Speaking of Nick Saban, he starts off with a valid complaint about what the CFP has done to public perception of college football.
“I’ve always been one that bowl games and playoffs are going to have a tough time coexisting together,” he said. “Bowl games have always been a positive thing for college football players because a lot of people get a lot of self-gratification for having a good season. Maybe you didn’t win a championship or whatever, but you get a chance to go to a good bowl game and have some fun. It’s a really good, positive reinforcement for college football players.
“When we had a two-team playoff, if we made a four team playoff, that’s going to take away from the bowl games and all the people are going to talk about is the playoff. My issue is not with expanding the playoff, it’s the more you expand the playoff, the less important bowl games become. Nobody talks about bowl games now. All they talk about is who’s in the playoffs and who are the four teams. That’s it.”
True dat. It’s his solution that’s a head scratcher.
“You don’t even hear about the other games and all that stuff,” he said. “That’s always been my issue with the playoff is that bowl games sort of get put on the back shelf. If we want to expand the playoffs, that’s OK. I don’t think you can have bowl games and do that as well. I’ve always been one that, if we are going to have playoffs, why don’t we make the bowl games a part of that.”
Everybody gets a playoff berth! Seriously, what are there, over thirty bowl games? So Saban is proposing that the playoffs go to 64 or so teams? That’s ESPN’s wet dream. Not sure it’s mine, though. Or that it solves the real problem Saban acknowledges.
Get The Picture 
At least Saban is talking about the problem. The genie is out of the bottle and there is no way to put her back. Greed has destroyed what used to be an exciting end to the season.
LikeLiked by 1 person
If you’re like me and you stopped caring about bowl games more than a decade ago the post season got more exciting. YMMV.
LikeLike
I agree. I think pulling the bowl games into the mix might help some but not sure you can put that genie back. I used to be a playoff proponent but I think it’s ruined the regional appeal of the sport and is turning CFB into NFL-Lite.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I guess no one is going to have the conversation with Saban about what “self-gratification” is.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Saban ain’t got time for any bowl game shit talk coming from that Alabamia head coach….
LikeLike
I’m just saying the Miriam-Webster definition of self-gratification is “the act of pleasing oneself or of satisfying one’s desires, especially the satisfying of one’s own sexual urges.”
Given how frequently Saban uses that term, I would pay good money to have someone from Alabama’s PR department explain that to him and be present for it.
LikeLike
“Damn, Brother! I don’t believe I’da told that!”
LikeLike
He wasn’t saying that every bowl would be a tournament game, was he?
LikeLike
If he’s not saying that, he’s saying get rid of the ones that aren’t included in an expanded CFP. And I don’t think that’s what he means, given his other comment.
LikeLike
When your SEC fan base complains about a Sugar Bowl berth at the end of the season, you have announced the doom of the bowl season. If you’re in a NY6 game that isn’t a semifinal, the games have become meaningless.
The playoff has is sucking all of the oxygen out off the room. Another round of expansion (especially with the games on campus) will drive a final stake in the bowl system.
LikeLiked by 5 people
I loved the days of being excited about the Sugar Bowl.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Nobody is keeping fans from being excited about it now. Don’t let ESPN influence everything.
LikeLike
Right here on this blog posted today is a page that says “give us the most prestigious championship in the country – SEC”
There are now commenters here that say they could care less about that and want to be in the playoffs. And Alabama is really good on that one.
LikeLike
Yeah. I was so excited in 2002 to be playing the Sugar Bowl (though disappointed that we weren’t competing for the natty with that horrid loss to UF). Going to NOLA for New Year’s Eve. Now I wouldn’t even think about going. Hard to believe.
LikeLike
IDK, anybody else watching less bowls games since the playoffs expanded?
I watch the same amount, which varies based on shitty conference/bowl agreements. Want more bowl watchers, scrap the tie-ins and put together match-ups people are interested in watching. Let more top AAC/C-USA/Mountain-West/Sunbelt teams try to pick-off middle of the pack P5s.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’d love it if they ended the tie-ins. I always hated those. That would certainly juice up the interest a bit, at least for a few years.
LikeLike
I think the demise of the bowls began started a while back. The conference tie ins along with the expansion of the numbers cheapened them and limit the number of really good matchups. It his hard to bet excited to watch you 9-3 team go up against a 6-6 team because of bowl tie ins and the fact they have to take team from a certain conference. Get rid of the tie ins and cut the numbers and you could still have some really good games outside of the playoffs. Do you think a TAMU-Texas game outside of the playoffs would draw interest. How about (if they had a good year) Nebraska-Oklahoma, Michigan-ND. Who cares about Kansas State vs Toledo?
LikeLiked by 3 people
Yes, tie ins are horrible. Also, the Rose Bowl and its self importance is horrible. And way too many bowls – i have no idea how they make money with 20k fans in a 75k arena on a wednesday afternoon work day.
LikeLike
I’ve always thought an expanded playoff, factored into the current bowl structure, would be a great system for CFB. Some of the bowls would have to agree to be played on earlier dates, but they might like that, if they become part of the playoff.
LikeLike
The Rose Bowl lives in its own vacuum.
LikeLike
Why would he want to ruin the regular season and create more obstacles for Bama winning championships?
LikeLiked by 1 person
I still watch as many bowl games as I can bc I have a fully diagnosed CFB obsession/sickness. But I do not disagree with the overall sentiment that the CFP hyper focus draws way too much water and cannibalizes the sport.
That being said, I agreed with the win total waiver this year and would be for keeping that in place in the future bowl games.
But ironically, I watched less bowl action this year than any in the last 10 years easily. I can’t explain it. Pandemic? Teams having to opt out? Teams that really sucked getting invited to a bowl game (looking at you Columbia)? Nobody would play friggin Army? Priority shift? I dunno. Time to go back to the therapist and sort this one out I guess. . .
LikeLiked by 2 people
At this point, bowls have lost a lot of luster. I don’t think it’ll get better. I believe the only way to have more “meaningful” games after the regular season is expanding playoff to give some bowls new life. As a Georgia fan I kind of like it because I can think of many years we would have been in on an eight team playoff. I mean, if we can’t quite be elite at least we can be included when the standard is “almost elite”!!
The problem is that if you go much further you start making the season too long for college players. Will that result in shortening the season and/or eliminating league championships. I would really hate to lose the SEC championship game.
LikeLike