College Football Fans Should Boycott Bowl Games

I want to like college football. I really do. I’m a diehard football fan & I can’t get enough of the NFL on Sundays & Mondays. It would be great to add Saturdays to my football weekends. I just can’t do it. NCAA football is immensely popular & I’m really not sure why. How can you actually have a rooting interest for a sport whose championship is determined by a computer? To me, any sport that doesn’t decide their champion on the field (or court) isn’t a sport worth following. Everyone knows that it would be fairly easy to institute a playoff format using the current bowl games. However, in NCAA football, it’s all about money. College football is big business & bowl games generate big revenues. Instead of putting a playoff scenario in place, conferences & universities have chosen to keep that money instead of doing the right thing. Adopting a playoff system is the only way to determine a true champion. In my opinion, the time for change is long overdue.

If the NCAA wants to get it right, all they need to do is turn to NCAA men’s basketball for an example of collegiate sports done in a great format. March Madness is a favorite time of year for sports fans nationwide, whether they like college basketball or not. Nothing beats filling out a bracket and letting the action unfold to see if you are one of the lucky few that really can see the future. In the NCAA men’s basketball tournament, you have the possibility of Cinderella stories such as George Mason from a few years ago. Butler was one half-court shot away from taking down Duke & winning it all in 2010. There is no possibility of that in college football. If you are a fan of a team that happens to lose in the first week of the season, then your shot of winning a national championship is effectively over. Once that happens, what do you have left to root for? Perhaps you can root for a good season. Wow! Doesn’t that sound exciting?

Nearly all the best American sports have a playoff system to determine a winner. The NFL, NBA, MLB, & College Basketball all have managed to get it right. Why College Football can’t figure it out is beyond me. For several years now, fans have been clamoring for a playoff. However, nothing has changed.

Perhaps there is only one way for it all to change. Fans need to start turning their backs on college football. If people really want to see change, they need to make their voices heard & hit the NCAA where it hurts, in their wallet. Perhaps if fans choose not to tune in or attend bowl games it will send a strong message to NCAA leadership that the time for change is now. A significant dip in attendance or, more importantly, television ratings will ensure raised eyebrows from the decision-makers in college football. Unfortunately, that may be the only way college football can be forced to give a genuine champion to their loyal fans. Until we reach that point, you can count me out for sure.


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