Growing up in the 1990s, I was obsessed with college
football. If I grew up today, I wouldn’t be.
But that’s because my bond with college football formed in
my youth. My father was a Notre Dame alum, and a New York Jets fan, and you can
probably guess which he cared about more in the late 1980s into the 1990s.
For me, everything about the college game seemed more
appealing than the NFL. Yet as I remember the reasons why I became so enthralled,
I realize those reasons aren’t present for today’s youth.
If you were 10 years old today, why would you watch college football?
Sure, your family may be into it, but what would draw you in?
These are the things that drew me in, and they’re all fading
away.
New Year’s Day & Bowl Games
I can pinpoint the exact moment when college football became
my favorite sport: the 1989 Fiesta Bowl when Notre Dame won the national title.
I was too young at the time to realize this was the first
year the Fiesta Bowl aired opposite the Rose Bowl. All I knew is New Year’s Day
– January 2 that year, due to New Year’s falling on a Sunday – was the greatest
day of sports I could possibly imagine. The best teams play each other all day
long in sold-out stadiums on television? Thank you, God.
Unfortunately, the New Year’s Day experience would only last
a few more years, until the Bowl Alliance started in 1995 and the BCS quickly followed in 1998. In the years after, the Rose Bowl remained on New Year’s Day
and there was still a smattering of games in the early afternoon. It wasn’t
quite the same but it worked. We still got games like Vince Young
vs Michigan and Boise State’s epic comeback against Oklahoma.
When the 4-team playoff debuted in 2014, New Year’s Day was
reborn. The semifinals on Jan. 1, 2015, drew the biggest ratings in college
football history.
Unfortunately, the people who run college football are
stupid. Instead of keeping the semifinals on New Year’s Day, they’ve done everything but. Today, we get 3 quarterfinal games on this previously special
day. Oregon and Texas Tech playing a quarterfinal in front of empty seats at
the Orange Bowl on New Year’s Day was a depressing way to start 2026.
The playoff has had the bonus impact of destroying the bowl
game as we knew it. Most players with NFL futures opt-out. Fans don’t travel like
they used to. The games remain fun, and we watch them in droves, but there’s an
ominous feeling they won’t last much longer.
Rivalry Games
College football appealed to me so much as a child because of
the rivalries. There was such a beautiful rhythm in the day of 8-, 10- and
12-team conferences where we got to see the same games every year, mostly at
the same time of the year. Peyton Manning vs Florida in September turned into a
national obsession, even for folks like me who never stepped foot in the South.
Today, the megaconferences have ruined all but a precious
few select rivalries. Yes, we still get Auburn/Alabama and Michigan/Ohio State.
But it was all the other games that made college football special.
I’m a UConn fan and UConn’s arrival to the Big East was
about the rivals they would play, specifically Boston College. Unfortunately,
we only got to see that game twice in 2003 and 2004 – two of my favorite games
ever to attend – and then they left for the ACC.
The weekly college football lineup is full of games that
have no meaning. UCLA vs Rutgers? Texas vs Vanderbilt? Texas Tech vs UCF? None
of these games matter. Even if they’re both ranked, there’s no difference than
a game between good AFC West and NFC East teams on Sundays.
Long ago, those conference games mattered because it was
bragging rights. No, Clemson vs North Carolina wasn’t the most important ACC
game of the year, but it happened every year so those fans really, really wanted
to win that game. West Virginia playing Virginia Tech may not have resonated
nationally, but it did so deeply for fans of both schools.
In 2000, Purdue’s run to the Rose Bowl led by Drew Brees was
so impactful because it meant Purdue had finally slayed Ohio State and
Michigan.
When you look over most schools’ upcoming schedule for 2026,
there are precious few games with history. The sport loses its soul as more games,
like Kansas vs Missouri or Oklahoma vs Oklahoma State go by the wayside.
Hell, even USC bailed on playing Notre Dame. That’s not a world
I want to live in.
Unique Offenses
Where have you gone, Tom Osborne?
One of the most distressing things about college football is
how similar every offense has become, as the “pro style” offense has become
standard for just about every team. You see, the goal of college football now
is to prepare players for the NFL, so it makes sense.
A long time ago, however, the goal of college football was
to win football games. It was much more than just the service academies running
the option. We used to have run-n-shoot teams. We used to have Basketball on Grass.
We used to have Tressel Ball. Now, it’s all the same.
A few years ago, Washington State (the nation’s
top passing team) played Air Force (the nation’s top running team) in a bowl game. The game, actually, kind of sucked. But the buildup presented a feeling I
remembered from long ago. The anticipation of what these different styles will
look like vs each other.
The game of college football is less interesting than ever
before because the X’s and O’s are indistinguishable from team to team.
On-Campus, Non-Conference Showdowns
Texas at Ohio State, followed by Ohio State at Texas a year
later. It is everything we want and need from college football. I’m so grateful
to both schools for scheduling this home-and-home series, because it suddenly
feels like a dinosaur.
The rise of the playoff has made it very clear to top teams
with name brands that there is no incentive to play major games
out-of-conference. We see this as announced series get canceled left and right.
Even worse, they’re being replaced by one-off neutral site
games in NFL stadiums. A college football team only plays 12 regular seasons
games. They should all be played on-campus. The NFL stadiums are for the
playoffs. It’s painfully evident every time College Gameday shows up for a neutral-site
classic. Nothing compares to a college campus on a fall Saturday. Nothing.
A Lifelong Connection
The most depressing part of being a college football fan
today is how you cannot get attached to players. Even at the very top schools
like Ohio State and Alabama, players continue to transfer thanks to NIL and
rising salaries.
I want to be as clear as possible – college football players
should get paid and they deserve every penny.
However, the endless free agency has devalued the sport of
its connection with the fans, the school, and the community.
As mentioned above, I grew up near UConn. My friends, family,
and I had season tickets for about a decade after Rentschler Field opened. All
of those players are UConn football legends for life, whether that’s Dan
Orlovsky, Donald Brown, or Dave Teggart.
Today, that connection is mostly gone. How do Georgia fans
feel about Carson Beck? How do Washington State fans feel about Cam Ward? Are they
remembered fondly, or as gunslingers who chased more money elsewhere?
For non-major schools, it’s even more devastating. Any time
a player breaks out for a MAC or Sun Belt team, you know they won’t be there
next year. How does that develop fans?
Does Any of This Matter?
In the near-future, no, it won’t. The country is still full
of enough rabid college football fans that leaders can continue to squeeze our
wallets dry of money.
The next generation? I’m not so sure they’ll feel the same
way.
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