WoolyBully

Do you think college football was always this tough? By that I mean, the relentless pursuit of playing time. I think there used to be guys - and maybe, to a degree - there still are, who make the team and never see playing time over the course of their career. Yeah, you're good. Just not that good. And with every summer comes a new kid that the coaches believe has more talent than you. Maybe I never paid that level of attention before, or maybe it happened and just wasn't as publicized to the degree capable via the interwebs. But I s'pose, if it's all perfectly legal and acceptable, why not continue to try to put together a substantive highlight reel? There was a Netflix series, some years back, called QB1 which followed a collection of top-tier high school QB's through their senior years. It was good back story material as we watched them in college, and their subsequent transfers before making it to the NFL. Now it seems like an additional form of entertainment is tuning in to other games to see how so-and-so is fairing post transfer.

Lemme axe you a quextion...outside of a peninsular interest, do you think anyone buys the "National Championship" marketing schtick? The reason I ask is, in discussions within my sphere of CFB amigos, UCF being undefeated doesn't enter the conversation. Just like Tulane in the late twentieth century...yeah, undefeated, but ...

The property is too valuable to bypass. This is all about business.

C'mon...I think an undefeated Tulane, guided by our close personal friend Shaun King, should be awarded a National Championship as well. I mean, since we're just handing them in an Oprahesque fashion "You get a championship, and you get a championship, and you get a championship..."

But the question on America's mind is: does this constitute news? Recent Quinnipiac polling and Nielsen ratings analysis indicates that this is, in fact, not news. Now, back to Yolanda Enchilada in the studio, with today's weather.

Nope.

@Ricky the Bull @Friscobull, yeah, in days gone by Chamberlain was a pretty good school; had lot of Carrollwood kids.

right down the street from where the Mrs. used to teach.

Yes, there is that.

You mean me? It's all about 'are you a college football fan' versus the 'I'm a USF football fan...exclusively'. I'm in front of the TV for about twelve hours per Saturday in the fall. There's some great football being played (entertainment value) almost every weekend. I was a NCSU / FSU fan long before USF showed up.

Yeah, it's feasible that U of SF is the next great G5 team. Who else is in the running for that moniker? UTSA?

Whaddya mean? Why does an athlete owe any sort of "loyalty" to fans? You mean, forego a revenue opportunity for some altruistic reason? Or were you saying that the NCAA/universities have no loyalty to fans? Fans are a revenue stream. It's a business relationship. Wanna see play at the highest level? It's gonna cost. And you - the fan - gets to demonstrate your loyalty to the team by continued active participation in the funding process. That's just how it works. We speak of fans being 'loyal' to the team, through thick and thin, winning and losing. I don't think I've ever heard of a team / athlete being 'loyal' to their fans as this might be a one-way street. "I'm loyal to the city and fans, right up to the point where my next contract gets signed. Know a good moving company?"

I'd be willing to slide some chips on that coming to fruition.

Various corporations, as well as the United States federal government, have bribed me to show up and sling code for them - for decades. The bribes were deposited into various types of accounts (checking, savings, investment). Universities have been bribing young men and women to sweat profusely where the compensation used to be just books, bed and bread (and dare I say the occasional cash in an envelope, job for our brother, car from the local dealership). It will now include folding green presented in public. It's very difficult for me to get amped up and bent out of shape by the idea of us (the earthlings) not maximizing the return on our opportunities, wherever they may be. Is it less than optimal that some of us () are not able to bribe the better athletes to entertain us? Do we cling to the myth of the 'level playing field' or 'wanting it to be fair'*? Sure, subjectively speaking. But it is sort of like the divide, have versus have-not, that we see everywhere else. I'm not saying there's anything wrong with complaining about how the machine runs, but there is a point where acceptance ... * - I never wanted fair fights. I always wanted to be the bigger, faster, stronger one - 'cause that always seemed to work out well.

For some reason, I get a "Bullspen can't handle this request...try later" sort of message. Hence the double entry for this topic. Feel free to kill one of these threads. Thanks in advance, DR

"Jerry Richardson Stadium was built in 2012, just before Charlotte's inaugural football season in 2013. Its current capacity is just north of 15,000. The first phase of construction will increase the total capacity to 18,170, with a second phase of construction to come in the future. Other phase one additions to the stadium will include a new tower with press box and premium seating, a number of suites, club-level seating, a team dining area, and more. " https://athlonsports.com/college-football/charlotte-49ers-jerry-richardson-college-football-stadium-approved-for-expansion

Why? Why does the 98-pound weakling who can't deadlift twenty-five pounds need protection? If you can't keep up with the pack, maybe you should find some other autumn afternoon activity to fill the hours. I hear pickleball is getting really popular and the start-up costs are minimal. This is a business run by the haves to the detriment of the have-nots. Today would be a great day to embrace it.

"... bringing college hoops fans even more compelling storylines during the most exciting time on the college basketball calendar." And let's be honest. It gives us even more opportunities to gamble, which is what sports is all about anyway. What, exactly is a 'compelling storyline' and what does that have to do with play on the court? Are we trying to be the college rendition of the Pro Bowl (which thankfully is now deceased)? The NCAA tournament works. It's phenomenal. Anything else is also ran (yes, the NIT is also ran). So let's try to copy it in hopes that someone watches, and we can sell commercial airtime. Like so much else in life that's really great, eventually - true - you reach a point where you've had your fill. Don't be the Mister Creasote of sports. 'It's only wafer thin!'

Yeah, if you're tallying upsets, I wouldn't peel off a lot of layers of the onion. That was a down year (7-6) for FSU, but again - a win is a win, regardless. Same with three three-point wins over Auburn & Notre Dame. Not resounding wins, but they are wins, nonetheless.

On the plus side, once March Madness expands to 96 teams, we're done with the 'everybody gets a trophy' NIT which gets rid of the 'travel logistics, portal considerations' line of thinking. What we could do, if we really wanted to, is slam the portal shut until the clock ticks zero on all post-season play. Just something to ponder as there is always room for improvement.

"cited travel logistics, injuries and the uncertainty of players potentially entering the transfer portal as reasons for informing the NIT selection committee Sunday of the school's decision to not be considered. " So, IIRC every day during the season schools are faced with travel logistics, injuries and the risk of a player moving on. But when it's tournament time, I guess the line of thinking is if we get an invite - but we stand no chance of being very competitive (portal absenteeism) - we should just chill 'bout the dorms. Why resign? C'mon...say it!

Yep, that's kind of how I see it shaking out in the long run. USF: I planned to go to the B1G or SEC after the Big East, but it looks like my folks won't have enough money to put me through NIL and all that. SEC : Well, the world needs ditch diggers, too. B1G: [to USF] Nice try

If this is going to be a thing going forward, the visiting team and coaches need to clear the court before getting mobbed. As I understand it, the SEC doesn't put up with this, but the ACC doesn't have any rules/regulations/threats-of-litigation for such. It's all fun and games until someone loses a limb.