The beginning of the end of CFB as we know it

[MDUte]

Hopefully Utah finds a way to be included!

Sources: The SEC and Big Ten are set to announce that they are setting up an advisory committee. It’s expected to look at the entire college sports landscape and solutions within it.

— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) February 2, 2024

[EagleMountainUte]

How I imagine the meet up is:

NSFW YouTube link

[Ghost of the HEB]

Gotta love the constant reminders that we are no longer on the Cool Kids’ lunch table.

[chinngiskhaan]

Were we ever?

[Ghost of the HEB]

Absolutely. Pac-12 was leading the way in revenue in the early 2010s. There’s a reason Texas and Oklahoma almost made the jump.

[Central Coast Ute]

We’ve all known it was coming. Since USC and UCLA left, i thought it would be sooner rather than later, even considering GOR. Someone posted a link a few weeks ago where the Utah State churchislature was drafting legislation that would prevent the Utes from being a part of it, even if they were invited. It didn’t explicitly say that, but the Utes would not be able to compete if it is illegal for the players to be employees in that state.

[EagleMountainUte]

I love how these cuck legislatures were fine with the Status quo before that.
I am so sick of government on all levels. There are SOOOO many other problems that need attention. Wasting time on this is quite literally the last thing that needs to be looked at.

[Central Coast Ute]

I’m with you 100%, Eagle. If they’re going to pass any legislation regarding college athletics, it needs to benefit state schools, especially the flagship program. It should not be to hamstring them because they feel slighted that TSPP will be left out.

[MDUte]

In an interview with @YahooSports, SEC & Big Ten commissioners, for the first time, express doubts in their commitment to the CFP future if leaders can’t “get right” issues.

CFP meeting in Dallas Monday-Tuesday for key talks on future format & rev-share.https://t.co/WjZP7SLkF9

— Ross Dellenger (@RossDellenger) February 5, 2024

SEC and B1G express doubts on future CFP format

[Utah]

Don’t be sick of government. Be sick of right wing government that wants to legislate every little thing you do. Those are the real f**kers. Stop voting for Republicans, especially mormon republicans. These are the people doing these things.

[EagleMountainUte]

Oh my tribalism bro. There is quite literally not a difference. Stop watching whatever mainstream source. Open your eyes, touch grass and realize that no political party likes you.

[Rick]

What I see coming is an NFL-like structure with their being two conferences with east, north, south and west divisions. The playoff structure would be almost identical to the NFL with a big championship at the end of the two best of the best. I am pretty sure Kyle has some inside knowledge of where this is going which explains why he has been very consistent in saying we will probably be back with schools like USC, UCLA, etc. that all bolted for the Big 10.

[MDUte]

Agreed. Best case scenario, the top brands in both the SEC/B1G decide to fold up their respective conferences in order to shed the bottom brands they’re currently subsidizing and form a new Super League. And then this makes room to add the best remaining brands from the ACC/B12 to get to a 40 team league with 4 10 team divisions.

Worst case scenario, the SEC/B1G break away from the rest of CFB to form a new Top tier and only add 6 more teams to get to 40. Utah is on the fringe in this scenario and not likely to be included. Would need both leagues to expand to a total of 48 teams for Utah to likely be included.

[stbone]

Honestly, I don’t know if I want Utah to be part of that super league. College football was more fun 10 years ago, and there is a chance that teams that get left out will revert back to something closer to what we had.

[Utah]

I agree. I’m ok with Utah being left out and going back and reforming the PAC conference with western teams and creating a collegiate playoff. No need to keep up with the Joneses. Let’s go back to college football.

[MDUte]

Wow, I’m definitely not ok if Utah gets left out. To finally have made it to the big boy table and compete with the best teams in CFB has been nirvana IMO. To lose that and go back to how things were in the Mountain West and WAC days would be beyond depressing. My interest and level of fandom would drop off significantly if that were the case.

[stbone]

I can understand that perspective, but why don’t you just watch the NFL?

By choosing to watch college, you are accepting that you will be watching lower-quality football than you could be watching. But, some of the reasons for making that choice are the traditions, the excitement of watching players develop, and the excitement that, frankly, comes from lower-quality play (e.g., crazy mistakes that change the game).

The super-league will almost certainly lose some of these hallmarks of college ball, and we will be left with a lower-quality professional league. This super-league will, in fact, be the relegated pro-league where you can enjoy sub-par play without the traditions and community that made college football great.

Honestly, having JJ leave was a huge kick in the guts that will forever impact my enjoyment of college football similar to how baseball was ruined (and won’t ever recover) by the ’94 strike. It isn’t that I think JJ is a great talent that we need (I think he is the worst “star” running back we’ve had in 10 years), but it is because if a player like JJ leaves, there is no longer any meaningful tie between team and player. At this point, CFB has given us mercenary teams with little tie to the community. The super league promises even more of the same. If I wanted to watch great football, I would watch the NFL. I watch Utah because I love watching the players develop and improve and watching the team grow.

[MDUte]

I much prefer CFB’s product to the NFL. And for the reasons you listed…ie traditions, the players/kids, connection to my alma mater. I realize the NFL is the superior product in terms of talent but I actually prefer the mistakes and imperfections that come along with kids and lower level talent playing the game of football. For me it brings along with it even more unpredictability, intrigue, and excitement.

Mostly though, I love the University of Utah. I don’t have a team I’m fanatic about aside from the Utes. And people can say that a Super League will leave behind the majority of fans and most will just end up moving their interest and viewership to the NFL. But that’s just sour grapes talking. The networks already have the data and it shows/proves that the overwhelming majority of CFB fans tune in to watch the top brands play. And it’s not even close. All the fans claiming to not watch once their team is no longer a part of the Top tier doesn’t threaten the viewership/ratings the networks know they are going to get from consolidating the top brands. Again, they have the data to support this, it’s not speculation.

So back to your original question. It doesn’t excite me the same way to see Utah win a D2 championship. I want, more than anything, to see Utah one day win a real national championship before I die. And for me, it’s just not the same if it’s not at the highest level of CFB. Prior to USC/UCLA announcing they were leaving to the B1G and kicking off this whole new round of realignment…Utah was on a pathway/trajectory that was heading towards that goal each and every year. And the thrill of climbing the mountain top was addictive. But where things stand currently, it’s as if we got sent back down to base camp with uncertainty around whether we’ll ever be allowed to get back on the mountain. And that is extremely frustrating and deflating. All any of us can really do is just hope that what Whitt has been alluding to the past year and 1/2 is more than speculation on his part….that he’s been privy to insider info validating not only where things are headed but that Utah is going to be included.

[stbone]

I 100% agree with most of what you said. I am still mourning the PAC12 because of the trajectory that Utah was on. Given another 5-10 years in the PAC, and I think we would have solidified ourselves as the next Oregon (a non-blue blood school working into the top tier of teams).

IF the super league drastically cuts back on the portal and such, then I would love to be included. If being in the super league means that we are running out a completely new team every year, I would rather compete for a tier two championship and watch players develop.

[utefansince79]

Getting left out would feel somewhat like fans feel when their soccer team is relegated to a lower division. And unlike those leagues, there could be little chance to win our way back up to the top flight.

[Author]

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