by trying to consolidate all the major brands. It completely ignores what made the sport great in the first place (regionalism, history, rivalries, pageantry) to try and create something that mirrors the NFL. That's all well and good, but there are a significant number of people in this country, mostly in the northeastern corridor and other large metro areas with long-standing established pro sports teams and culture (and, we should remember, these areas are where a majority of people in this country live) who have always looked down on college football because they believe it's nothing more than bush-league NFL with crappier players. That widely held perception isn't going to change because they put Oregon and Ohio State in the same "division." So why is it happening? Why are more and more people watching, year over year? I'm almost 100% convinced at this juncture that the major driving catalyst behind all this consolidation and realignment is the proliferation and normalization of legalized gambling outside Las Vegas and Atlantic City. Since the proliferation of legalized gambling that's readily available and easily performed on smart phone apps, more and more people want to gamble, and the numbers tell us that, more than any other sport, they want to gamble on FOOTBALL. And there's only so much NFL currently available to gamble on. Another important point is that 99+% of people that gamble are "square" gamblers (i.e., they're not professionals with their own handicapping models, budget management, etc.) They just want to throw $25 or $100 on a game, drink beer, and eat Velveeta dip with their buddies. These are folks that live in Boston, or Philadelphia, or Pittsburgh, etc. that do not regularly watch college football games or consume ancillary college football media. But they know Alabama, Michigan, LSU, and Ohio State, and that's who they want to watch and gamble on. They do not want to watch or gamble on a Louisville-Wake Forest or Kansas State-UCF game. If someone has gambled on a game, they will definitely watch it, and if it's a close game that aligns closely with the spread, they will likely watch the whole thing. A major reason why NFL spreads are so accurate and so tight is that, generally, it's much easier for oddsmakers to set a line when the game involves major brands with plenty of film, exposure, etc. - this is much less so with, say, Western Kentucky. People also want to gamble on the big brands they know. It's all symbiotic, and I believe that's why the emphasis at Disney, FOX, and the other major players is now "let's do whatever we have to do to create a college football landscape where every regular season game we broadcast is like a major bowl game." No more regionalism, no more small market brands. USC will be in the same conference as Penn State, and Oregon State and Washington State will be left to rot. Long term, I think the networks are going to get what they want. Their broadcasts will do big numbers, and they'll make a lot of money. But the collateral damage will include permanent relegation and irrelevancy to the vast majority of the sport outside of those programs' respective fanbase - the same thing that happened to the FCS (previously Div. 1-AA) in the late 70s, and what we've called the G5 for the past 20 years, is now going to happen to a lot of "power conference" programs, particularly those left behind in the ACC and Big 12. That's why the PAC-12 was destroyed. That's why FSU and Clemson are raising cane to get out of the ACC, and get out as soon as they can. That's why you hear all the back room grumblings from Utah about where they ended up. That's why Wake Forest and Boston College are trying to drag FSU's exit out as long as they can, and why they would rather burn the barn and salt the earth instead of just negotiating an equitable exit fee and being done with it. The people running things at Wake Forest and Boston College aren't stupid; they know what the future ultimately holds in store for those athletic departments. The writing is on the wall, and has been for anyone that cares to see and read it. ** Edited by Baltimore_Hokie at 8/13/2024, 11:14:43 AM