OT....A New Year...a Time to Reflect...Musings From an Old Guy

[billybud]

From my vantage point of 75 years of age...I look back upon the glory days...my own and those that I consider the glory days of football...a full on binge of nostalgia this ending of another trip around the sun.

I often grow nostalgic for the football that once was. Because not every game was on television, and because the home viewing experience was so lackluster, in the past you longed for the opportunity to be inside those stadiums on game days. You didn't feel obligated to be there to support your team; there was nowhere you would rather be. I had many, many years of being a season ticket holder until succumbing to the convenience of the big screen and a bathroom only steps away. I changed as football changed.

And you didn't care if the seats were metal bleachers. Or if they were way too cramped, with no leg room and a space barely wide enough for someone half your size. You weren't planning to sit much anyway. You heard the roar of the crowd when seemingly everyone in the stadium...at the exact same moment .. recognized that the quarterback saw his receiver breaking free. And you jumped up and down with complete strangers when the ball landed perfectly in the wideout's hands as he raced into the end zone. You roared. It was visceral.

Most of us now watch the games on the big screen...and I guess that is a good thing. We see more football but in a more removed way.

There were no one-year rentals out of the transfer portal....you knew you were going to see these guys develop over the course of four or five years. You'd watch them get picked on as freshmen or sophomores, learn from their mistakes and then become consistent performers as juniors and seniors. Before conferences were in a constant state of flux, with university administrators chasing dollars from this league to that one, and when rosters were filled with players we cheered all the way from their recruitment through their senior years.

We have absolutely no way to know where things will go next with players getting paid for their NIL. The sport not only has a playoff now, but that playoff soon could be expanding to eight or 12 teams. Conference realignment hasn't stopped yet, and it might not ever until we blow everything up and organize it into a pro-style league with two or three super-conferences.

And this new era of player free agency, which has been brought about by the transfer portal and the one-time transfer exception, may only be beginning to pick up steam. For the most part, the only players transferring right now are those who want a starting job or want to play for a more high-profile program. What happens when a bunch of elite players decide to leave their respective schools and join forces to create a new "super team," like in the NBA? That can't be too far down the road, can it?

While all of that change makes me uncomfortable, and sometimes makes me wonder if this is even still the same sport that I love, I think ithat we fans have changed as well. And in many ways, we have been responsible for some of the directions of change.

It is not the same, it is imperfect...but football is worth my time and passion. It wasn't perfect back in the "glory days" either.

Have a blast watching the playoff bowls, Ole Billy will...

Happy New Year...

 

[uconndogs]

Nice post. Happy New Year!

 

[uconndogs]

College football is in the midst of monumental change. While I don’t begrudge the kids the money or flexibility, I don’t think it will be in the overall best interest of the players and fans.

I know this fan has little interest in watching what NIL is in the process of doing.

 

[storrsroars]

And you didn't care if the seats were metal bleachers. Or if they were way too cramped, with no leg room and a space barely wide enough for someone half your size.

Only took me one trip to Schaefer Stadium to realize, yes I did care they were ice cold metal bleachers, and to count the number of fat slobs in my row.

 

[RioDog]

Thanks for eloquently expressing what I and probably others are feeling about the current state of the sport. I try to be optimistic and focus on the positives. I will still be cheering for the kids, especially those who are good college players, but who will never get big NIL money or get a shot at the NFL, but play because getting a scholarshipped education at a great school by playing the game they love is still a great opportunity and a great achievement.

 

[Nostical]

I love what you wrote, both for its content and its eloquence.
One of my pet peeves is that the networks that show NFL games don’t seem to care that much about where players went to college. Other than the Sunday Night game when players announce themselves and (hopefully) their college, too often on other broadcasts the list of players leaves out their college. I like to root for guys from UConn or other colleges important to me. So should the networks, especially those who carry college games. And yes I was disappointed when Andrew Adams announced last week that he was from some town in Georgia instead of proudly saying “UConn”. Am I being petty? Sure, but it still should matter—until it doesn’t.

 

[Alum86]

I love what you wrote, both for its content and its eloquence.
One of my pet peeves is that the networks that show NFL games don’t seem to care that much about where players went to college. Other than the Sunday Night game when players announce themselves and (hopefully) their college, too often on other broadcasts the list of players leaves out their college. I like to root for guys from UConn or other colleges important to me. So should the networks, especially those who carry college games. And yes I was disappointed when Andrew Adams announced last week that he was from some town in Georgia instead of proudly saying “UConn”. Am I being petty? Sure, but it still should matter—until it doesn’t.

Don’t they have to have graduated to say their college?
If not, they say their HS or hometown.

 

[RioDog]

BTW I wouldn't call this off topic. If this discussion isn't on topic, what is?

 

[HuskyDogArt]

Interesting post. I'm not sure of the future, however the last might be loved by some, but this 63 year old is looking forward. No metal seats great...who knows you might get stuck in the cold like Ralphie did with his tongue on the pole in The Christmas Story...

 

[businesslawyer]

From my vantage point of 75 years of age...I look back upon the glory days...my own and those that I consider the glory days of football...a full on binge of nostalgia this ending of another trip around the sun.

I often grow nostalgic for the football that once was. Because not every game was on television, and because the home viewing experience was so lackluster, in the past you longed for the opportunity to be inside those stadiums on game days. You didn't feel obligated to be there to support your team; there was nowhere you would rather be. I had many, many years of being a season ticket holder until succumbing to the convenience of the big screen and a bathroom only steps away. I changed as football changed.

And you didn't care if the seats were metal bleachers. Or if they were way too cramped, with no leg room and a space barely wide enough for someone half your size. You weren't planning to sit much anyway. You heard the roar of the crowd when seemingly everyone in the stadium...at the exact same moment .. recognized that the quarterback saw his receiver breaking free. And you jumped up and down with complete strangers when the ball landed perfectly in the wideout's hands as he raced into the end zone. You roared. It was visceral.

Most of us now watch the games on the big screen...and I guess that is a good thing. We see more football but in a more removed way.

There were no one-year rentals out of the transfer portal....you knew you were going to see these guys develop over the course of four or five years. You'd watch them get picked on as freshmen or sophomores, learn from their mistakes and then become consistent performers as juniors and seniors. Before conferences were in a constant state of flux, with university administrators chasing dollars from this league to that one, and when rosters were filled with players we cheered all the way from their recruitment through their senior years.

We have absolutely no way to know where things will go next with players getting paid for their NIL. The sport not only has a playoff now, but that playoff soon could be expanding to eight or 12 teams. Conference realignment hasn't stopped yet, and it might not ever until we blow everything up and organize it into a pro-style league with two or three super-conferences.

And this new era of player free agency, which has been brought about by the transfer portal and the one-time transfer exception, may only be beginning to pick up steam. For the most part, the only players transferring right now are those who want a starting job or want to play for a more high-profile program. What happens when a bunch of elite players decide to leave their respective schools and join forces to create a new "super team," like in the NBA? That can't be too far down the road, can it?

While all of that change makes me uncomfortable, and sometimes makes me wonder if this is even still the same sport that I love, I think ithat we fans have changed as well. And in many ways, we have been responsible for some of the directions of change.

It is not the same, it is imperfect...but football is worth my time and passion. It wasn't perfect back in the "glory days" either.

Have a blast watching the playoff bowls, Ole Billy will...

Happy New Year...

O.K. Boomer.

Just kidding. Very well said.

 

[ScottVib]

Don’t they have to have graduated to say their college?
If not, they say their HS or hometown.

I believe they have the choice. Terrell Suggs used to say he was from “Balls So Hard University”.

 

[Watchdog]

From my vantage point of 75 years of age...I look back upon the glory days...my own and those that I consider the glory days of football...a full on binge of nostalgia this ending of another trip around the sun.

I often grow nostalgic for the football that once was. Because not every game was on television, and because the home viewing experience was so lackluster, in the past you longed for the opportunity to be inside those stadiums on game days. You didn't feel obligated to be there to support your team; there was nowhere you would rather be. I had many, many years of being a season ticket holder until succumbing to the convenience of the big screen and a bathroom only steps away. I changed as football changed.

And you didn't care if the seats were metal bleachers. Or if they were way too cramped, with no leg room and a space barely wide enough for someone half your size. You weren't planning to sit much anyway. You heard the roar of the crowd when seemingly everyone in the stadium...at the exact same moment .. recognized that the quarterback saw his receiver breaking free. And you jumped up and down with complete strangers when the ball landed perfectly in the wideout's hands as he raced into the end zone. You roared. It was visceral.

Most of us now watch the games on the big screen...and I guess that is a good thing. We see more football but in a more removed way.

There were no one-year rentals out of the transfer portal....you knew you were going to see these guys develop over the course of four or five years. You'd watch them get picked on as freshmen or sophomores, learn from their mistakes and then become consistent performers as juniors and seniors. Before conferences were in a constant state of flux, with university administrators chasing dollars from this league to that one, and when rosters were filled with players we cheered all the way from their recruitment through their senior years.

We have absolutely no way to know where things will go next with players getting paid for their NIL. The sport not only has a playoff now, but that playoff soon could be expanding to eight or 12 teams. Conference realignment hasn't stopped yet, and it might not ever until we blow everything up and organize it into a pro-style league with two or three super-conferences.

And this new era of player free agency, which has been brought about by the transfer portal and the one-time transfer exception, may only be beginning to pick up steam. For the most part, the only players transferring right now are those who want a starting job or want to play for a more high-profile program. What happens when a bunch of elite players decide to leave their respective schools and join forces to create a new "super team," like in the NBA? That can't be too far down the road, can it?

While all of that change makes me uncomfortable, and sometimes makes me wonder if this is even still the same sport that I love, I think ithat we fans have changed as well. And in many ways, we have been responsible for some of the directions of change.

It is not the same, it is imperfect...but football is worth my time and passion. It wasn't perfect back in the "glory days" either.

Have a blast watching the playoff bowls, Ole Billy will...

Happy New Year...

Happy New Year to you too.

Very well said. Free agency has driven me away from pro sports and the equivalent to it at the college level is starting to do the same.

You mentioned one of the things that was especially enjoyable for me. The opportunity to see players grow up in many ways as they progressed from freshmen to (hopefully) graduating seniors or RS seniors.

Sure, the fun of seeing the light bulbs go on for the players in a game was great, as were winning championships, but maybe the best moments for us were seeing and feeling their families sense of pride and accomplishment as the players walked on their senior day/night.

For many, they're the first in their families to earn a college degree and for nearly all it's their ticket to a better life. Pro sports may have been a dream but only a very small percentage will get there.

 

[Get a Job]

I believe they have the choice. Terrell Suggs used to say he was from “Balls So Hard University”.

As far as I can tell, they can say whatever they want. If you watch all 44 intros in a game, a good half dozen of them are goofy.