NorthKCHawk
Well-Known Member
I don't know. I am sure some kids would feel this way, but most of them came to college to play football. I am betting the vast majority of football players do not want the season to end and like the idea of playing another game in a nice location. The younger guys get an opportunity to showcase skills for next year and the older guys get a free trip to Tampa.I would like to see an anonymous poll of college football players whose teams are not bound for the CFP.
One question: Would you rather practice an additional month and then travel and play an exhibition game over the holidays, or no?
Some of the argument being put forth is that eliminating bowls is robbing these players of a special opportunity. I wonder how many of them actually want it?
It is probably like the recent study about Tik Tok/Instagram on campuses. Students were asked how much they would have to be paid for THEM to give up these apps (while everyone else kept them). They indicated between $50-60 on average. But when asked about making the apps go away for everyone, students indicated they would PAY money for that to happen ($10-30). In other words, they felt trapped by the product...they couldn't get by without it as long as everyone else had it, but they would rather it didn't exist.
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When Product Markets Become Collective Traps: The Case of Social Media | Becker Friedman Institute
In many contexts, the individual value from consuming a product or service increases as more people consume it. The more of your peers who join TikTok, for example, the more value you probably see in joining yourself. Building on this logic, it’s possible that products like social media not only...bfi.uchicago.edu
I could see CFB players looking at bowls similarly. If other teams are going to bowls, they sure as heck want to go to bowls. But deep down, they would rather the season wrapped up and they get to hang out with their family on the holidays if there is no championship on the line.
Don't forget that making a bowl (or cup) presents a sizeable advantage to the team making it precisely for that reason. 3 weeks of extra practice to further develop players and prepare for next season.