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Is College Football Officially on the Decline?

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SaiyaMan305 said:
12 team playoff is way too many teams. 8 team playoff would have sufficed.

Now with the conferences all not having divisions its gonna water it down a bit as well. Michigan Ohio state week 13, Michigan Ohio state B10 Championship game, Michigan Ohio state could meet again in the playoffs too, seems like way too much.
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They could put the division Championship games in part of the playoffs.
 
12 teams in the playoffs is way more fair than four teams. It gives teams from the all the major conferences a chance to participate as well as less established teams in smaller conferences like say BSU (in the past) that have one great season.

I also feel like NIL is leveling the playing field so that it’s not just a handful of traditional powers playing by a different set of rules & getting away with it.

I don’t like what’s happened to the conferences. That’s a total mess driven by money, the need to be aligned with the power players, and the desire of certain conferences to be the King of the Hill. Traditional rivalries will suffer or be lost. Travel for players & fans will be more difficult (and expensive for certain schools). There will be a huge chasm between the surviving power players & those in lesser conferences. SMU gave up rights to TV revenue for 9 years to join the ACC so they wouldn’t be an afterthought with no chance of competing at the highest level.

Net net, CFB was becoming stale over the last decade (particularly the playoffs). The expanded playoffs & NIL (which is also good for the players) are good developments which are restoring a little balance (which ultimately will be good for CFB).
 
I always thought eight teams was the best playoff scenario, but that was before realignment.

I think what you’ll have within the next 8 to 10 years is a league of around 48 programs, split into two conferences. You’ll have another two leagues below that which will be the remaining P5 programs not making the top 48 plus G5 programs. Three tiers instead of two.

I think NIL and the transfer portal will provide greater competitive balance in time. I think we’re already seeing the initial phases of this. You’ll still have programs that remain in the top 10-15 but those will be better managed programs. Like some teams in the NFL never seem to win much and others seem to remain competitive year after year after year. Better organizations.

If you really wanted more competitive balance, I would reduce roster sizes from 85 to 75. This would spread the talent out more. I have a hard time believing you really need a four deep at every position. Even the best programs have players that never produce much during their time. These players will transfer for better opportunities. I doubt this would ever come to fruition though.
 
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Canedude08 said:
Consolidation was bound to happen, once the money got to where it is now. This isn't a mom and pop thing anymore, and the way to maximize profit is to eliminate competition. It's true in business, it's true in sports as well.
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There has ALWAYS been big time money in broadcasting the game. It's part of the reason why the CFA was set up decades ago before it was pulled apart by ND and then each other conference splintering away.

However, this isn't a for-profit sports league. This is collegiate athletics, not the NFL. Part of my NFL season tickets is not a tax deduction like it is for my Canes tickets. The NFL doesn't get funding from the U.S. and state governments like these universities do. They are not the same animal by a long shot.

And by the way, the NFL isn't contracting teams yet or giving extra power to the AFC East and NFC West either.

A consolidation to the Power 5 would not have upended major rivalries, traditions, etc. that have made this sport great.
 
CaneinBroward said:
Same for me and that's why I'm concerned. I was about 5 years old when Miami's BOT was considering getting rid of football altogether and I've seen this little private school in Coral Gables reach the top of the mountain. Tough to be grassroots when it seems all the power is soon to be housed in 2 conferences.
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I share a lot of your concerns. Particularly in nfl markets (which we obviously are one), I have noted the issue that many fans will prefer the highest level pros to the comparatively weaker 4th division equivalent.

Basically we have to hope there's enough of us who just find more (or, at the very least, enough) excitement at the lower level.

I personally find the nfl boring as **** and nearly devoid of passion (although you'd better believe I'm rooting like **** for the Dolphins this year).
 
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jrock2332 said:
A few things. With an expanded playoff that means more games I don't know how many more but more games. College football is no more with the nil it is the equivalent of triple a in baseball. Only different is some get more nil money than they would from going to a major professional team. The draft status and transfer portal has made some of the bowls meaningless since some important players dont participate.
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It's more like the equivalent of Single A in terms of individual player quality. It's a gulf. And that is going to be a massive challenge for CFB.
 
It’s a trade-off. The regular season games and conference championships won’t mean nearly as much, but the shear amount of teams that will still be in the playoff hunt come late November will be incredible.
 
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Brains said:
I share a lot of your concerns. Particularly in nfl markets (which we obviously are one), I have noted the issue that many fans will prefer the highest level pros to the comparatively weaker 4th division equivalent.

Basically we have to hope there's enough of us who just find more (or, at the very least, enough) excitement at the lower level.

I personally find the nfl boring as **** and nearly devoid of passion (although you'd better believe I'm rooting like **** for the Dolphins this year).
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This is the first year in many seasons I have not watched a single NFL game. I’m a Bucs fan, so it doesn’t help that the Brady era is over, and once again the Bucs are mediocre and will be for a number of seasons.

I am far more entertained by college football than the NFL, even though our Canes have been average at best for the last 20 years.
 
CaneinBroward said:
Going forward, the regular season will not mean nearly as much. Every team will be able to lose a game and it will mean nothing.

There are no adults looking out for the well-being of the sport overall, just individual conferences looking to maximize the benefits ($) for their own cadre of schools and looking to pillage other conferences of schools which will bring in more money to their conference - with no regard to the effects on other conferences (schools), rivalries, traditions, additional travel for supposed "student"-athletes, and other intangible effects that may not necessarily show up on financial statements.

As such, fewer teams will have a legitimate shot at competing for championships as college football is becoming the SEC and Big 10 with scraps left over for everyone else.

At this point, why even bother with calling it "college" football? With such a lack of rules regarding the transfer portal, we're seeing individuals play for 3 or even 4 different teams in their "college" careers. Most schools won't even take credits from other colleges in the last 2 years of a degree - how does that even work? With NIL funds and players seemingly jumping ship if they don't get the number of snaps that they figure they deserve, it's semi-pro ball.

Btw, I'm all for players getting a paid, but there should be a formal framework set up, not the Wild West.
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Overall the game means more, they're just re-allocating the "importance" of two seasons just like the NFL did years ago.

Regular season postures your team for playoffs with loss tolerance flexibility.

The playoffs are 2nd season that isa single elimination tournament.

Teams need to strategize and be built for suceess in both.
 
canester95 said:
Making more $$$ than ever. That’s the goal I’m sure.
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Let's not pretend it isn't just another business. A very profitable one. So is it's "on the decline" for fans, it's not like NCAA cares. People would actually have to start tuning out. And let's face it, we're addicts.
 
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