College Football

Before you get too excited, maybe check the calendar (and this is the Daily Mail)... but the rendering has me too hyped so I'm going to pretend this is happening

Was lurking a bit at the old place, and there was a thread asking who had never bet on CFB*, but the discussion went more into how legalized sports betting has affected fans' engagement with college football. I am in a weird place, as I can't come up with a lot of good reasons to specifically ban it when so many other forms of gambling are legal. It can also of course be done to a healthy degree, and even if someone is enthusiastic and engages with the sport in a gambling-centered way, who am I to say that's "wrong"?

That said, I do fucking hate it at a personal level when people care more about the lines and the spreads or how their fantasy roster is doing in contrast to the rivalries and the stories and the analysis as a competition. I feel like these people, and particularly the media catering to them, are nudging team sports closer to the liminal space currently occupied by boxing and horse racing, where there is a hardcore base dedicated to the sports themselves, but the broad appeal is for gamblers and the occasional looky-loo spectacle. I can't argue for any particular measure to stop it, but I sure don't have to like it.

So, for those of us still hanging around in the very stupid offseason we now have with no real transfer restrictions and plenty of NIL to push players to leverage that fact, how has the explosion of sports betting affected your relationship with CFB?

(* - One $10 bet, well before 2022, on TCU to win the natty while in Vegas for other reasons, and one very boring season of buy-in fantasy football, though now that I type it, I guess that was betting on the NFL)

If the ACC falls apart, I don't want any of em

Just more proof that the cfp was a bad idea. None of the options outlined here seem fair to me (or productive). Let's just go back to regional rivalries y'all

Just because it’s the offseason, doesn’t mean college football discussions need to stop. What matchup are you most looking forward to this year?

For me, as a Canes fan (yes, depressing, I know), I’m looking forward to the August 31, 2024 matchup against the Florida Gators.

Interesting insight into how NIL and free transfers have combined (and only the combination could have done it) to wreak havoc on the G5, and to some extent up and down the chain. Seems the biggest schools are even cobbling together NIL packages for "walk-ons" that mysteriously cover the cost of attendance.

“They’ve got to make up what a scholarship covers. I get it. It’s smart,” Chadwell said. “But the NCAA needs to create a rule requiring players to sit out a year if they are not on full academic scholarship.”

But as always, this is where they lose me. Limiting player movement without compensation is never the answer. Either you're a student and this an extracurricular and anything you do or anywhere you go between seasons is your own goddamn business (even you Trevor fucking Etienne, even you, traitor), or you deserve material consideration for limiting your own mobility during your prime developmental years and/or your last chance to play a game you love competitively.

I think the restructuring is going to take a while yet, but moves like this probably do signal the end of the beginning.

I haven't looked yet, but I wonder if it would be possible to find news stories and opinion pieces for other watershed moments, like when the Ivies formally dropped athletic scholarships or when the D1-A/D1-AA split happened. There was a great Texas Monthly article from the 70s where UT was already moaning about the rest of the SWC, and while it focused on gameday revenue, it looks prescient in hindsight.

NCAA looks like they may have overplayed their hand. While I've been done with the NCAA for a while, this may truly be the beginning of the end.

Shocked, shocked I tell you. Nusm called it

It's an understandably emotional time for the college football as we lay to rest another season. Michigan wears the crown for the first time since 1997, Alab...

1. Michigan
2. Washington
3. Texas
4. Georgia (+2)
5. Alabama
6. (T-6) Oregon (+2)
7. (T-6) Florida State (-2)
8. Missouri (+1)
9. Ole Miss (+2)
10. Ohio State (-3)
11. Arizona (+3)
12. LSU (+1)
13. Penn State (-3)
14. Notre Dame (+1)
15. oklahoma (-3)
16. Oklahoma State (+6)
17. Tennessee (+8)
18. Kansas State (new)
19. Louisville (-3)
20. Clemson (new)
21. North Carolina State (-2)
22. SMU (-5)
23. Kansas (new)
24. Iowa (-4)
25. Liberty (-7)

Others receiving votes: Oregon State, West Virginia, Tulane, JMU, USC, Memphis, Utah, Troy, Air Force, Toledo, Duke, Kentucky, UCLA, Miami (OH), UTSA, Wyoming, Northwestern, Ohio

Dropped out: Oregon State, Tulane, JMU

Well that was an absolute banger of a season. Upsets, playoff controversy, heartbreak, ecstasy and whatever the hell CU was doing. This poll will likely stay open for a week or two to let people who may not visit a cfb community as much in the postseason still have a chance to submit a ballot. It has been an absolute pleasure hanging out with this tiny community, and hopefully it continues to grow. Speaking of community, shout out to @[email protected], who very nearly predicted the final score of the NC game with a prediction of 35-17, you can almost pick my lottery numbers anytime.

Bob and Steve from the Big Ten Show are back to gloat as their conference demonstrates that it is clearly better than the SEC in all facets of the game.

No poll this week, I'll put up a post season poll after the game (it'll probably be up for a week or two to give people a chance to submit a ballot). In the meantime guess the score for next week's game! We don't have any awards to give, but I'll give the closest score a shout out or something.

Mizzou coach Eli Drinkwitz and Ohio State coach Ryan Day were on the same team when discussing potential changes to college football's busiest month.