Realignment talk not going away

[TKthunder2 4981]

4 minutes ago, Hairy Biped said:

 

Agree on both, but they do have some advantages.  Proximity to 4th largest city and top 15 busiest airport.  Rich recruiting grounds.  They could always play games at NRG like they are this weekend.  That's how they fulfill their FBS attendance commitment.  I think it's a crazy idea, but the PAC is desperate at this point.

They only need a single football playing member. They don’t need an all sports member. UConn, Toledo, and NIU I are their desperation moves. Sam Houston isn’t even on the radar.

[Hurtlocker 2208]

11 minutes ago, Hairy Biped said:

 

Agree on both, but they do have some advantages.  Proximity to 4th largest city and top 15 busiest airport.  Rich recruiting grounds.  They could always play games at NRG like they are this weekend.  That's how they fulfill their FBS attendance commitment.  I think it's a crazy idea, but the PAC is desperate at this point.

Sounds a lot like Houston?   Is the Big 12 shipping them off?

[Hairy Biped 584]

1 minute ago, TKthunder2 said:

They only need a single football playing member. They don’t need an all sports member. UConn, Toledo, and NIU I are their desperation moves. Sam Houston isn’t even on the radar.

I mean, you make total sense, but my source said that the PAC contacted them.  Not the other way around.  Due diligence I'm sure.  Frankly, none of it makes much sense to me.  But it's fun to watch play out I suppose.

[TKthunder2 4981]

1 hour ago, Hairy Biped said:

I mean, you make total sense, but my source said that the PAC contacted them.  Not the other way around.  Due diligence I'm sure.  Frankly, none of it makes much sense to me.  But it's fun to watch play out I suppose.

I find it hard to believe, but I guess we’ll see, shit leaks out fast nowadays…

[USC Traveler 488]

7 hours ago, Hurtlocker said:

Had you told me over a decade ago that when we were in the infant realignment posts doing flightware checks for the Pac 16 rumors, that Texas State would potentially join the Pac in 2025 it would have blown my mind.    That was not something I am not sure anyone mapped out and I'm pretty sure we mapped everything out including Prestige Worldwide.

Yet here we are.

😂

It’s so true.  There were lots of maps, lots of theories, and more lists of pods than I care to remember.  As a group, there was a general consensus that we were definitely heading towards some sort of consolidation.  There were definitely more than a few UT and OU to the SEC and even a few Best of the PAC to the BIG posts, but I’m pretty positive no one had Texas State to the PAC.

Fresno St to the PAC would be a close second for truly shocking.

[TKthunder2 4981]

https://www.espn.com/college-sports/story/_/id/41462529/mountain-west-conference-gets-commitments-7-remaining-members
 

MWC looking at Texas State and NIU.

[Al_4_ISU 12409]

I mean, I wish the entire sport would do this, but right now it would really make a ton of sense for the G5 to get together and sell their media rights as a package like the NFL.  Pair off into geographically logical divisions (which would allow ALL sports to follow suit), and create some kind of season format where the G5 winner/best team plays in the 12 team playoff (you would still have early games against the larger schools).

They seem to be utterly cannibalizing each other at this point for absolutely no gain at all, and I don't think it's creating a more interesting product, whereas I think we are seeing (at least while the novelty of the new matchups is there) an even more compelling product in not just the Big 10 and SEC, but definitely in the Big 12 and possibly in the ACC too.  But that's more a result of consolidation with (so far) very little shedding of schools in the aggregate.  The G5 is splintering into smaller factions, which seems dilutive to me.

[Hurtlocker 2208]

25 minutes ago, Al_4_ISU said:

I mean, I wish the entire sport would do this, but right now it would really make a ton of sense for the G5 to get together and sell their media rights as a package like the NFL.  Pair off into geographically logical divisions (which would allow ALL sports to follow suit), and create some kind of season format where the G5 winner/best team plays in the 12 team playoff (you would still have early games against the larger schools).

They seem to be utterly cannibalizing each other at this point for absolutely no gain at all, and I don't think it's creating a more interesting product, whereas I think we are seeing (at least while the novelty of the new matchups is there) an even more compelling product in not just the Big 10 and SEC, but definitely in the Big 12 and possibly in the ACC too.  But that's more a result of consolidation with (so far) very little shedding of schools in the aggregate.  The G5 is splintering into smaller factions, which seems dilutive to me.

This is where I see PE getting involved at some point, though I think they want to do this at the greater level before the lower level, mostly because the broadcasters are guaranteeing slots to the higher level, much like the NFL.    The G5 doesn't have as many guaranteed slots currently.

[Evil Bill Obrien 3198]

16 hours ago, Hurtlocker said:

Had you told me over a decade ago that when we were in the infant realignment posts doing flightware checks for the Pac 16 rumors, that Texas State would potentially join the Pac in 2025 it would have blown my mind.    That was not something I am not sure anyone mapped out and I'm pretty sure we mapped everything out including Prestige Worldwide.

Yet here we are.

Texas State riding the sinking ship that was WAC football in our 1st FBS season in 2012 and then getting thrown the ultimate life ring by Uncle Karl Benson, Sunbelt Commissioner (who may or may not have sunk the WAC ship the year before as WAC commissioner) and joining the Sunbelt in 2013 to save Texas State from likely CUSA purgatory next to Louisiana Tech and WKU to a decade of wandering the football wilderness to today, year of our lord 2024, being courted by the PAC, MWC and maybe to a lesser extent the AAC, and possibly holding the fate of the PAC and/or MWC in our hands is just as everybody expected CFB realignment to play out, right?

[Hurtlocker 2208]

1 minute ago, Evil Bill Obrien said:

Texas State riding the sinking ship that was WAC football in our 1st FBS season in 2012 and then getting thrown the ultimate life ring by Uncle Karl Benson, Sunbelt Commissioner (who may or may not have sunk the WAC ship the year before as WAC commissioner) and joining the Sunbelt in 2013 to save Texas State from likely CUSA purgatory next to Louisiana Tech and WKU to a decade of wandering the football wilderness to today, year of our lord 2024, being courted by the PAC, MWC and maybe to a lesser extent the AAC, and possibly holding the fate of the PAC and/or MWC in our hands is just as everybody expected CFB realignment to play out, right?

Totally had that on my card, it was lost in the shaggy move though, damnit!

[TKthunder2 4981]

25 minutes ago, Evil Bill Obrien said:

Texas State riding the sinking ship that was WAC football in our 1st FBS season in 2012 and then getting thrown the ultimate life ring by Uncle Karl Benson, Sunbelt Commissioner (who may or may not have sunk the WAC ship the year before as WAC commissioner) and joining the Sunbelt in 2013 to save Texas State from likely CUSA purgatory next to Louisiana Tech and WKU to a decade of wandering the football wilderness to today, year of our lord 2024, being courted by the PAC, MWC and maybe to a lesser extent the AAC, and possibly holding the fate of the PAC and/or MWC in our hands is just as everybody expected CFB realignment to play out, right?

Back in the day I actually assumed Texas State would have more potential than UTSA to be successful in FBS and would have been pulled into a better conference. To date I was clearly wrong, maybe this changes that going forward.

['stache 21778]

This piecemeal shit is maddening. At least at the P5 level it was the difference between $50 and $80 million per school, at G5 it’s like $9 or $12 million. Hardly seems worth it. Seems everyone gets richer if they pool the media rights and provide extra for programs with better tv ratings.

Edited September 27 by 'stache

[Huckleberry 32709]

17 minutes ago, TKthunder2 said:

Back in the day I actually assumed Texas State would have more potential than UTSA to be successful in FBS and would have been pulled into a better conference. To date I was clearly wrong, maybe this changes that going forward.

They did have more potential but they've had a small time mindset and UTSA rode their one advantage (being in San Antonio) to a big lead. This lifeline gives them a way to reverse their errors and get a second chance but they have to change their attitude.

[Huckleberry 32709]

7 minutes ago, 'stache said:

This piecemeal shit is maddening. At least at the P5 level it was the difference between $50 and $80 million per school, at G5 it’s like $9 or $12 million. Hardly seems worth it. Seems everyone gets richer if they pool the media rights and provide extra for programs with better tv ratings.

Sorry but it's funny to see the middle schools now so very much instantly ready to big time the little fish with talk of unequal revenue sharing once they're the big programs in a conference. You in particular have always understood its benefits but in a general sense it's amusing. 

[BurntOrange&White 39690]

2 minutes ago, Huckleberry said:

They did have more potential but they've had a small time mindset and UTSA rode their one advantage (being in San Antonio) to a big lead. This lifeline gives them a way to reverse their errors and get a second chance but they have to change their attitude.

If I'm not mistaken that had a real shitty AD before not too long ago.

['stache 21778]

Is UTSA still on track for an on campus stadium? Playing in 1/3 filled Alamodome makes them feel small time.

[Evil Bill Obrien 3198]

20 minutes ago, TKthunder2 said:

Back in the day I actually assumed Texas State would have more potential than UTSA to be successful in FBS and would have been pulled into a better conference. To date I was clearly wrong, maybe this changes that going forward.

 

1 minute ago, Huckleberry said:

They did have more potential but they've had a small time mindset and UTSA rode their one advantage (being in San Antonio) to a big lead. This lifeline gives them a way to reverse their errors and get a second chance but they have to change their attitude.

 

1 minute ago, BurntOrange&White said:

If I'm not mistaken that had a real shitty AD before not too long ago.

 

I kinda assumed Texas State would only ever be able to slowly grind away to correct the mistakes and setbacks put upon us by the previous University Admin (President Dr Trauth aka "The Bun") and Athletic Director (Larry "small time" Teis), but suddenly you have a total change in leadership to a University President like Dr Damphousse who is a legit rockstar and new AD Don Coryell who are both on the same page of wanting to push the University forward and looks like we got a chance to make a pretty big leap and get right back to where we should have been all along, exciting times...

 

5 minutes ago, 'stache said:

Is UTSA still on track for an on campus stadium? Playing in 1/3 filled Alamodome makes them feel small time.

I have read rumblings about that but I really don't see it as being a front burner thing, all their other fan facing sports facilities on campus (think basketball gym, baseball and softball fields) are like crappy high school/D3 college level and need serious improvements before they need to worry about an on campus football stadium. One of the many frustrating things about UTSA appearing to "jump way ahead" of Texas State is that it's all football (what really matters) but they got zero serious investment in any other sports.

[BurntOrange&White 39690]

UTSA's biggest issues are their facilities and needing an indoor practice facility. They're the only team in the AAC without an indoor practice facility. Get those things squared away 1st then push for on campus stadium.

[Herpa Derpa 6115]

24 minutes ago, Evil Bill Obrien said:

new AD Don Coryell

Loved his work in San Diego.

[89Horn 1492]

18 minutes ago, Herpa Derpa said:

Loved his work in San Diego.

Don Coryell is a heaven sent appointment.  Said differently, what a hell of an appointment.

Edited September 27 by 89Horn

[pops 6974]

2 hours ago, Al_4_ISU said:

I mean, I wish the entire sport would do this, but right now it would really make a ton of sense for the G5 to get together and sell their media rights as a package like the NFL.  Pair off into geographically logical divisions (which would allow ALL sports to follow suit), and create some kind of season format where the G5 winner/best team plays in the 12 team playoff (you would still have early games against the larger schools).

They seem to be utterly cannibalizing each other at this point for absolutely no gain at all, and I don't think it's creating a more interesting product, whereas I think we are seeing (at least while the novelty of the new matchups is there) an even more compelling product in not just the Big 10 and SEC, but definitely in the Big 12 and possibly in the ACC too.  But that's more a result of consolidation with (so far) very little shedding of schools in the aggregate.  The G5 is splintering into smaller factions, which seems dilutive to me.

I believe it was the AAC commissioner who was trying to do exactly that and got zero traction among other commissioners. 

The landscape changed so quickly that most of these commissioners and presidents have no clue what is going on or where they are going to end up. 

Utah state got in the pac. Yay. They will not be in the same division of college football as Texas and Alabama and Ohio state in 10 years. The sooner all these schools realize that and figure out how to maximize their revenues going forward, the better. 

But instead we get these insane options like Texas state or UConn football to the pac. Or the two best maaction schools to the mwc. Stop it. Rebuild regional conferences that maximize rivalries and minimize travel costs for all your sports and create a meaningful playoff. 

I've been to a potato bowl. I've also been to an fcs playoff game at Montana. It isn't hard to figure out which one was eleventy billion times better. 

[Hurtlocker 2208]

19 minutes ago, pops said:

I believe it was the AAC commissioner who was trying to do exactly that and got zero traction among other commissioners. 

The landscape changed so quickly that most of these commissioners and presidents have no clue what is going on or where they are going to end up. 

Utah state got in the pac. Yay. They will not be in the same division of college football as Texas and Alabama and Ohio state in 10 years. The sooner all these schools realize that and figure out how to maximize their revenues going forward, the better. 

But instead we get these insane options like Texas state or UConn football to the pac. Or the two best maaction schools to the mwc. Stop it. Rebuild regional conferences that maximize rivalries and minimize travel costs for all your sports and create a meaningful playoff. 

I've been to a potato bowl. I've also been to an fcs playoff game at Montana. It isn't hard to figure out which one was eleventy billion times better. 

Truth.   Love me some Sun Belt and MAC, the SEC stayed nice and tight.   For like like a decade the B12 looked odd with WVU, but now even they look geographically tight compared to the ACC, B1G or even some of these G5s tendriling (made that up) out.

 

[TKthunder2 4981]

My guesses:

PAC adds Texas State for 8. Texas State fits their footprint and sounds like a big boy school to those who don’t know better, I’m guessing they offer them a lesser cut than those of the MWC like the ACC did with Stanford/Cal. TX St is awkward in either conference geographically speaking, but would rather take the money and join the Western schools than be paired with the more regional/directional universities of the Sun Belt. This would immediately change their external perception and put them in the conversation for the best of the G5 Texas schools along with UTSA.

MWC doesn’t have a lot of leg to stand on here. They have money but they just gave away a good chuck of it to keep AFA/UNLV. I think cooler heads will prevail and they’ll come to their senses and do the sensible thing and just take UTEP and NMSU for 8+Hawaii fb while keeping watch for Western FCS upgrades like SacSt, Utah Tech, and Southern Utah, while trying to see if they can land any combo of the Montana/Dakota schools.

CUSA holds at 10 but keeps watching for Eastern FCS upgrades (like Eastern Kentucky).

Sun Belt doesn’t need any more teams, they just continue forward with unbalanced divisions of 13 for the time being, but I think they might start talking about bringing MTSU and WKU back into the fold along with Missouri State. That would get them to 16 and cover every Southern-ish state East of Texas other than Florida. Still I don’t see them wanting to move right away unless their TV deal requires a certain number of members. They’ll likely hold for now and watch how everything else shakes out and see if there is any stronger candidates emerge.

MAC and AAC hold pat.

[TrashMaster G 17393]

13 hours ago, TKthunder2 said:

Texas State would be a legit option that somewhat works geographically speaking. Stick at 8 play round robin and do 4 out of conference games.

Washington State
Oregon State
Boise State
Fresno State
San Diego State
Utah State
Colorado State
Texas State or Toledo and Northern Illinois?

I’m mean for shit’s sake they could just stick a 7 and add UConn football until the 2032 when UNLV is available again.

With an 8 team conference, playing a round-robin means you need five OOC games each year to fill out a 12 game schedule. 

[Hurtlocker 2208]

2 minutes ago, TKthunder2 said:

My guesses:

PAC adds Texas State for 8. Texas State fits their footprint and sounds like a big boy school to those who don’t know better, I’m guessing they offer them a lesser cut than those of the MWC like the ACC did with Stanford/Cal. TX St is awkward in either conference geographically speaking, but would rather take the money and join the Western schools than be paired with the more regional/directional universities of the Sun Belt. This would immediately change their external perception and put them in the conversation for the best of the G5 Texas schools along with UTSA.

MWC doesn’t have a lot of leg to stand on here. They have money but they just gave away a good chuck of it to keep AFA/UNLV. I think cooler heads will prevail and they’ll come to their senses and do the sensible thing and just take UTEP and NMSU for 8+Hawaii fb while keeping watch for Western FCS upgrades like SacSt, Utah Tech, and Southern Utah, while trying to see if they can land any combo of the Montana/Dakota schools.

CUSA holds at 10 but keeps watching for Eastern FCS upgrades (like Eastern Kentucky).

Sun Belt doesn’t need any more teams, they just continue forward with unbalanced divisions of 13 for the time being, but I think they might start talking about bringing MTSU and WKU back into the fold along with Missouri State. That would get them to 16 and cover every Southern-ish state East of Texas other than Florida. Still I don’t see them wanting to move right away unless their TV deal requires a certain number of members. They’ll likely hold for now and watch how everything else shakes out and see if there is any stronger candidates emerge.

MAC and AAC hold pat.

It would kind of shock me if NIU did take a jump because the MAC is so confined and does what it does very well.  But if they did, the MAC could just backfill with many other universities around the midwest that are successful, but don't make that FCS leap yet like the Salukis or UNI, etc.

[Hurtlocker 2208]

2 minutes ago, TrashMaster G said:

With an 8 team conference, playing a round-robin means you need five OOC games each year to fill out a 12 game schedule. 

They could probably get at least four of them playing each other!

[Al_4_ISU 12409]

2 minutes ago, Hurtlocker said:

It would kind of shock me if NIU did take a jump because the MAC is so confined and does what it does very well.  But if they did, the MAC could just backfill with many other universities around the midwest that are successful, but don't make that FCS leap yet like the Salukis or UNI, etc.

UNI in the MAC would be a lot of fun.

Edited September 27 by Al_4_ISU

[GJ Winne 166]

On 9/23/2024 at 1:58 PM, BurntOrange&White said:

I said when the Mountain West teams joined that the AAC teams would be idiotic to leave considering they make the most of the g6 teams. 

They should target Texas State....

Fuck right off with that nonsense.  Why would TXST want to go to a MWC that just lost 5 of their 6 best schools?  Go from a very solid and stable conference with 14 teams to a shaky 8 team conference where it's best remaining program is being targeted (AFA) and the others aren't wanted by anyone else?

1 hour ago, TKthunder2 said:

Back in the day I actually assumed Texas State would have more potential than UTSA to be successful in FBS and would have been pulled into a better conference. To date I was clearly wrong, maybe this changes that going forward.

As stated previously: location, location, location.  Being the only school in a major media market with a stadium and hotels 10 min from an international airport holds a lot of weight.  Having shit leadership the last 20 years didn't help.

1 hour ago, 'stache said:

Is UTSA still on track for an on campus stadium? Playing in 1/3 filled Alamodome makes them feel small time.

Posted in the UTSA thread last week:

Quote

I don't know about anything official, but the fans certainly talk about it.  AFAIK, they get the Alamodome for free, and the dome gets the on-prem revenue (feel free to correct me on that), so I don't know that the school is trying to spend more money there.  They do have a nice new athletic training facility on campus:

https://goutsa.com/roadrunner-athletics-center-of-excellence

The rest of their facilities are ass, my dude.  Baseball, softball, basketball, volleyball - all HS level.

 

[Hurtlocker 2208]

If someone posted this, sorry, i missed this little comedy routine the MWC put out:

 

Seems you can't pay out 117%, who knew.

[bullet 1596]

1 hour ago, 'stache said:

This piecemeal shit is maddening. At least at the P5 level it was the difference between $50 and $80 million per school, at G5 it’s like $9 or $12 million. Hardly seems worth it. Seems everyone gets richer if they pool the media rights and provide extra for programs with better tv ratings.

They made a big mistake not killing off the Sun Belt 10 years ago by piecemealing it.  Then a couple of years ago they could have killed off CUSA.  Instead, the G5 just keeps adding more FCS schools competing for recruits and exposure.

[bullet 1596]

So an answer to Bear's question above.  You need 8 full members to get the 8 to qualify for FBS.  Football only and basketball only don't help.

 

Quote:20.02.6 Football Bowl Subdivision Conference. A conference classified as a Football Bowl Subdivision conference shall be comprised of at least eight full Football Bowl Subdivision members that satisfy all bowl subdivision requirements. An institution shall be included as one of the eight full Football Bowl Subdivision members only if the institution participates in the conference schedule in at least six men's and eight women's conference-sponsored sports, including men's basketball and football and three women's team sports including women's basketball. A conference-sponsored sport shall be a sport in which regular season and/or championship opportunities are provided, consistent with the minimum standards identified by the applicable NCAA sport committee for automatic qualification.

[bullet 1596]

15 minutes ago, Hurtlocker said:

It would kind of shock me if NIU did take a jump because the MAC is so confined and does what it does very well.  But if they did, the MAC could just backfill with many other universities around the midwest that are successful, but don't make that FCS leap yet like the Salukis or UNI, etc.

There's been some discussion of Illinois St.  SIU has problems, like a lot of the MAC schools but worse.  Their enrollment has dropped about 50% over the past 20 years or so.

[bullet 1596]

7 minutes ago, Hurtlocker said:

If someone posted this, sorry, i missed this little comedy routine the MWC put out:

 

Seems you can't pay out 117%, who knew.

Well the Big 10 has 18, Big 12 has 16, Pac 12 has 7 and who knows how many the Atlantic 10 has this week.  Math is failing at our higher education institutions!

[royiv 9173]

27 minutes ago, TrashMaster G said:

With an 8 team conference, playing a round-robin means you need five OOC games each year to fill out a 12 game schedule. 

This is the big problem I see with only 8 teams in a conference. If they do a round-robin you have to go out and find 5 teams to play you. As a G5/6, you’re going to get a lot of away games at a P4 with no return trip or you’re spending money to get an FCS team to come to your home stadium. 
 

The days of the ten team conference are long gone and aren’t coming back, but playing a nine game round-robin with three OOC games was my favorite from the standpoint of building traditional rivalries and history. In the SEC with an 8 game conference schedule, there are players that will never line up against every team in the conference. See Georgia playing A&M exactly once since joining the conference.

[TKthunder2 4981]

5 minutes ago, TrashMaster G said:

With an 8 team conference, playing a round-robin means you need five OOC games each year to fill out a 12 game schedule. 

Find a rivalry game (UW/WSU, UO/OrSO, UTSA/TXSt, CU/CSU,)

Find an end of year FCS patsy.

Schedule 3 regular OOC games like most schools.

and if all else fails, schedule UConn.

Is it ideal? No, but it’s better than paying out ridiculous money for MWC going jumping from the Colorado River to past the Mississippi River for an opponent that isn’t much better than what you could get OOC. If you add UTEP or a Northern Illinois you have to play them EVERY YEAR. Do you think the networks will pay to see those matchups?
 

If they are already not paying much, keep the circle tight and everyone gets a bigger piece of pie.

Colorado State already has 4 OOC scheduled out for the next 3 years playing 2 P4 opponents (but not Colorado), an FCS, and a G5. I don’t think it will be that difficult to find a 5th game.

[USC Traveler 488]

1 hour ago, pops said:

I believe it was the AAC commissioner who was trying to do exactly that and got zero traction among other commissioners. 

The landscape changed so quickly that most of these commissioners and presidents have no clue what is going on or where they are going to end up. 

Utah state got in the pac. Yay. They will not be in the same division of college football as Texas and Alabama and Ohio state in 10 years. The sooner all these schools realize that and figure out how to maximize their revenues going forward, the better. 

But instead we get these insane options like Texas state or UConn football to the pac. Or the two best maaction schools to the mwc. Stop it. Rebuild regional conferences that maximize rivalries and minimize travel costs for all your sports and create a meaningful playoff. 

I've been to a potato bowl. I've also been to an fcs playoff game at Montana. It isn't hard to figure out which one was eleventy billion times better. 

Yeah-  I’ve been to a few 1AA/FCS playoff games, and they were great.

I’ve never really understood why so many programs have wanted to move up.  What JMU has been doing is amazing, but I feel like they’re the first FCS program to quickly prosper in FBS.

If I went to a former FCS powerhouse like GA Southern, I’d be bummed about trading those playoff games for a crappy bowl game.  

Hopefully the G6 does set up their own playoff sooner rather than later.  I’d much rather watch similarly-matched teams playing each other than seeing a sacrificial lamb get destroyed by the # 2 team in the SEC or BIG every year.

Even if they feel like they have to stay in the big playoff for the money, they could start their season a week or two earlier than the big boys to allow an actual G6 playoff to determine the team that gets to play in the big playoff.

['stache 21778]

Plenty of other G5's to play in the noncon as home and homes. MAC, Sunbelt, AAC, CUSA, even MWC-PAC if they can get past hard feelings. 

[TKthunder2 4981]

1 minute ago, USC Traveler said:

Yeah-  I’ve been to a few 1AA/FCS playoff games, and they were great.

I’ve never really understood why so many programs have wanted to move up.  What JMU has been doing is amazing, but I feel like they’re the first FCS program to quickly prosper in FBS.

If I went to a former FCS powerhouse like GA Southern, I’d be bummed about trading those playoff games for a crappy bowl game.  

Hopefully the G6 does set up their own playoff sooner rather than later.  I’d much rather watch similarly-matched teams playing each other than seeing a sacrificial lamb get destroyed by the # 2 team in the SEC or BIG every year.

Even if they feel like they have to stay in the big playoff for the money, they could start their season a week or two earlier than the big boys to allow an actual G6 playoff to determine the team that gets to play in the big playoff.

I think they should just declare a G5 regular season champion that is selected to play in the CFP, and the rest play in a G5 playoff tournament. Let two teams declare themselves national champions it don’t hurt nobody. This would be better TV than watching the top ranked MAC team gets spanked by a 7-5 Big Ten team in the Little Cesar’s Pizza Bowl.

[USC Traveler 488]

11 minutes ago, TKthunder2 said:

I think they should just declare a G5 regular season champion that is selected to play in the CFP, and the rest play in a G5 playoff tournament. Let two teams declare themselves national champions it don’t hurt nobody. This would be better TV than watching the top ranked MAC team gets spanked by a 7-5 Big Ten team in the Little Cesar’s Pizza Bowl.

Even better, get their small slice of revenue from the big boy playoff in return for not having a team in the big playoff, sort of like a kill fee in return for not suing over access.

Then run an 8 team G6 playoff around the edges of the big playoff- start a week earlier, play their championship during the week between the semifinals and the title game for the big playoff.  Play the semis on Tuesday and Wednesday nights if needed to make it work.  Every G6 conference champ plus two at large.  Would be a fun format, with teams that are reasonably evenly matched.

Edited September 27 by USC Traveler

[Hurtlocker 2208]

22 minutes ago, TKthunder2 said:

I think they should just declare a G5 regular season champion that is selected to play in the CFP, and the rest play in a G5 playoff tournament. Let two teams declare themselves national champions it don’t hurt nobody. This would be better TV than watching the top ranked MAC team gets spanked by a 7-5 Big Ten team in the Little Cesar’s Pizza Bowl.

Or just take a G5 part of the money they're going to pay out anyway, cut it out and put it into a seed for a second tournament that can start the beginning of December.   Add in some new TV revenues to that seed money and the G5 tourney is its own post season fun warming up the CFB fun.

I'm sure no one could figure out how to market the everlivingshit out of that.

[Hurtlocker 2208]

1 hour ago, USC Traveler said:

Even better, get their small slice of revenue from the big boy playoff in return for not having a team in the big playoff, sort of like a kill fee in return for not suing over access.

Then run an 8 team G6 playoff around the edges of the big playoff- start a week earlier, play their championship during the week between the semifinals and the title game for the big playoff.  Play the semis on Tuesday and Wednesday nights if needed to make it work.  Every G6 conference champ plus two at large.  Would be a fun format, with teams that are reasonably evenly matched.

ha I think we just posted the same idea at the same time, you beat me.

[Evil Bill Obrien 3198]

1 hour ago, USC Traveler said:

Even better, get their small slice of revenue from the big boy playoff in return for not having a team in the big playoff, sort of like a kill fee in return for not suing over access.

Then run an 8 team G6 playoff around the edges of the big playoff- start a week earlier, play their championship during the week between the semifinals and the title game for the big playoff.  Play the semis on Tuesday and Wednesday nights if needed to make it work.  Every G6 conference champ plus two at large.  Would be a fun format, with teams that are reasonably evenly matched.

Think this would likely be a nonstarter for most if not all of the G5/6 leagues, they don't have much but that 1 access spot (or just the possibility of access to the "Big Boy" playoff) is something they will not want to ever lose if they can possibly help it.  Feel like they would all try and fight that out in court and make it as painful as possible for the P4 to pull the plug on that. Sure it's likely guaranteed to be a 12 seed going up against a 5 but the exposure that 12 seed gets, and the low chance of one of them eventually ambushing a 5 seed is worth way more than any "kill fee".

A G5/6 playoff of the "best of the rest" outside of the one chosen champion to who gets sent to trial by combat in the "Big Boy" playoff would be interesting and I personally would be all for it, think you have the right idea of running it week ahead and between games of the other playoff but feel like you would run into some of the same issues that currently exist with bowls a-la opt outs since it's not the "real" playoff and don't know how you can work that out and whoever is going to pony up the money to support a G5/6 playoff won't be very enthusiastic towards that.

[USC Traveler 488]

1 hour ago, Hurtlocker said:

ha I think we just posted the same idea at the same time, you beat me.

Great minds think alike my friend.🤘

That would be a fun format and put a nice spotlight on those programs.

Edited September 27 by USC Traveler

[USC Traveler 488]

1 hour ago, Evil Bill Obrien said:

Think this would likely be a nonstarter for most if not all of the G5/6 leagues, they don't have much but that 1 access spot (or just the possibility of access to the "Big Boy" playoff) is something they will not want to ever lose if they can possibly help it.  Feel like they would all try and fight that out in court and make it as painful as possible for the P4 to pull the plug on that. Sure it's likely guaranteed to be a 12 seed going up against a 5 but the exposure that 12 seed gets, and the low chance of one of them eventually ambushing a 5 seed is worth way more than any "kill fee".

A G5/6 playoff of the "best of the rest" outside of the one chosen champion to who gets sent to trial by combat in the "Big Boy" playoff would be interesting and I personally would be all for it, think you have the right idea of running it week ahead and between games of the other playoff but feel like you would run into some of the same issues that currently exist with bowls a-la opt outs since it's not the "real" playoff and don't know how you can work that out and whoever is going to pony up the money to support a G5/6 playoff won't be very enthusiastic towards that.

I was originally thinking of the setup you're describing, but then thought they would have to start the season too early to do an 8 team G6 playoff that would end prior to the beginning of the big playoff.  Wasn't factoring in that their desire for exposure would trump all else.  

If the kill fee was equal to the payout the G6 gets for participating in the 12 team playoff, which was probably not clarified well in the op, and there was decent tv money on top of it for the G6 playoff games (way better entertainment than bowl  games), I was thinking schools would prefer to be the National Champion of the G6 level and have their season end as a champion, instead of getting crushed like a tomato can vs the #5 seed (which will frequently be the 3rd best team in the nation).  

I just don't see any Boise over OU type games in the playoff, given how strong the #5 seed is going to be every year.  That team will be very focused for a playoff game, as opposed to some teams in the past that may have been sleepwalking through a bowl game.  The # 5 team is always going to be very, very good.  With the consolidation in the BIG/SEC, there won't be any more years where, say, a mediocre OU wins the B12 because the rest of the conference was down, then gets beat by a team like Boise.  With NIL and the portal, the gulf between the #2/3 team in the BIG/SEC to the top G6 team will be measured in light years.

I'm fine having the best G6 team in the big playoff.  It gives everyone a shot, and we'll never have to hear any dumb debates about whether the G6 champ could have beaten the P4 champ.  But if I'm running one of those G6 schools, I'd much rather have the season end on a high note being crowned the undisputed champion of the G6.  If the title game was played during the week between the semis and championship game of the 12 team playoff, that would still give the two G6 programs a lot of exposure, but it would be overwhelmingly positive exposure, as opposed to getting slightly more exposure (#5 vs #12 will be the lowest rated playoff game in most years), but having the exposure be mixed, at best, as the team will almost always look like it doesn't belong on the same field as the # 5 seed.  Ending the season getting embarrassed doesn't seem like anywhere near as good of exposure as raising a trophy and saying "We're the champs!!!"

[Texas Wahoo 3383]

6 hours ago, pops said:

I believe it was the AAC commissioner who was trying to do exactly that and got zero traction among other commissioners. 

The landscape changed so quickly that most of these commissioners and presidents have no clue what is going on or where they are going to end up. 

Utah state got in the pac. Yay. They will not be in the same division of college football as Texas and Alabama and Ohio state in 10 years. The sooner all these schools realize that and figure out how to maximize their revenues going forward, the better. 

But instead we get these insane options like Texas state or UConn football to the pac. Or the two best maaction schools to the mwc. Stop it. Rebuild regional conferences that maximize rivalries and minimize travel costs for all your sports and create a meaningful playoff. 

I've been to a potato bowl. I've also been to an fcs playoff game at Montana. It isn't hard to figure out which one was eleventy billion times better. 

I don't necessarily dispute that a playoff is better than bowl games, but all but two bowl games had better ratings than the FCS championship game last year.  Obviously, you would expect a G5 playoff to get somewhat better ratings than FCS, but I think the bowls are buoyed by being in the same group as the P4, so people that wouldn't normally watch G5 teams will watch the bowls because it is all part of the same system.

[pops 6974]

15 minutes ago, Texas Wahoo said:

I don't necessarily dispute that a playoff is better than bowl games, but all but two bowl games had better ratings than the FCS championship game last year.  Obviously, you would expect a G5 playoff to get somewhat better ratings than FCS, but I think the bowls are buoyed by being in the same group as the P4, so people that wouldn't normally watch G5 teams will watch the bowls because it is all part of the same system.

I think you bifurcate it until you can't. Highest G5 goes to big boy playoff. Then 12 or 16 or 32 or whatever the fuck play in a G5 playoff and end this ridiculous bowl system. But I think within a decade the G5 will have no access to the real playoff. May as well prepare for that eventuality now. 

[nineliveslost 2710]

I think the new Pac 2? and the Mountain West should stop being weird, merge and take 2 of the best out there left. BAM ! Pacific/Mountain/West 16 

Give me my consulting fee

This shit is just embarrassing now 

[thunderlounge 7759]

[pops 6974]

15 minutes ago, nineliveslost said:

I think the new Pac 2? and the Mountain West should stop being weird, merge and take 2 of the best out there left. BAM ! Pacific/Mountain/West 16 

Give me my consulting fee

This shit is just embarrassing now 

Exactly what they should do. But both are run by idiots. And no one is agreeing to eliminate their jobs. It's so fucking dumb. 

[jTower 225]

3 hours ago, nineliveslost said:

I think the new Pac 2? and the Mountain West should stop being weird, merge and take 2 of the best out there left. BAM ! Pacific/Mountain/West 16 

Give me my consulting fee

This shit is just embarrassing now 

Or keep their conferences separate and play championship game between the two.  They can take their rights to market separately.