As bowl attendance dips, college football leaders mull changes

[emshorts]

interesting piece in the article

Delany's conference began meeting with current and prospective bowl partners last October to discuss potential changes in their relationships. The Big Ten commissioner said he wants the conference bowl lineup to become "more national" than its current glut of Florida games; he wants to keep fans from becoming fatigued by repeat trips to the same destination. And the league seems ready to act: The Big Ten is widely expected to strike a deal with New York's Pinstripe Bowl and to add at least one game in California.

Read More: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/college-football/news/20130110/college-football-bowl-system-changes/#ixzz2HcHY1aaQ​

 

[huskymedic]

http://footballscoop.com/news/8608-bowl-attendance-down-tv-ratings-up

 

[uconnfan68]

interesting piece in the article

Delany's conference began meeting with current and prospective bowl partners last October to discuss potential changes in their relationships. The Big Ten commissioner said he wants the conference bowl lineup to become "more national" than its current glut of Florida games; he wants to keep fans from becoming fatigued by repeat trips to the same destination. And the league seems ready to act: The Big Ten is widely expected to strike a deal with New York's Pinstripe Bowl and to add at least one game in California.

​

Read More: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/college-football/news/20130110/college-football-bowl-system-changes/#ixzz2HcHY1aaQ​

He'll keep 1 in FL (Orange Bowl), 1 in LA (Sugar Bowl), 1 in TX (Cotton Bowl or Cowboy Stadium), 1 in AZ (Fiesta Bowl), 1 in CA (Rose Bowl). He'll add 1 in NY (Pinstripe Bowl, but they need to cover that stadium first), and they'll add another in MI (The B1G Bowl, in Detroit). That will just about cover his needs.

 

[Palatine]

He's pushing water uphill. The bowls are on their way out. The playoff will grow and grow fast.

 

[Woof 101]

He'll keep 1 in FL (Orange Bowl), 1 in LA (Sugar Bowl), 1 in TX (Cotton Bowl or Cowboy Stadium), 1 in AZ (Fiesta Bowl), 1 in CA (Rose Bowl). He'll add 1 in NY (Pinstripe Bowl, but they need to cover that stadium first), and they'll add another in MI (The B1G Bowl, in Detroit). That will just about cover his needs.

Someone considers The Pinstripe a bowl? This is a baseball abomination. The Rose Bowl took its name from the Yale Bowl. A football bowl game on any field other than one that was meant strictly for football is a joke. No offense to the hand full of people that actually think this game is relevant.
There is so much to see in NY and they need the tourist dollar. I just wish they would stop referring to this as a bowl game. No game of any importance other than baseball will be held there any time soon...

 

[Marty Jackson]

Someone considers The Pinstripe a bowl? This is a baseball abomination. The Rose Bowl took its name from the Yale Bowl. A football bowl game on any field other than one that was meant strictly for football is a joke. No offense to the hand full of people that actually think this game is relevant.
There is so much to see in NY and they need the tourist dollar. I just wish they would stop referring to this as a bowl game. No game of any importance other than baseball will be held there any time soon...

you need to do some research on ny football...

 

[upstater]

As usual, UConn was ahead of the game.

 

[gioff23]

He's pushing water uphill. The bowls are on their way out. The playoff will grow and grow fast.

Disagree. the playoffs will be for the haves, the bowls for the have nots. The bowls may become the equivalent of the NIT, but they will continue. Keep in mind the playoffs "appear" to be locked to 4 teams for a decade. 32 games, some with long histories think Sun, Liberty, Peach, etc.), generating revenues for teams, conferences, and, oh yeah, TV will continue.

 

[zls44]

The bowls are on their way out.

Ratings disagree.

 

[mattp]

Someone considers The Pinstripe a bowl? This is a baseball abomination. The Rose Bowl took its name from the Yale Bowl. A football bowl game on any field other than one that was meant strictly for football is a joke. No offense to the hand full of people that actually think this game is relevant.
There is so much to see in NY and they need the tourist dollar. I just wish they would stop referring to this as a bowl game. No game of any importance other than baseball will be held there any time soon...

So I guess the Superbowls held in Joe Robbie/ProPlayer/Sunlife/whatever were mislabeled? Good to know. The Pinstripe Bowl isn't relevant, but it has nothing to do with the fact that it's played in a baseball stadium, it's because all of the bowl games except for one are exhibition games. I hate to break it to you, but the Rose Bowl is also irrelevant. Personally I like going to bowl games because they're fun, but they're not any more important than an opening weekend match up against a 1AA team. How many people here can name me the winner of the Champs Bowl in 2011 off the top of their head? I bet not many. I doubt many here could even name the winners of all the BCS bowls for the last 3 years off the top of their head and they're supposed to be important.

 

[huskymedic]

http://www.usatoday.com/story/sport...cline-worries-college-administrators/1827569/

"Overall bowl attendance was down 42,391 over 35 games, an average drop of roughly 1,210 per game. Bowls drew an average of 49,224 fans per game, marking the first time that average bowl attendance was less than 50,000 since USA TODAY Sports began tracking the statistic in 2004-5."

"A few bowl games made great improvements in attendance, such as the BBVA Compass Bowl, which drew an additional 29,409 fans, and the Poinsettia Bowl, which increased its attendance by 10,835. Those gains are offset by the tremendous losses experienced by the Little Caesars (decline of 22,867), Russell Athletic (20,178) and Sugar Bowl (10,334), among others."

"Bowl attendance has dropped more than two percent in each of the past two seasons. Attendance during the 2012-13 postseason was down more than 90,000 from 2010-11, when bowl games drew a total of 1,813,215 fans, an average of 51,806 per game"

Obviously, this is "attendance" as opposed to "tv ratings".

 

[HuskyV]

Bowls & Conferences love negotiating all these really big deals announcing huge payouts. What they don't mention is that the schools that participate have to purchase unreasonalby priced tickets & hotel rooms for those figures to be reached.

If the game actaully meant something (read playoffs) then the local population would help the ticket market for the games. But $200 seats to find out who will be #12 on the post season poll does not make sense.

That said the stadiums can be empty & they should still play the games if they get enough TV money & the kids want to play.

 

[Afroabe224]

So as I understand it the main resistance of a full blown playoff is the sponsorship $$$ (4 teams is a slap in the face). Why can't the sponsorship money be reallocated to a playoff system? Imagine how much more exiting it would be... Almost like a real tournament....say March Madness. As of now, even in BCS games like this years Sugar Bowl the outcome really means nothing! So why not have 12 teams with campus sites used for the first round? Each could have a "first-round" sponsor then the winners move on to quaterfinal sites around the nation. This would allow for a real champion and possible avaid a CG blowout like this year. The other 75 bowls can serve as the NIT for 6-6 schools like Pitt.

Here is how it would look for 2012:

Round 1:
Bye 1.Notre Dame
Bye 2. Alabama*
Bye 3. Florida
Bye 4.Oregon
12. Wisconsin* @ 5. K-State*
11. Louisville* @ 6. Stanford*
10. Florida St.* @ 7. Gerogia
9. Texas A&M @ 8. LSU

*=conference champ

 

[whaler11]

Ratings disagree.

This is the reality. No one will go but if television props them up they exist.

 

[Chief00]

Warde is monitoring from China

 

[Woof 101]

So I guess the Superbowls held in Joe Robbie/ProPlayer/Sunlife/whatever were mislabeled? Good to know. The Pinstripe Bowl isn't relevant, but it has nothing to do with the fact that it's played in a baseball stadium, it's because all of the bowl games except for one are exhibition games. I hate to break it to you, but the Rose Bowl is also irrelevant. Personally I like going to bowl games because they're fun, but they're not any more important than an opening weekend match up against a 1AA team. How many people here can name me the winner of the Champs Bowl in 2011 off the top of their head? I bet not many. I doubt many here could even name the winners of all the BCS bowls for the last 3 years off the top of their head and they're supposed to be important.

Have to agree with you as some stadiums were able to do double duty before football reached the heights it has. There are far too many fields designed for football available to use a baseball field in this day and age. You also have a good grasp of just what most bowls actually mean.
Not sure of why you mention Joe Robbie//// as it was built for and is perfectly configured for football.
As for the new Yankee Stadium it is laughable that seats on the 20's are closer to the field than those on the 50. That and one end zone is shorter than the other. Not bashing you or anyone who wants to see a game there, it is just not for me.
It is a shame they do not have a bowl in the NE that has some meaning and is played on a football field...
As for all bowl games being exhibition games I also agree. I do not like the amount we have but would like to still see at least half as many to give us football through December and reward teams that had a good season. This with the extended practice time and the recruiting rewards that go with the extra exposure...

 

[Palatine]

This is the reality. No one will go but if television props them up they exist.

The BCS playoff ratings killed the bowl bowl ratings. The plus four rating will destroy the "bowls in the ratings.

There is way too much in the playoff for the bowls to exist except in a minor form.

 

[mattp]

I brought up Joe Robbie b/c the Marlins played there, but you're right there is a difference between a football field with a patched in diamond on it and one where the football field is shoehorned into a triangle. I've never been to the Yankee Bowl, but that's more because it's been on at times I can't attend, but I know some people that had a good time there last December, and if they don't mind hosting it, why not keep it?

According to the article in the OP, they're talking about making big changes in terms of the required seat purchases by the school and that was the only problem I ever had with the bowl games. You don't invite a guest to your house and then send them a bill for dinner. IF the bowl games still want to be held without the ticket requirements than I think that would be great. Sure they're basically meaningless, but if the bowl makes money, the schools make money and a few fans get to have a good time, than why not keep them around?

 

[whaler11]

The BCS playoff ratings killed the bowl bowl ratings. The plus four rating will destroy the "bowls in the ratings.

There is way too much in the playoff for the bowls to exist except in a minor form.

I don't think you realize how good the ratings are for the minor bowls.