As much as I hate to say it, with players opting out, Bowl games are not going to be something to look forward to like they used to be
- Thread starter Uncle Adolph
- Start date
Regardless of the game, the extra month of practice is very beneficial to any program getting to play in a bowl. Also a good chance for some young guys to play in a game.
But I definitely agree that the shine of playing in a bowl game wasn’t what it used to be.
But I definitely agree that the shine of playing in a bowl game wasn’t what it used to be.
Once the playoffs expand to 12 teams, any bowl games outside the playoff itself will have even less meaning than they do now. At least currently you still have some non-playoff bowls that have some prestige to them because they feature top 10 teams that weren't quite good enough to reach the 4 team playoff. When the playoffs go to 12 teams, anyone worth a damn will be included. Those on the outside will be the have-nots that nobody gives a damn about. Interest in these games will completely bottom out.
It all depends on the season and the players.
2018 had plenty of players that could and according to some people should have set out but they all played and it was great.
Wandale very well could have sat out his bowl game but chose not to and it was also awesome.
Last year Levis sits out and Rodriguez and there was zero chance Kentucky was winning.
Without a serviceable backup qb bowl games are a waste for a lot of fans.
I wish they would wait until they find out who is going to play in the games and then award the bowls.
Uk should have been playing a MAC team last year.
2018 had plenty of players that could and according to some people should have set out but they all played and it was great.
Wandale very well could have sat out his bowl game but chose not to and it was also awesome.
Last year Levis sits out and Rodriguez and there was zero chance Kentucky was winning.
Without a serviceable backup qb bowl games are a waste for a lot of fans.
I wish they would wait until they find out who is going to play in the games and then award the bowls.
Uk should have been playing a MAC team last year.
If you are someone that likes to travel to bowl games, I think they are still worthwhile. I've always enjoyed a trip to watch a football game and enjoy the atmosphere of another city, especially when it is somewhere warm. If you are someone that isn't willing or able to travel to bowl games, I can see why you would consider it meaningless. I've always looked at bowl games like the SEC tournament. A fun trip and time, but it really doesn't change much if we lose. However, it is tons of fun when we win.
Yeah, I wonder how much the 12 team playoff will do as far as killing interest. Players opting out as well...doesn't look good for bowl futures. But as long as UK is playing, Im watching.
It’s a bummer the starters aren’t playing, but it’s still football. I’ll watch. And it’s cool to see younger guys that we may see next year.
Like last year, it could prove to be a real bummer, if no one plays well at the positions being vacated by seniors.
Still, there’s a chance someone surprises us and gives us a glimpse of the future.
I’ll be there, either way.
We had no chance of winning last year, but I had fun with a few thousand UK fans chanting “Defense, Defense,” as the clock ran down. Our defense played very well in Nashville.
Still, there’s a chance someone surprises us and gives us a glimpse of the future.
I’ll be there, either way.
We had no chance of winning last year, but I had fun with a few thousand UK fans chanting “Defense, Defense,” as the clock ran down. Our defense played very well in Nashville.
Bowl games use to be a reward for having a good season, winning 7 games in a 10 game season wasn't a sure bowl season. Now we have years with not enough bowl eligible teams to fill all the slots and teams with 5 wins sometimes get to go to a bowl. There is no sense of accomplishment going to a bowl because there are 41 bowls. Cut that back to 15 or so when getting to a bowl is actually an accomplishment and maybe kids will want to play in them. At least it will mean less disappointed fanbases because their stars decide to sit out.
If the players don't care enough to play, then I am not traveling or buying tickets. I will watch on TV but spend my money on a golf trip or something else, rather than watch a skeleton crew go scrimmage somewhere
I think they will still be watched with solid ratings due to the college football factor of ratings if nothing else.
They have always been glorified exhibitions to an extent anyways with randomness of who plays and what team gives a crap about being n said bowl.
Maybe once the playoff expands enough UK can make it sometimes as well. I'd rather make the playoff and lose than win the who gives a crap bowl every season.
They have always been glorified exhibitions to an extent anyways with randomness of who plays and what team gives a crap about being n said bowl.
Maybe once the playoff expands enough UK can make it sometimes as well. I'd rather make the playoff and lose than win the who gives a crap bowl every season.
Like most , certainly not all, I'm still somewhat of a working guy , I can see retirement but not there yet , and have limited time off , I travel lots of other places and in my list of priorities going to a bowl like the one last year just isnt worth my resources . Im glad people can go back the Cats, I just cant squeeze it in .
How did that extra month of practice last year do for UK this season? That is the most overrated cliche' in college football.
Especially when half of the UK players who saw action in Nashville barely saw the field in 2023, e.g., Sheron, McLain, et al, it was a blue white game with a real opponent. And FWIW, most of Iowa's stars, Campbell, and the other two draft picks, did play in the game, and two were first round draft choices, so hard to see how that hurt their draft stock.
If Kentucky is going to have 2 or 3 of it's star players opt out, I would rather not go to a bowl game if it's going to look like the Iowa game last year. we looked terrible weren't very competitive and lost. I have been to 4 or 5 Kentucky bowl games and loved it, but after last year and the way it went down, I won't be going to anymore if we can't have our best players playing.
This is sadly the future of bowl games. The team you saw all year is not the team you'll see at the bowl game.
You go for the trip and you have to view the game as basically an exhibition for the next season.
The absolute worst is when your exhibition squad faces a team that all shows up ready to win ala Iowa last year.
Bowl games lost any significance a long time ago. They just kept expanding them and watering down their significance until now every team can play in a bowl. There also used to be a tradition. The Peach Bowl was played on New Year's Eve and the rest were played on New Year's Day. Now it has become a blatant money grab to put horrible games on every day of the week between now and sometime in mid-January to help fill in the schedule for all the ESPN networks.
To emphasize how incredibly stupid the bowl season has become, they added a new bowl this season. The Pop-Tart bowl. And the main emphasis of this game isn't the match-up between two college football teams. Instead, what everyone is talking about is that the winning team gets to eat the Mascot.
The expanded college football playoff can't get here fast enough. And the bowl games can all just fade away as far as I am concerned. I have no interest in watching the 8th Best Sunbelt Team take on the 9th best Mountain West Team in the Pez Dispenser Bowl on some random Tuesday afternoon in December.
To emphasize how incredibly stupid the bowl season has become, they added a new bowl this season. The Pop-Tart bowl. And the main emphasis of this game isn't the match-up between two college football teams. Instead, what everyone is talking about is that the winning team gets to eat the Mascot.
The expanded college football playoff can't get here fast enough. And the bowl games can all just fade away as far as I am concerned. I have no interest in watching the 8th Best Sunbelt Team take on the 9th best Mountain West Team in the Pez Dispenser Bowl on some random Tuesday afternoon in December.
This is a pet peeve of mine.
We should have had playoffs long before now, but of course the people behind the bowls fought them tooth and nail. They knew the playoff system would eventually kill all but the best bowls and now we're watching that happen first hand.
The 3-5/4-4 Kentucky records in SEC play in all likelihood won't interest the playoff committee. With Texas and Oklahoma coming on board and with possibly losing Vanderbilt and Mississippi State as permanent fixtures on our schedule...we could have a signature season by our standards, and still miss the playoffs. Now will some of our base still want to travel to Memphis, Nashville, or Birmingham midwinter to watch our scrubs play against someone else's scrubs in a meaningless consolation game? Maybe...but I just don't see it.
We should have had playoffs long before now, but of course the people behind the bowls fought them tooth and nail. They knew the playoff system would eventually kill all but the best bowls and now we're watching that happen first hand.
The 3-5/4-4 Kentucky records in SEC play in all likelihood won't interest the playoff committee. With Texas and Oklahoma coming on board and with possibly losing Vanderbilt and Mississippi State as permanent fixtures on our schedule...we could have a signature season by our standards, and still miss the playoffs. Now will some of our base still want to travel to Memphis, Nashville, or Birmingham midwinter to watch our scrubs play against someone else's scrubs in a meaningless consolation game? Maybe...but I just don't see it.
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I'm not sure but the 12-team playoff will eat up 10 bowl games, yes, or will some of the playoff games be held at a home venue for one of the participants? Can't wait to sit 3.5 hours in January watching OSU or MI playing #10 in frigid weather. Outside the playoff teams, maybe 4-5 additional bowls will be able to pit top 25 teams against each other and make a decent matchup. I can't see the majority of bowl games surviving very long after the playoffs expand. Traveling to see your 6-6 or 7-5 team play another 6-6 or 7-5 team doesn't seem like much of a draw. (I know TV money funds all of these bowls but many teams/schools lose money on the minor bowls). Throw in some of the better players opting out and what are you left with? There are plenty of meaningless bowl games now. Surely the number of bowl games will decrease significantly over time. DII has playoffs but no other postseason games - that may be the future of DI CFB. What's the point in a postseason game where several of the players responsible for the team's success decide to skip it?
Bowl season has expanded to what it is because TV, specifically sports TV expanded.
"There used to only be 4-5 bowls..." yeah there use to be about 4-5 channels too.
Also, football has blown up in popularity and conveniently for advertisers, sponsors, even fans the college football post season lines up perfectly with the holiday season. The sweet spot after baseball plays offs and before basketball season starts to matter.
There was/is a market there for media, sponsors, big marketing etc. to sell some stuff and make some money.
Someone said "hmmmmm got a lot of people home for the holidays, not doing anything, sitting around...they're not all fans of the 6-8 same teams from the 2-3 same conferences, playing in the same Rose, Sugar, Cotton, Peach, Orange bowls..."
Lot of blue-collar working-class men, and old retired grandpas who need a distraction from the clucking women, loud kids, and annoying ass in laws..
Boom...an entire industry is born...actually kind of genius.
Then from an athletic program and conference perspective it's a windfall of money.
Would agree we need an expanded play off. I just don't know if 8-12 teams is going to satiate the appetite...for fans or all the marketing, sponsors, big adverts, fans, etc...
Also, even with a 20 team play off, I still think there's a place and argument for the other bowls. Maybe, when the schedule expands which is inevitable, you move "Bowl Season" to August. Basketball has all the early season invitationals and classics...I think CFB needs the same thing. Again, sweet spot late summer nothing is going on...need some entertainment.
"There used to only be 4-5 bowls..." yeah there use to be about 4-5 channels too.
Also, football has blown up in popularity and conveniently for advertisers, sponsors, even fans the college football post season lines up perfectly with the holiday season. The sweet spot after baseball plays offs and before basketball season starts to matter.
There was/is a market there for media, sponsors, big marketing etc. to sell some stuff and make some money.
Someone said "hmmmmm got a lot of people home for the holidays, not doing anything, sitting around...they're not all fans of the 6-8 same teams from the 2-3 same conferences, playing in the same Rose, Sugar, Cotton, Peach, Orange bowls..."
Lot of blue-collar working-class men, and old retired grandpas who need a distraction from the clucking women, loud kids, and annoying ass in laws..
Boom...an entire industry is born...actually kind of genius.
Then from an athletic program and conference perspective it's a windfall of money.
Would agree we need an expanded play off. I just don't know if 8-12 teams is going to satiate the appetite...for fans or all the marketing, sponsors, big adverts, fans, etc...
Also, even with a 20 team play off, I still think there's a place and argument for the other bowls. Maybe, when the schedule expands which is inevitable, you move "Bowl Season" to August. Basketball has all the early season invitationals and classics...I think CFB needs the same thing. Again, sweet spot late summer nothing is going on...need some entertainment.
UK isn't making the playoffs anytime soon, especially w/ the new slate. The 6-8 win seasons are the expectation for some reason and deemed to be a "success" and worthy of contract extensions and more money. Accepting mediocrity is the standard anymore.
A "bowl game" used to mean something...no longer, especially w/ the lower standard for qualifying for one of the 100 games, and now that the players feel they exhausted their allegiance at the end of the regular season. Oh yea!!....another bowl game!! Never mind you just had another losing SEC season. Sheesh.
A "bowl game" used to mean something...no longer, especially w/ the lower standard for qualifying for one of the 100 games, and now that the players feel they exhausted their allegiance at the end of the regular season. Oh yea!!....another bowl game!! Never mind you just had another losing SEC season. Sheesh.
Sports gambling is 85% of the reason why people still watch bowl games. Most of the reason why people even watch sports these days.
It really is, carryover 9 months out is miminal if any but people want to believe that but either way it isn't a big deal.
The first round games are held at the stadium of choice by the better seeded team. Those will not have a bowl game name attached to them. That will start in the next round. The Fiesta, Peach, Rose, Sugar, Cotton and Orange bowls will remain the bowls that are used for these games.
Totally agree. 3 weeks of practice in December has a minimal (if any) impact on the following season that is 9 months away.
It may be some ugly football but the advantage is the extra 4-5 weeks of practice.
You think those extra 15 practices are going to mean much in 9 months? I rather have the 3 week head start on winter conditioning. Retention over 9 months is very little
I'm not a D1 coach but I do know I have heard coaches mention how valuable it is multiple times over the years. Of course you root for UGA who always goes to a bowl but for UK, when we didn't always go to a bowl, the various coaches would mention how much the extra practice helps. I'm just going by what they said but it makes sense that the extra repetitions and coaching they get over the next 4 weeks would be better than just lifting weights but what do I know.
This is a fan driven game and no one wants to watch a bunch of backups to be perfectly honest.
Yet, here I am again excited about bowl game season. Every year, we have 5-6 awesome to watch games. Maybe more. How many amazing plays will we miss if we tune out? How many heroic efforts? Some kids that don't play much who get in for an opt out player will surprise us with an all out effort. Some guys will leave everything on the field. How many teams will persevere and win when everyone thought they had no chance? Won't know until we experience it!
