in December and when teams are preparing for bowl games. It's a nightmare for timing with final exams, recruiting, the transfer portal and squeezing in bowl preparations. If that's too big of a problem for coaches and administrators to handle, then move the bowl season to the spring and expand the summer workout calendar.
"You can curb -- but not substantially dent -- player opt-outs by allowing the bowl games and conferences to pay players, but the cash will not be enough to keep everyone on board. Simply put, shrink the bowl season, move it to the spring and treat it as a showcase/preview for the upcoming season with big-time matchups — and pay the players. In the summer, provide 15 days of workouts/practices over the course of one month and then reconvene for preseason camps in August."
BRAD CRAWFORD: PLAYERS NEED ASSURANCES
Greed tends to ruin everything, right? The starring attractions — the players — need a piece of the pie.
"Truthfully, TV networks can afford to give back to the players this time of year and that could come in the form financial reward for appearing in the postseason," Crawford said. "There needs to be some sort of assurance that every participating player gets injury insurance as well. Former Notre Dame linebacker Jaylon Smith collected more than $1 million in injury insurance several years ago when he was hurt in the Fiesta Bowl. Leonard Fournette had an estimated $10 million in insurance polices during his college career at LSU.
"Moreover, is there not an obligation, too, on behalf of the players to represent their respective schools if they're under NIL deals? It's time to rework these contracts in a way that the 'season' includes the extra game. Paying the players is necessary to draw more interest outside of the playoff, and one way it could work for both sides — perhaps with advertising space during games or after big plays. Can you see it? Marvin Harrison Jr.'s big play, brought to you by Carl Jr.'s hamburgers. Something like that, with a sponsorship graphic. This would be a tougher sell for networks, however."
CHRIS HUMMER: FOLLOW THE MONEY, ALTER THE SLATE
Chris Hummer agrees with most previous sentiments, but says the essential part of the puzzle that hasn't yet been found is a way to enhance players' interest in the games, all 41 of them.
"There's a few ways to fix bowl season. The easiest solution, to me, is figuring out a way to pay players to participate," Hummer said. "Forget $500 bowl gifts, pay each player on every team via an NIL deal. Take it out of the bowl allotment for the schools and conferences. Easy.
"The second is more drastic: I'd love to see bowl games played in the spring or as a sort of season-opening showcase. I think the later scenario makes more sense. Big non-conference games are part of the fabric of the sport anyway. Why not open the season with a massive matchup in the Rose Bowl? That has real stakes. A jagged conference landscape makes that second scenario difficult, but I'm confident the logistics could be figure out."