On the TUNNEYSIDE of SPORTS December 14, 2015 #571 Up next…”40” + One!
After further review…The FBS (Football Bowl System) has opened the gates to have 40-plus college football bowl games this postseason. 40! Wow! Count ‘em! And only three games will determine the college champion! In the past a college T*E*A*M had to have at least a seven-game winning record to qualify. Not this season! In fact, 12 of those 40 are at .500 or below in the win/loss column.
The first of these bowl game starts next weekend with San Jose State (5-6) playing Georgia State (6- 6) in the Cure Bowl. This will be played at the Citrus Bowl, located in Orlando, Florida. And SJS is favored by four points! It’s the TunneySide’s understanding that all schools are required to buy a large block of tickets for resale to alumni, students and supporters, to support the costs of travel and game-day operations. Hmmm, wonder how many SJS Spartans supporters will take that cross-country journey?
Many football fans will recall the original bowl system of five: Orange (Miami), Cotton (Dallas), Sugar (New Orleans), Citrus (Orlando), and, the “granddaddy-of-them-all” Rose Bowl (Pasadena). Those five were the highlight of the college season and the football nation stood still awaiting the awarding of those classic sites. For many years the Big Ten and the Pacific Coast Conference champions played in the Rose Bowl. It was an honor for our family (and especially me) to attend that game when my dad was the referee for Illinois vs UCLA game on January 1st, 1947, Illini 45-Bruins 14.
Now with money, more than prestige, serving as the driving force, we have an enormous roster of games. Some of the 2015-16 bowl games you are surely familiar with: Camila, Famous Idaho Potato, GoDaddy, Pinstripe, Foster Farms, Quick Lane, Belk and – one we should all support – the Tax Slayer Bowl. All of these plus 31 more before we get to the National Championship Game, which BTW is #41 on the schedule. And speaking of support, apropos of the block of tickets requirement, it is well known that many schools will actually lose money for the privilege of playing in their bowl game!
This year, the national championship will emerge following a four-team playoff known as the College Football Playoff (CFP). These teams were selected subjectively by a committee striving for objectivity, and you can guess how complicated that process has been. The ultimate game will not be played at one of the legendary bowl sites, but at the University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Arizona on a Monday night – January 11, 2016. Stay tuned.
Will you log-in on whether the present system of bowl games is an improvement over the past?
To contact Jim go to www.jimtunney.com or email him jim@jimtunney.com.
Watch for the launching of Jim’s new book: “Another 101 Best of TUNNEYSIDE of SPORTS” just in time for the Christmas season. Email him for an autographed copy. $20. Includes shipping.
