Super League will Fall: CFB regions and rivalries make the sport great
Much has been written over the last decade about the demise of regional rivalries as conferences and schools play musical chairs. And, sadly, CFB has survived without traditional rivalries such as Oklahoma/Nebraska, WVU/Pitt, and many others.
The next domino to fall in the creation of a Super League is the loss of regional identity. Intersectional games used to happen only in Bowl Games or a very rare OOC agreement. I remember a PSU vs. Nebraska OOC game played maybe 30 years ago that was "must see", since intersectional games were almost never played on campus. (Now it's a B1G conference game and nobody cares.)
In the next few years, the B1G and SEC will enjoy big ratings for new intersectional conference games between legacy programs. Games like these:
* Ohio State / USC
* Michigan / USC
* Ohio State / Oregon
* Georgia / Texas
* Alabama / Texas
* LSU / Oklahoma
These games move the needle because they rarely play each other. But once the novelty wears off in a few years, will games like these be any different from a traditional middle-of-the-road B1G or SEC game? With everyone playing each other, many of these traditional powers will lose more games, and some will drop off (see Nebraska over the last decade).
And then... the shiny new intersectional objects might have to be intersectional games with ACC and Big XII teams. Don't dismiss the interest generated by an intersectional matchup. Notre Dame does very well when they schedule an intersectional game with a school they rarely play. Heck, the first time Notre Dame played VT at Lane Stadium was nationally hyped (despite VT underperforming prior to the game).
I expect the B1G and SEC are going to kill the golden goose with their restrictive Super League approach. But once the novelty of it wears off, there will be a lot of eyeballs interested in the schools left behind.
7 Replies
H
hokieZ71
1y
Four divisions of five teams in the SEC and likewise in the Big Ten.
Those divisions will absolutely be fairly regional, providing the same four annually contested rivalries. The 40-team Super League can also easily provide a totally balanced, 9-game league schedule where the top two teams in each division get playoff bids that cannot be argued against because all 5 division teams play exactly the same conference schedule (although Home/Away may differ)
Adding FSU and Miami to the B1G gets them to what I think is the perfect 20 schools for four 5-team divisions and adding UNC, Clemson, Kansas and either a SW school like Arizona or Oklahoma State or an eastern coast school like UVA or VT will get the SEC to 20-schools with a nice looking alignment of four 5-team divisions.
With balanced schedules, schools can earn their way into the playoff solely based on placement within their division, which removes the need for rankings and selection committees and the need to justify parallels with any schools from the ACC or Big XII.
To me, this has to be the end game for the P2.
(In response to this post by gman86)
1y
I understand life in America is all about money. If the business plan makes sense for VT to be in it than they will be in the P2. If it does not make sense they will be left out. I will support VT either way.
(In response to this post by hokieZ71)
1y
I think the goal is to have an AFC/NFC-style rivalry between the B1G and SEC. The problem is that there would be too many schools "left out," which would eventually cause a large audience to tune out.
In your scenario, let's say FSU and Miami go B1G and UNC, Clemson, Kansas and uva (ugh) go SEC. That would add coverage to new states (Virginia, NC and Kansas). ND would have a decision to make, unless the P2 made an accommodation for them.
That still leaves plenty of solid fan bases on the outside looking in:
* VT, NC State, Pitt, GT, Louisville, Syracuse, etc
* WVU, K State, OK State, Iowa State, Arizona, Arizona State, BYU, Colorado, Utah, etc
* Stanford, Cal
Will these schools just accept that they are minor league? Will the public accept that some schools are only included because they are grandfathered in? Schools like Northwestern, Indiana, Illinois, Vanderbilt, Rutgers, etc.
You can make a good league out of the leftovers with compelling matchups. If done properly, the games could be more compelling than some of the mismatches in the P2. Break away and declare their own national champion... and DO NOT accept any invitation to the P2 playoff unless there is a leveling of the financial playing field. Don't legitimize their greed.
(In response to this post by hokieZ71)
1y
sports at VT WILL BE LOWER THAN G5 IS NOW!
(In response to this post by gman86)
1y
recent conference moves was because of media money, not a move to establish some pro league. I also do not think these moves were driven by the media companies themselves, but by the BIG and SEC.
With the NCAA settlement, we now have a hot mess, and a lot of uncertainty moving forward, but a college NFL light league just will not happen IMHO (emphasis on humble).
I think it's more likely that a Rudy type of arrangement happens, and division 1 basketball (March Madness) will stay intact.
Otherwise, you throw the baby (College athletics) out with the bathwater, and I don't think that would work out politically.
** Edited by Big12 guy at 5/31/2025, 9:59:51 AM
** Edited by Big12 guy at 5/31/2025, 10:00:22 AM
(In response to this post by hokieZ71)
S
Stech
1y
because of their EGO. That’s one of the biggest reasons the Fortune 500 has changed so much over the years and decades.
(In response to this post by gman86)