The MAC decides to boldly go where no other conference has gone.
You either love MACtion or you hate America. Pick a side, comrade.
While you’re deciding, take a look at the vast array of dates this November when Mid-American Conference football games will be showcased: 11/1, 11/2, 11/7, 11/8, 11/9, 11/14, 11/15, 11/16, 11/21 and 11/24.
That seems like a lot of game days, especially since there are only four Saturdays in college football’s most critical month. November contains 30 total days. Ten of them will feature MACtion.
Guess which day of the week won’t have any?
NOVEMBER IN THE MAC, 2017 NOVEMBER DAY MAC GAMES TUESDAY 12 WEDNESDAY 7 THURSDAY 4 FRIDAY 3 SATURDAY 0 Imagine being a season ticket holder and seeing this. Now blink, makes some weird noises and imagine how quickly you just decided to stop being a season ticket holder.
There’s only one reason to do that, and, podnah, you know what that is.
It’s not hard to see that
ESPNthe MACquietly made a financial decision to transform its flagship sport from a live in-person rite of college life into made-for-TV programming for the masses for the sake of margins. The casual smattering of fans in their stands is set to shrink even more, and the atmosphere that makes November college football so great will be replaced with a figurative green screen, along with literal green.
On the bright side, I bet you can pick up a Tuesday night ticket to watch the Zips play for pennies on the dollar. Maybe a penny on the dollar, now that I think about it.
Get The Picture 
“Hey, remember all those things we did to make college basketball less compelling and much more difficult to follow? Let’s do those in football.”
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I can hardly wait for the playoff expansion.
Said it before, I hope UGA wins another title before I turn the game off as I March Madness, the NFL, and NASCAR.
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Ratings were through the roof for the tourney this year. No mention of how the ratings were during the regular season. Never did really matter. Heck, the NBA sits out players during the regular season because it matters so little–and why should it when the playoffs are three months long?
Not tom mention you need at least 1 of 4 players in the world to even have a chance, otherwise you are mired in mediocrity.
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Good on the NCAA for taking advantage of the NBA’s slide.
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Exactly. I believe the NBA’s rating decline almost exactly mirrors CBB’s ratings incline.
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Good for the MAC. They have realized that they can profit out of being a junior varsity level football league. We’ll get used to seeing their teams and players on TV and some stars will emerge.
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I’m with you. I think it’s great. I hope they get $40mil every year.
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The late 1970’s Braves were more of a harbinger than they, and we, knew: a sports team becoming tv show.
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I can see where this is heading: every MAC team will need to play a ‘neutral site’ game in Bristol. Think of the savings to ESPN in production costs!
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Question is, will they be the last?
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I said something in jest a long while back about why they didn’t just play a game and green screen in the crowd…I think it was in response to the bowl games. We are stepping even closer to DDB’s Bristol site game.
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So gtu is in the MAC now?
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I love my some MACtion, so I approve of this move. Obviously, the schools are getting more money from TV than they are from ticket sales, so I can understand it.
However, if I was a fan of these schools and actually went to the games, I’d be pissed.
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Yep, they never show the crowds at the Tuesday games and there is a very good reason. The stadium is empty.
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I fear we’re headed for “The Masters in Prime Time, Under the Lights at Augusta National”, brought to you by Cadillac, Viagra, and Bud Light.
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I know you’re joking, but, no way. The masters will always be the nirvana of sporting events. Cheap food, drinks, pristine facilities, and superior customer service, profits be damned. Do yourself a favor and download the masters app. It’s what the Georgia athletic dept. should model, down to the last drop down menu. Seriously.
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Hogbody, not a chance. If there’s one thing I like about Augusta National, it’s that nobody tells them how to do their business. Those guys will never allow the tradition of The Masters to be bought and sold.
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Having resisted the temptation to crumble and trade their vision to the money gods over the past 4 decades of television explosion, they won’t do it in my time. Now let some of the current 20 & 30 year olds get in charge…..
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I don’t know what your last sentence is supposed to mean. The 20 and 30 year olds are the most cord-cutting, media-cynical, transparency-demanding generation (relatively speaking) in our society. Why not blame the boomers that have whored out every other aspect of society (aside from the Masters) for their own self-gratification, future generations be damned.
I think the Masters is a result of leaders that 1) already had more money than they ever needed, and 2) could pass the Stanford marshmallow experiment. The will not ruin the Masters brand, and by association the prestige of their own Augusta National membership, by auctioning themselves of to the highest bidder or caving to outside pressure.
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Who cares? I have never sat through a entire game of MACtion and don’t plan to start nowZ
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Taco Tuesdays just got a little better!
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If they paint the seats in the MAC stadiums green, they can chromakey in an audience to make it look like people are there watching.
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I have no problem with MAC football as filler..
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+1 The bottom half of D1 should consider Spring football because they will always be a backup to the major programs/conferences.
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They really seem concerned about the student athlete travelling for Tuesday and Wednesday games…..
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As long as Georgia plays on Saturdays, the more college football available on the other nights of the week is a win for me. Maybe it sucks for the MAC kids who aren’t playing in front of full stadiums, but perhaps some of the MAC fans will surprise us on that front. I’m not sure they were selling out as it was, anyway. Besides, MAC coaches get to sell TV exposure and I’m sure a lot of the players are happy to be the focal point of the football viewing TV world for a Tuesday night.
Hell, my only complaint is that ESPN2 isn’t willing to put a MAC game up against Monday Night Football because I’d much rather watch a college game than the NFL.
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