Uh yeah, you are the first person I've heard say changes like the portal and NIL are being done to increase fan interest but whatever. One thing is for sure they aren't happening because athletic directors care about the fans and want to increase interest. It's happening because the courts said they HAVE to make these changes, period.
How is the portal supposed to increase interest in programs like Pitt and Temple? Once this super conference gets established with a playoff the transfer portal will be a one way street. Any player showing enough to play at the higher level will jump for the opportunity of exposure and NIL money. NIL money at Pitt or Temple or a MAC school won't amount to a hill of beans.
Here is what I think will happen. The big boys, the Alabamas, Georgias, Texas A&Ms will be fine, at least in the foreseeable future. Penn State? We'll see how committed they are to NIL to remain competitive. Other schools outside this new super league forming between the SEC and Big Ten, and that is the great majority of programs, they are in trouble. There is a lot of interest in the top level of any sport, the NFL, NBA, but the minor leagues, not so much. Once these other programs are not part of this super conference/league they are clearly not at the top level of college football interest will decline and they will look more like Division II teams than Division I.
Beyond that there is another issue of what is this new conference? They sort of want to be a pro league but sort of not. Are they a horse or are they a cow? But I've written enough and maybe that can be discussed in a future post.
Anyways, it doesn't matter what I think or some poster named LandoCommando thinks. The horse or whatever it is is out of the barn and we'll just have to see where it goes.