Flickr image by RogueSun Media
I’ll start this one off pretty bluntly. If you don’t think that college football is about money, then you need your head examined; the recent realignment buzz illustrates this perfectly. Now before I get too far down a path here, let me be absolutely clear about something. You would have to look pretty hard to find a bigger believer in capitalism than me. I love money…maybe not as much as my wife does, but I sure as hell love it. And I honestly don’t have a problem with the almighty dollar driving the exodus from one conference to another – or no conference at all in the case of BYU.
All this is fine, in my opinion, as long as it doesn’t interfere with the primary goals of the universities (which is to educate these students that just so happen to play football) or intrude on the positive experience of the fans.
Right now, it’s a very early Thursday morning in Columbus, Ohio. I just completed a long drive from the home of Marshall University in Huntington, West Virginia and now I’m stuck waiting on our plane to arrive with a number of other fatigued would-be flyers. It’s amazing that other flights seem to taking off and landing. Why not mine? Anyways, not surprisingly, a quick look around the gate area and you’ll see a ton of college team jerseys, shirts, hats, and such being proudly worn. It’s everywhere. You walk past the ticket counters in the airport and there is an official Big Ten store. The waitress at the diner this morning was wearing an Ohio State visor. Even the crack whore that propositioned me this morning at the gas station had on a Buckeyes tank top (you should be real proud Columbus). People just don’t mind spending their hard earned paychecks, tips, or trick money to show support for their team. I’m right there with you. I’d spend a few bucks on a Georgia Tech game jersey. I’m sure my wife would spend a few hundred dollars on one pair of Georgia Tech shorts from Victoria’s Secret (damn that place is expensive…but worth it…hehehe). And all of this is fine because, as fans, it doesn’t get in the way of our enjoyment of the game. It even makes it better in most cases.
Now, on to realignment. There are some pretty fired up people out there. I spent some time yesterday speaking with a guy that damn near believed we were looking at the coming apocalypse with all these teams heading every which way. Of course, we talked about the economic benefits, which really make sense for most of these programs, but what concerned him obviously stemmed from how he believed his enjoyment as a fan would be hindered.
I personally don’t agree with his take on things. Where he saw too vast of a departure, I see a lot of opportunities. Now, you already know that I’m a fan of money, but I’m also a fan of tradition, which is a huge part of college football. To be certain, this guy’s biggest concern was that one of his favorite college football showdowns would be impacted. I’m of course, talking about the annual Michigan/Ohio State game. I truly understand his concerns. I believe I would be tempted to go all Guy Fawkes on someone if they changed the place on the schedule of the Georgia Tech/Georgia game, much less ended the annual contest. But alas, conference officials are not stupid. It might be about money, but money and fan enjoyment are joined at the hip. The Big Ten has just announced how their divisions will be organized, and while geographically it leaves some to be desired, it holds to tradition and maintains some of the great rivalries of college football. On top of that, the Big Ten gets a championship game, where the potential of a revenge matchup between rival teams exists. Plus…more money! God bless America!
Yes, some conferences are trying to figure things out. I’ll admit that I was a bit concerned for the wellbeing of the Big 12, the Mountain West and the WAC, but they seem to be figuring themselves out now. In a sense, it still seems a bit like they were the only people that showed up to the party wearing a costume, but it’s all starting to come together again. Fans of the remaining Big 12 programs aren’t going anywhere, and conference championship game or not, I really don’t think revenues are going be impacted too greatly. Believe me, Texas, Oklahoma, and the rest of them are not going to file for bankruptcy any time soon.
Even BYU’s moving out on its own isn’t a bad thing for football. The potential for an expanded audience is greatly enhanced by its independent status, especially with either a lucrative contract with an existing network or investments in its own network. And be sure that the Mountain West isn’t finished. Greater coverage and an expanding fan base are coming, especially if its programs keep winning.
One could actually argue that the conferences that stand to lose the most are those that didn’t get in on the act. I think the ACC and SEC are pretty safe, with large fan bases, elite programs, and consistent national coverage. I can’t say the same for the Big East or one of the remaining mid-majors that didn’t shuffle the deck. I do think it is only a matter of time though. It’s a bit like the celebrity gossip pages…if one celebrity gets press for having an affair, another comes along and checks themselves into rehab. Then another comes along and adopts enough African tribal children to start a cricket team, and another comes along and gets arrested for trying to turn tricks in a gas station parking lot in Columbus, Ohio while wearing a Buckeye’s tank top. Celebrities, advertisers, promoters, product and brand managers, and anyone else with better than a room temperature IQ know that the key to money is as simple as eyes and ears, because where people are looking and listening, money follows. That’s how advertising works. Conferences that may be missing out this time around may start looking to strengthen themselves against lost eyes and ears. Convince me that the Sun Belt teams are doing as well in their markets as the Pac-10 teams are doing in theirs. Eyes and ears, my friend!
So, as we head into the 2010 college football season, let not your heart be troubled. Everything you loved about college football will make it into next season, that much I am sure of. Who the ultimate economic winners and losers will be is yet to be determined, and truthfully, it may be years before we know the answer to that. At this rate, it also may be years before this flight ever takes off. Maybe there’s time enough to sneak back to that gas station. Everyone could use some sort of infectious disease, right?
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