sugar bowl attendance
- Thread starter soonerfastnloud
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I don't agree with payment either. But I don't see why athletes should be restricted from seeking ways of earning from their talents and name.
They pretty much already are with recruiting a kid to come represent their university on the football field.
But I see what you are saying. It's a huge can of worms for sure that could be exploited.
Yes, but what about the endorser saying to a 5 star go to Alabama I will make sure you get some great money. Yes. I am old school it's hard enough seeing a lot of spoiled athletes.
When I was in school the school boundaries were put in to keep athletes from jumping to the schools that had a winning football team. I am not sure how it works here in Minn.
The overall Bowl attendance will continue to go down as the playoffs has all but regulated the other Bowl games to basically nothing in my opinion except to the fan bases that is in those games.
The cost of attending them for many like myself is to steep and quite honestly I enjoy watching the games in my living room and not having to deal with the traffic and quite possibly some of the idiot fans that attend those games.
I havent been to Norman in a couple of years because of the ticket prices for the premier games because living in Arkansas I would also have the expense of gas, lodging and meals for my wife and I. None of those are cheap anymore either and even for middle income families like myself thats an expense that doesnt justify the means.
I watch every single game and even purchase the yearly PPV game so I certainly dont consider myself less of a fan than those that can afford to attend in person.
As for paying players in college I am one that thinks getting your education paid for is payment enough. However I think its silly for a player not to be able to cash in on his popularity if some company wants to sign him to a endorsement deal. That would be a win win for both the player and the school.
The cost of attending them for many like myself is to steep and quite honestly I enjoy watching the games in my living room and not having to deal with the traffic and quite possibly some of the idiot fans that attend those games.
I havent been to Norman in a couple of years because of the ticket prices for the premier games because living in Arkansas I would also have the expense of gas, lodging and meals for my wife and I. None of those are cheap anymore either and even for middle income families like myself thats an expense that doesnt justify the means.
I watch every single game and even purchase the yearly PPV game so I certainly dont consider myself less of a fan than those that can afford to attend in person.
As for paying players in college I am one that thinks getting your education paid for is payment enough. However I think its silly for a player not to be able to cash in on his popularity if some company wants to sign him to a endorsement deal. That would be a win win for both the player and the school.
On 2nd thought...why should a college athlete LOSE benefits just because they can find other forms of compensation during their college careers? It's incredible that the sheer mention of punishing athletes because they profited of their own names and talents has come up here.
I would imagine a lot of players would not work. Unless it's sitting at a car dealership doing nothing.
I think the biggest factor is taking the free market choices away from the bowls themselves, not that that is a bad thing. But it does hurt attendance.
If the Cotton Bowl had been OU vs Wisconsin, they'd have filled the place up. But OU fans went to New Orleans three years ago, to play a better opponent. And as you mentioned, what were the ticket prices in this? $175? This wasn't a match up that merited that.
And there aren't many fans these days that are interested in traveling if a championship isn't at stake. I've read that tix to the NC game are going for $3K. Of course, it's not a long trip for either school. I think the Big XII made a big mistake, aligning its best school available to New Orleans every year, for a lot of reasons. Going there does nothing for me. I don't know how others feel, but I don't care to travel there.
I always wondered why the B12 didnt align with the Cotton Bowl and instead chose to go with the Sugar.
That would have made much better sense
Our fans used to travel, but New Orleans is another thing. I have been once, that did it for me. Not planning on going back, unless it's in another life.
Why should the university be forced to pay for something that an endorsed player can afford?
Players can get endorsed and paid whatever on the free market, they can pay the fees and dues that it costs to go to school.
Medic007
Sooner starter
I wonder why the NFL has a salary cap? Maybe we can reduce college football to just 32 teams with all of the well paid superstars and then they could play a schedule like the NFL does, Superbowl and all. Then when they are done with college, they just transfer to an NFL team. This is making a lot of sense.
All we need to do is identify the 32 college teams that can help secure the best endorsement deals for the players and we can get this badass idea of mine rolling. I'll start...
Alabama
OU
Notre Dame
USC
...
Too bad for Rice, OSU, Kansas State and the like. Maybe they could join some organization with rules in place to benefit the rest of the teams and collegiate athletes that don't have that star power. Nobody would watch something like that though. Too much uncertainty and excitement.
You're exactly right about the tie to the Sugar. Overall, very good points also.
What spoiled athletes?? Where in this thread has there been names thrown around as far as specific athletes screaming and crying about lack of being paid while playing college football?? In fact, you were the one who got it going with you comment earlier in the thread about how some athletes want to be paid. I think you are confusing the idea of athletes possibly wanting to get their fair due with your closed minded idea that what they currently get is enough and any thought beyond that is a spoiled athlete.
If a player could line up something outside of the school, then what difference does it make to the school to honor their original offer of a scholarship?? They are on scholarship to play football. If the player plays football, then what basis would there be to strip the player of benefits just because of some outside deal that was made?? That sounds like sour grapes more than anything.
And why have scholarship offers if you have endorsements?
So of the tens of billions in CFB, now that they get their fingers in the pie, why can't they pay for the pie?
Medic007
Sooner starter
They could decal up their uniforms like Nascar.
Medic007
Sooner starter
This is such a great idea! Just imagine the studs lining up to play for UT with their very numerous and super wealthy business owning alumni. We all know Nike would take care of Oregon. I don't think the national brands would seek out very many college players to put their endorsement money on. Maybe OU players could get deals from the Greek House and Sooner Legends! We'll be landing 5 stars by the dozens.
You really think every single player would be able to cash in?? Absolutely not. It's not like every kid would arrive with tons of endorsement deals flying their way. Look at Baker Mayfield. He showed up and nobody had a clue how good he was going to end up. He earned a scholarship first off. But later when he became a huge name nationally, if he could make money off his name outside of the school, then why should he have to give his scholarship back??
Yup sound like it would suck I don't doubt that. But I'm not going to base my opinion on things between right and wrong depending on what school I'm a fan of. Such a shift may turn out badly for OU. But that's just how it goes.
Same reason why boosters can't pay recruits. If endorsements go into effect, why should a school need to provide a scholarship?
Baker Mayfield didn't need one, he walked on. So as a walk on, he wins a position and gets OG+E to endorse him with, say, Big Red Motors, etc...
Free market, they're free to work, do commercial ads, and pay their own way...
He would not have that so called name without OU or some college showcasing his name in lights and millions of homes on TV, newspaper etc, etc. The school is endorsing him plenty
Why is everything about money? Play in high school and college for the love of the game and maybe a chance for the NFL.
Medic007
Sooner starter
I get it. You're married to the idea regardless of the negatives. It's all about the player to you. That's great in golf and MMA, not so good for amateur team sports though.
I'm not basing anything off what school I root for. I'm basing it on what CFB would look like. Do you remember college football before scholarship limits? There's a reason they made limits. There is no more parity in college football if players can cash in on endorsements. Hell, the NFL recognized the problem and made a strict salary cap. The same teams that can get their players the deals signing on the top players and playing for the championships every single year. Revenue loser overall for CFB.
Maybe you like the idea of a few dominant teams Playstation style. Most of us don't. The good thing is the NCAA and the amateurism of college football isn't going away any time soon.
I went to New Orleans in the early 90's for a friend's wedding. A few friends and I drove there and stopped to get gas in Alexandria. I went into pay and the girl behind the counter told me for gas, we should go another mile to a bigger station that was well lit up. I caught her drift, as all of us were a bit too pale for the area. Another friend decided to try to score some weed in New Orleans... The cabbie grabbed his arm before he could get out of the cab. "I'm not letting you out here, they'll never find your body," is what he was told.
I saw enough of it at that point, don't need to go back. Chicago and West Dallas ghettos are enough for me...
First post on this 3 page thread and I admit I haven't read the posts... so sorry if this has already been said, but CFB really needs to get their marketing in gear. But it goes hand in hand with post season play. The Bowl games don't mean as much as they did in the past. They need to step up the whole post season with playoffs, public relations, and marketing.
Holly crap dude. I am glad I got out alive. Went there with a friend I was 22, saw a guy taking a leak on the street we laughed at him, he was chasing us with a knife. Stayed in a sleazy hotel. If you saw the movie Big, with Tom Hanks that hotel he stayed in reminded me of the one we stayed in.
The wife & I went to MardiGras in 2007 w/ another couple. No issues, we actually went to the Qtr four days in a row. Only stayed out past midnight for one of the four trips in. Great time. Great food and amazing people watching.
Okay so now it's the school that is responsible for his talent and success right?? LOL
I don't care about those guys. They were trying to unionize and be considered employees of the university. I couldn't care less about that. But I do understand their side of the argument in trying to dismantle the "student-athlete" scam the NCAA has perpetuated over the decades to shield universities.
You're right it prolly isn't going away any time soon. College athletes will continue to get exploited since so many are afraid of what college football would look like if players could actually profit off their own names outside of just a free education. It sounds more like people would rather stick with the current system rather than try to figure out the problems that could come with allowing players to rightly profit off their own names. Sticking with the current system is just easier.
Maybe it's a better argument for the basis of removing athletics from Universities in the first place.
That's fine. If you want to remove the university from having to provide anything just because players could profit in other ways outside of the universities control, then there are no LOI's to bind players to a school. I mean hell if the school doesn't want to provide anything, then the players can go elsewhere to a place that does. I really don't understand your premise of finding a way to punish the players if they were able to find outside sources of profit that doesn't affect the university. The university provides a scholarship as part of the that player signing a LOI to play for that university. But you think if a player during his college career has the ability to make money then they should automatically forfeit what the school has promised them when they signed that LOI??
