Looking back, did the changes in CFB impact your enjoyment of the sport this season?

[NewEra 2014]

Going into the season, I was sort of down on CFB. I thought that the NIL landscape would make things a lot worse for the sport. As the season started, I found myself to be less emotionally invested in CFB than I had been in the past. But as the season wore on, I actually found the sport to be quite enjoyable from an entertainment standpoint. I don't live and die with the games anymore, and I didn't go to the Rose Bowl which I would have done in the past. But overall, I thought it was still a really fun season.

I still think it is nutty that USC and UCLA are coming to the Big Ten, but I'm hopeful that the sport will continue to be as compelling as it has been in the past.

What do other folks think?

 

[Obliviax]

Great off-season questions!

I think elements have suffered like signing day. I have little interest given that the LOI means about 50% of what it meant five years ago.

On NIL, I don't think we've seen the real impact yet. Everyone is still sorting it out. Will it have adverse affects on teams? IDK but I figure the big will get bigger and the smaller teams will struggle to keep up. Same is true of the portal...portal players seem to fall into three categories: a) highly rated players that didn't pan out in choice number one b) lower rated kids that are trying to move up into bigger programs to get a better shot at NFL money and c) kid caught at a school that has a change in coaching or whatever. And, again, the rich get richer in these scenarios.

Overall, PSU having a B-plus year had me enjoying the season pretty well. We'll see what the future holds though. NIL still scares me but we are in a feeling out process.

 

[Online Persona]

I think there’s a problem with the big 10 and sec logic right now in terms of bringing in top schools from other conferences. The problem is that the other conferences still have a piece of the pie. TCU is in the championship game. The weak Big12 and weak PAC 10 will still get a piece of the pie after Texas, Oklahoma, USC, and UCLA move on.

Cherry picking great programs means more losses and mediocre seasons for the top programs across the country who are coalescing in the SEC and big 10. Except, they can't all win the SEC and big 10. They already have teams scheduled for that.

So the flaw is that the SEC and Big 10 are getting more and more top heavy. Yet, the weak conferences still get just as much share of bowl money (minus 2 in the playoffs for SEC or big 10). Clemson can crash the party in a weak ACC. TCU this year.

The SEC and the big 10 need to just go for the jugular and squeeze the weaker conferences out completely. Make a big 10/SEC final championship game and lock out the wanna be's.

 

[Frabjous]

11-2, including a Rose Bowl win, impacted my enjoyment of the sport this season.

 

[WaylonJ]

Interesting year for me. Very much enjoyed seeing a Marshall go into SB and knock off the Irish. Navy gave them a good run too and pitched a 2nd H shutout. I liked watching Tulane get over on USC. Keep hope alive. How much the rules changes effected these game outcomes I have no way of knowing.

 

[Rip_E_2_Joe_PA]

I personally think NIL will favor programs that have the most active corporate leaders as alumni. Car dealers etc will pale in their ability to cough up the needed cash to compete.

The portal has been used intelligently by a few coaches and stupidly by others as one would expect.

I know a coach that many here hate that has used the portal damn near to perfection. I will not post hi is initials because it will provoke nearly unlimited 😭 and histrionics beyond the capacity of all the clouds out there.

I look forward to the way this all pans in out but I do think adding USC and UCLA to the B1Goof is curious. Great history and potential audiences but are they football audiences? Think there are better FB audience markets?

Time will tell!

 

[creamery]

Great question….

YES, it definitely impacted my interest as I got sick of the transfers and not knowing who was going where. I’m more disgusted with the Portal than NIL because it makes rosters so unpredictable. Really wish the college presidents would put pressure on the NCAA to put some stricter rules in place on transfers.
Aren’t college presidents supposed to tell the NCAA what rules they want?

 

[WaylonJ]

Great question….

YES, it definitely impacted my interest as I got sick of the transfers and not knowing who was going where. I’m more disgusted with the Portal than NIL because it makes rosters so unpredictable. Really wish the college presidents would put pressure on the NCAA to put some stricter rules in place on transfers.
Aren’t college presidents supposed to tell the NCAA what rules they want?

Yeah, in theory I guess.

 

[PAgeologist]

11-2, including a Rose Bowl win, impacted my enjoyment of the sport this season.

Same here. Definitely way more enjoyable after what we watched the last 2 seasons. There is a ton of young talent on this team which should push the program further forward. Got to get over the OSU and Michigan hump.

Couldn't care less about NIL. Some of it is annoying, but right now it doesn't affect the on field product.

Not a big fan of the completely open transfer portal. I believe they are implementing periods of time the portal is open. This should help reel in the wild west feel to it. Plus PSU seems to be able to come through this as a net positive. So I can't complain in that regard. Certainly makes it easier for both team and players when "processing" time comes along.

 

[pennstatefan111]

Loved the season and the exclamation point known as the Rose Bowl. Here are some of my thoughts:

1. NIL is not as in your face as I thought it would be, but behind the scenes its a major factor. It cant be a free-for-all as it is now. Some standards have to be placed on it. The abuse of NIL is probably already in place.
2. Transfer process and window need to be narrowed to 1 week and some compensation back to the school for the scholarship years you used. Its a ridiculous tool as it stands.
3. Pushing on offense needs to be a penalty next year - no logical use for it on the field
4. For the love of God, please figure out the damn targeting rule. Its a rule that no one can really explain on TV without lying through their teeth. I'd love to know the amount of callled/overturned targeting calls and the conference they are called in.
5. Please move the hashes in for field goal kicking to the NFL standard. This has to be the dumbest rule thats never been changed. I know fans dont want to see lots of FGs, but it makes no senses it's harder in the pros than in the NCAA.

 

[Op2]

IMO, a significant part of following a college football team is (or was) following the guys your school has recruited for 4-5 years. They become your guys and you like following them because you know a lot about them. And you want to win too of course.

Now it's more about whoever is wearing the uniform of your team this year. Jerry Seinfeld had a bit once about how pro sports fans are rooting for whoever is in their city's teams uniform this year and how they're really just rooting for laundry. That's college football now. You root for laundry. In 2023 you'll be rooting for whoever is wearing the 2023 PSU uniforms.

 

[Elwood Blues]

Hate NIL. Hate transfer portal / perpetual free agency. Hate SEC dominance. Hate players opting out and leaving early. Hate horrible beer choices at the Beav (if you like Bud Lite you don't like beer and you're probably a redneck). Apparently I'm a cranky old man. I am a fan of the cocktagon...so there's that. It will probably be deemed a Title 9 violation soon

 

[NewEra 2014]

IMO, a significant part of following a college football team is (or was) following the guys your school has recruited for 4-5 years. They become your guys and you like following them because you know a lot about them. And you want to win too of course.

Now it's more about whoever is wearing the uniform of your team this year. Jerry Seinfeld had a bit once about how pro sports fans are rooting for whoever is in their city's teams uniform this year and how they're really just rooting for laundry. That's college football now. You root for laundry. In 2023 you'll be rooting for whoever is wearing the 2023 PSU uniforms.

I did feel that way before the season. But as I got to learn about the players on Penn State, particularly the freshmen who played, it wasn’t as big of a factor as I expected it to be.