College football is falling apart. williamfleitch writes that it feels like the sport’s existential peril is becoming less existential, and more tangible
Kansas St. vs. Texas A&M in 1998 — the kind of matchup that may not happen in the future. Photo: Stephen Dunn/Getty Images If you’ve somehow been distracted by war, democracy’s peril, or the loss of foundational human rights in America, you might have missed a major offseason development in college football. “Major” might actually be an understatement. Everything about the sport, and possibly about college athletics in general, is on the verge of changing forever.
But haven’t people been saying for years that college football is professional anyway? Wouldn’t this just be bringing that out in the open? This is the downside of claiming, correctly, that college football had essentially become semi-pro football: It eliminates any pretense that it’s not. It gives cover to people who want to jettison anything about the sport that isn’t a reliable revenue driver — you know, like those “traditions” or, “the things that made you love the sport in the first place.” It turns college football into semi-pro football. And that is something extremely different.Say you’re a fan of Kansas State football.
It’s not just Kansas State. How about Duke? Or Wake Forest? Or Stanford? All sorts of schools without a history of college-football success, or who just lack a wide regional television footprint, could all but vanish from the landscape. Put enough of those schools together and you lose a huge amount of the sport’s fanbase. And the fanbases who do make the cut might suddenly find themselves looking around wondering what happened to the game they grew up watching.
College football as we knew it is on its last legs. It will eventually be replaced by an NFL Jr.–type sport, and the TV executives who have long dreamed about this will finally get their wish for a simpler product to package. The people at the right schools will make a lot of money, and the fans at the wrong schools will be left behind.
Canada Latest News, Canada Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
College COVID-19 testing can reduce coronavirus deaths in local communitiesCounties with colleges that did COVID-19 testing fared better against the coronavirus in fall 2020 than towns with colleges that did not test.
Read more »
Steve Sarkisian on Alabama-Texas, Nick Saban ‘ass-chewing,’ Tide transfers, if Colt McCoy didn’t get hurtRead some of the most interesting things Steve Sarkisian, the Texas coach and former Alabama offensive coordinator, said in this interview 🏈.
Read more »
Hawai’i’s Historic Aloha Stadium to Be DemolishedNFL and college football fans around the world will soon bid adieu to Hawai’i’s Aloha Stadium after plans to demolish the historic venue were approved on Thursday
Read more »
What Happens if You Drink Spoiled Milk? Here's What To Do | Well+GoodUnlike cheese, milk does not (I repeat, does not) get better with age. Drinking spoiled milk will likely lead to one thing: food poisoning.
Read more »
Can A Dark Horse Win 2023 College Football National Championship?Can a dark horse team win the 2023 College Football National Championship or do we already know who's taking home the trophy? FrontOffice33 | CFB
Read more »
This anti-abortion group spent decades 'behind the scenes' trying to overturn Roe. They're not done.'Our work has just begun.' Now that Roe v. Wade has been overturned, this anti-abortion group is looking ahead to what's next: getting strict bans enacted in states with legislatures and governors friendly to the cause.
Read more »