You're listening to the Back Home Network presented by Home
Field Apparel. Hey folks, Galen.
Clavio here, I lied. When I said that, we had done
our. Last episode.
Of the calendar year. I decided to do a little mini
commentary. Because I've been watching all
of the reaction to this situation in the Orange.
Bowl with Florida State and them losing and and all the opt outs
around bowl season and so wanted to just go.
Ahead and. Record both an audio and a video
version of this. Audio versions going out on the
feed. Video version is going to
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Out to everyone, but these are the.
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Cast sub stack in particular. Thank you all very much.
You've made. This a.
Wonderful. 2023 overall and we're looking forward to 2024.
Just a reminder before we get into the commentary that were.
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So anyway, let's talk about football.
Let's talk about bowl season. Not a lot of IU content in this,
although maybe a little bit at the end.
But I've. Seen a lot of commentary from
people about how bowl season and bowls in general are ruined.
You know how opt outs and and the transfer portal and all of
these other things have have ruined what people used to love
about bowl games. And I think it's fascinating
when this pops up, it popped up some.
Last year it's really. Popped up this year and
obviously. This Georgia.
Florida State. Situation has been probably.
The most crystallizing item in people thinking about all of
this. And obviously there's more to
this than just opt. Outs.
There's, you know, clearly the. Situation with Florida State and
the College Football Playoff committee and a lot of people
have said, well look this is going to get fixed because of
the 12 team playoff coming and. First of all I.
I don't know if that's totally true, because I think that
that's just a Band-Aid on A. Much larger issue.
And I would say that when you talk about the college bowl
system. I think it's important to
understand. Why the college bowl system
exists and how? Bad It is, really.
In terms of how it's structured? How it's set up, Who benefits?
Why it's there in the first? Place.
You know the bowl. System in college football has
always. Been a weird one.
You know, if you go back and look at the history.
Of bowls they were. Largely created.
Outside of the realm of the regular season and they've
always been set up that way and. Like most things in.
College football, I don't think people.
Really understand how bowls. Work your bowls have.
Essentially evolved into a. System that is a.
Hybrid of control of the bowl committees the.
Conferences, the television networks and this weird.
Cabal that's grown up. Around this idea?
That you know we're. Going to have a post season.
In FBS College football or Division 1A College football.
But it's not. Really going to count?
But it will. Count in some ways.
And. We're.
Essentially doing this. Not for the players.
Benefit. But for the benefit.
Of the schools for. The benefit of the.
Conferences for the benefit. Of the sponsors and the benefit
of the television networks who need content to show during
this. Time of year specifically.
ESPN Who really? Kind of enveloped the entire
bowl system about. 20 to 20. Five years ago.
And with a couple of exceptions, is essentially.
Responsible for the bowl. System.
As it currently exists. You know for the longest time.
Bowls have. Been a weird.
Drain on financial? Resources for the schools.
That get into them. You know you are required and
there's a great book I. Would always I always recommend
this book even. Though the the.
Core subject matter is kind of out.
Of date but if. You want to go back and read
about. This.
It was a book. Written by Dan Wetzel.
And there was somebody else on the book.
And I can't remember the other author's name was.
Called death to the BCS this. Came out in like 2010, 2011 and
it was an assault on. The whole BCS system and what is
interesting. Is a go the.
The BCS did. Eventually die and was replaced
by the College Football Playoff. Which may not have actually.
Been that good of an evolution, although it was a.
Necessary kind of intermediate step, but the book.
Takes a lot of. Time to really go in on how
like. Ludicrously silly, The bowl.
System is and you know how. You know to.
To a large degree. These bulls have.
Essentially grown up around creating money.
For everybody except the people who are.
Participating in them and. You know Bulls?
Requiring thousands of tickets. To be purchased.
By athletic departments who then have to either turn around.
And sell those tickets to make that money back or just.
Take the loss. You know, you've got matchups
that really don't make a whole. Lot of.
Sense you've got it used to be a much.
Higher shelf as far. As who was going to be in the
conversation for The National? Title and then everybody.
Kind of got shoved below. That and you ended up with some
really weird matchups where you'd have teams that went from.
Being a national championship. Contender one day to Literally.
Being in the Alamo Bowl the next day, Shout out to K.
State. Among a couple of.
Others for that. It's always.
Been a system that. Didn't make a lot of sense and
so much of that. Really.
Mirrors College. Football at the highest level.
It's a system that defies logic. In so many ways.
A lot of people. Defend the.
History of college football. They defend the pageantry and
the. The lack of organization
centrally is like. A.
A feature as opposed to a bug
like those. Things somehow justify the
complete lack of centralized organization or?
Evolution in terms of. How the game manages itself and
as I always. Like to talk about every other
sport? Essentially has figured.
Out a way to? Actually have a system.
Where a. Champion is named at the end
and. You feel good about that?
You know. The college basketball, which
is, you know? Clearly, very.
Similar to college. Football in terms of.
It's the same schools and the same conferences in most.
Cases has. Had a national championship.
Since 1939. You know every other college
sport. Essentially has.
National championships. The NFL.
Has a large playoff. System.
That feeds into a. Super Bowl, The NBA.
Has a large playoff. System with.
Multiple rounds and multiple. Games that feeds into a
championship. Series.
Same with the. NHL the English.
Premier League doesn't have. A playoff, but it has a full.
Round Robin 30. Eight game schedule and the team
that has the most points at the end of that season wins the.
Title the Champions League in. Europe has a a very intricate
series of games and playoff rounds.
That lead into a decisive game. Where a champion is.
Crowned even in college. Football FCS.
Which is the old. One AA has a 24 team playoff.
And has had a playoff in one format of the.
Since the late 1970s, the idea. That all of these.
Sports and. Even the same.
Sport at Slightly Different. Levels.
Have been able to. Figure out how to.
Have a meaningful finish to the. Season that doesn't.
Rely on a bunch of glorified exhibition games or a an ill
advised, often times committee making decisions about who.
Should be placed into a. Playoff that you know.
Doesn't even represent 5%. Of the teams that are
participating. In the sport at the time.
I guess maybe slightly. More than 5%.
I mean that's that. To me is ludicrous.
And that to me is is one of the main issues at the.
Core of the. Problem with college football?
Why is it like that? We know why.
Have we seen college? Football not evolve.
The the way that all these other.
Sports and the same. Sport at Different.
Levels of college have evolved. And it's really the same answer.
That you would have when you look at why the bowl.
System. Is broken and it's.
Greed. It's greed on the part of the.
Schools and the conferences. It's greed on the part of the
television networks. It's greed on the.
Part of the coaches. You know these are the.
People who have. Created the problems over time.
And, you know, ultimately. It is the schools.
And the conferences that are to blame.
Because it would have. Been made so much.
Sense at some point. For this group of.
Schools and conferences. Who were at the top of college
football to get together? And acknowledge this is the
business. That we're in.
We're in the business of college football, which is.
More financially lucrative? And powerful than most.
Professional sports leagues in countries around the world.
To get together and say. This is our business.
Our business generates. Hundreds of millions of.
Dollars a year. Billions of dollars a year.
We need to acknowledge that we need to.
Figure out steps. To bring the people.
That are actually. Having the games happen.
Which is the players? Into the mix and have them be a
part of this from a financial perspective.
Not just because it's the right. Thing to do.
But it's because. That's how sports work.
Almost everywhere. Else in the world.
Instead, what we've. Seen over and over again are
these bad faith arguments about why we don't have that?
Type of a system. And so many of these things that
should have. Expired a long time.
Ago the the way the bowl system is set up, the way the teams are
selected. The the lack of.
Compensation for athletes. All of these things, these.
Have been held on. To because it.
Is financially expedient not because it makes sense, not
because it actually matches what goes.
On out there. You know the.
Idea that. You know there's.
Some kind of academic? Component to this is.
Is nuts. You know, there, you see?
This as an argument. Made in terms of, well, you know
we can't have a playoff. System that goes X amount.
Of time because that would interfere with classes and it's
like. What are you talking about?
You've. Already got a playoff?
System that for the two teams that go to the championship
game, extends into the next. Semester you've already got.
Teams playing games, you know, at times and on travel schedules
that make zero sense for anything academic.
I mean it's it is such immense. Hypocrisy by the people that are
running college football in. Particular about why?
We still have these systems that we have and it's.
Fascinating, because what's eroded this finally I think in
the. Eyes of of the.
The people of the. Fans of the people.
That are observers of. College football has been the
fact that you. Finally started to see.
The court system allowing college athletes to.
Have the rights that they should.
Have had all along. But were denied for no other.
Reason than the NCAA said. We don't have to.
Do this and therefore. We're not.
Going to do this. When people complain about.
Players opting out or players not.
Participating in bowl games because.
They're in the Transfer portal well.
That's an easily. Fixable problem.
The Transfer portal. Yeah, I always think it's kind
of hilarious when you hear that talked.
About like it's a mystical thing.
When you've got college. Students who aren't athletes.
Many of whom are on scholarship in one form or another.
Freely moving from. College to College and
University to University. On their own.
Schedules, you know, leaving. One school at the end of the
semester. And going to another last I
checked. A.
Student leaving Indiana University and going to.
School at say, USC. Didn't have to sit out a
semester. Before they could start.
Taking classes yet? That's been the mentality.
That we've. Built around a lot of what's
going on in college football and now that athletes have the
ability. To move to find different
locations to. Perhaps find better.
Situations for themselves. It's no wonder that.
You would see players. Say, well, I'm not going to
stick around for a bowl game. Wall A spot.
That might be available to me at a school that I.
Want to go? To gets filled by somebody else?
No, I'm going to go take that myself.
It's hard to criticize players. At least I think it's hard to
criticize players for. Opting out of bowl.
Games that mean essentially nothing to them.
Aren't even really considered. Part of the same season when
you've got coaches jumping ship immediately.
And I say that. You know, knowing full.
Well, that Indiana. Has just benefited from a coach
leaving his team and coming here to.
Indiana. You know, while his team was.
Getting ready to play in a bowl game?
It's. Part of the system.
You know. Coaches get a small.
Amount of criticism. For that.
And then they just move along with what they do, players in
general. Get killed for.
That in the media. Get killed for that.
Among fans, it's like, well, how could you leave your teammates
that way? It's like because there's.
There's literally no. Incentive to stick around.
In fact, there's a disincentive, a pretty significant one.
The way to fix all of this it's pretty straightforward, but it.
Requires a fundamental. Change in the way.
That we think. About how college football at
the highest level is dealt with. It requires acknowledging that.
You are in the business of professional sports.
Because that's what college football is, and that's what.
It's been for. A long, long time.
Schools and conferences and commissioners.
And athletic directors and. Presidents have.
To realize that we we all in. Whether you're in media, whether
you're in academia and you've been paying attention.
Whether you're a fan. Whether you're an athlete.
Everybody sees behind the. Veil at this point.
All of these arguments, All of these.
Often disingenuous arguments about.
Why the? System is the way that it.
Is are. Purely financial in nature.
There's lip service. Given to education.
There's lip service given to a bunch of different.
Things. Those are all.
Essentially just barriers placed up to try to hide.
Behind. When the real aspects.
To all of this. Is money needs to be made.
Popularity needs to be had. Alumni need.
To be serviced and that's why we.
Keep the system. That we currently have.
And when you look. At the Bulls.
Would you look at? Player transfer rules Which?
Just had to be threatened in court.
Multiple. Times before the NCAA, finally.
Threw their hands up. And said yes.
Even if you've transferred once, you can transfer again.
Without penalty because there's no legal.
Basis. For any.
Of this to. Be the way that it is.
It's all been about. Trying to protect.
As much of the financial egg as the NC.
AA's member. Schools can and it's not even an
NCAA thing. This is one of the things that I
think is fascinating. People blame the NCAA for a lot
of these. Problems the NC.
AA doesn't control. Football.
The NCAA has Never. Controlled college, football,
college. Football has been controlled.
By conferences, by athletic. Directors.
And to a. Smaller degree by coaches.
These are the people. That have benefited the most
from the system and these are the people who.
Have tried to put? Up as many.
Barricades as possible to. Keeping.
Others whether it's other schools.
That are on the outside of the inner circle.
Or whether it's athletes. From being able to benefit from
the system. So you want to fix bowl season?
I don't think fixing bowl season makes a lot of sense.
Because bowl season itself. We have a lot of nostalgia for.
But bowl season? Is an outgrowth of.
A. System that was built.
In order to maintain financial hegemony by the.
Schools and the conferences. Over this.
System it's not really. Compatible with a reality where?
Athletes are. Playing in a professional.
Sports environment, Which again? Is what we're dealing with.
With high level college football so.
The solution is. Pretty straightforward, you know
you. You need to.
Actually have collective. Bargaining between schools.
Conferences and the players. You need to stop restraining.
Movement. You need to instead.
Create a. System where you acknowledge.
That yes, these are athletes. They are employees.
They yes, they can be students as well, but there's no reason
why they can't be both. There's no there's nothing that
says that you can't be both. There are.
Hundreds of thousands of college students across the United.
States that also work. While also being students.
There's, there's literally. Nothing that says that you can't
have both at the same time. The only thing is a.
Grand desire on the part of the schools and the conferences to
not. Have that be.
The case because. Having it be the case means
that. You have to collectively.
Bargain with that group of. People just like the NFL.
Does with its players. Just like the NBA.
Does with its players be realistic about the system, Be
realistic about how it? Has to be structured.
And understand that ultimately. You're going to.
Help college football. In the long run by finally
making. A course correction and saying
we have to go in a direction that's.
Realistic because the courts are no longer.
Going to support. All of these, you know.
Poor faith arguments. That we've made over the course
of. Time about why college football
players shouldn't be. Sharing in the immense.
Amounts of revenue. That are being generated by the
games. That they themselves are playing
in and that includes these bowl. Games.
Maybe it's not. Bowl.
Games in the way that we're used to seeing them if, if, FCS.
Can have a 20. 14. Playoff There's no reason.
Why you? Couldn't have a 2014 playoff in
FBS. You could name those playoff
games after those bowl games. You could have the same
sponsors, you could have them be in some cases in similar
locations, or you could just move them to the sites.
Where the team that has the higher record or better record.
Is hosting them. There's a myriad of ways that.
This could be done. You could still even have the
occasional non playoff bowl game.
I think that that would actually be really cool.
But you have. To have a contract.
With the athletes that are playing.
You have to build. That into the system.
You have to. Compensate the athletes.
For what they're doing. And you have to.
Build the bowls. And the playoffs into that, not
treat. Them like there's something
extra, not part of the regular. Season.
This isn't an nil thing. This has really nothing to do
with nil. For those of you who are like
well. Why can't nil money go towards?
This. You know you could.
Certainly as an athlete, make money through nil.
If you're appearing in a playoff.
Game or a bowl game, but. Your money shouldn't be.
Tied to. Whether or not you're.
In that bowl game, unless it's set that way from the beginning,
not a situation where you're just.
Going to have. Money taken from one thing that
it was intended for and held. Over on the off.
Chance that you're in a. Bowl and you have.
To participate or in a playoff game, and you have to.
Participate. You also have to look at the
stamp from the standpoint of look.
You. Are dealing with academic
calendars in terms of player movement, so maybe we need to.
Look at the size of the schedule.
Maybe we need to look at the start dates of the schedule.
Maybe you need to? Start the schedule.
In mid. August as opposed to.
Starting it essentially at the beginning of September, that
might sound. Unusual, but I always always.
Like to note to people. Northwestern is on the quarter
system. They don't start.
Classes until. The 3rd or 4th.
Week of. September by that point often.
Times they played four. Football games, you know.
The, the, the old, we have to keep the schedule to this
particular. Amount of time doesn't really
hold a lot of water as far as I'm concerned.
So. Look the.
Ultimately, you can't save bowl season.
The way that it's currently set up.
It's not. Compatible with how?
The legal. System is finally.
Starting to view college football players?
It's not. Compatible with the financial.
Realities that are out. There in terms.
Of how college football actually works and at the end.
Of the day, there's a moral obligation, I think, on the part
of. Colleges and universities.
To finally come clean and say look.
We get a lot. Out of college football.
More than any other sport, we we make money, obviously, off of
the the television. Inventory that we sell, the
games that we play. We make money off of the
donations that. Pour in from alumni.
Based upon us having a. Good college football.
Program we make money. Off of the.
Increase in applications that we get from having.
A good football program. We make money indirectly.
By the, the, the. Millions, sometimes billions of.
Dollars worth of free. Advertising we get from our team
teams being good throughout the course of the year.
Colleges and universities have to re center this model.
To something that's actually. Fair.
That's what's going to restore. The postseason.
Whatever it is, whether. It's a playoff.
Whether it's a bowl. System whether.
It's some combination. Of all of.
Those things. That's what restores it.
Not half measures and not trying to.
Act like the. System that was.
Created essentially 8090 years ago.
Is somehow still. Going to be valid and relevant
as we move forward here. You know and continue.
On into the 21st century, So anyway.
Would. Love to hear some comments from
all of you. I know that not everybody is
going to agree with with all of. That, or maybe even most of it,
but. You know, I've studied college.
Sports for for 20 plus years. You know, I've, I've, I've
looked at all the. Arguments so much of the.
Problems that you see right now in.
Terms of college athletics. And college football in
particular really lie fundamentally at.
The people in charge. Refusing to actually come clean
and. Say what is actually?
Going on and. Come up with realistic answers
for how to. Fix that and I you know I I more
and more. You do see people out there who?
Are in college athletics, who I think do realize it and are
trying to make changes. But there's a lot.
Of people. That are still.
Standing in the. Way of those.
Changes and until we see those changes actually made either.
Made internally by college. Sports or.
Forced upon college sports. By the the legal.
System and the. Judiciary, I think.
We're going to continue to see. The.
Irrelevance of the bowl season continue to grow.
Because at the end of the day, the old argument that you owe
your teammates or that this. Is a memory that you're going to
have for the rest of your life. It's it just.
Doesn't hold water. For players, especially good.
Players and it shouldn't. Because at.
The end of it all they may be. Getting the memories, but the.
Schools and the coaches are getting the money and that does.
Matter whether or not. A fan or a?
Journalist or an observer from the outside wants it to matter
or not. It would matter to you if you
were in a similar situation, and I think that's an important
thing for everybody. To remember anyway.
That'll wrap it up for this, I hope.
You all have. A wonderful new year.
And. We'll look.
Forward to chatting. With you.
More in the future Indiana men's basketball.
Starting Big 10 season. Soon, Indiana women's
basketball. Big win today over Illinois.
So much to look forward to with IU.
Athletics and we'll look. Forward to chatting with you
about it. I'm Galen Clavio.
Thanks for joining me. Catch you?
Folks, on the flip side, bring back the Bison.
So everybody.