The College Football Playoffs have been a great lift to the sport as a whole, and entering the 3rd post season things could not be more fascinating. But, underneath the success of this format a disturbing trend has emerged. As other bowl games become less and less meaningful, players are starting to leave their teams prior to bowl games to prepare for the draft. This has sparked a debate about the merits of meaningless bowl games, and the willingness of players to put their bodies on the line to play for their colleges one last time. Let’s take a look at both sides of this debate and ponder a possible solution.
The Case To Play
Is this showing a character flaw in those players who choose to sit out a bowl game? Did they quit on their team? Do they lack the heart and motivation for the game of football? Here are some former players and coaches that have opinions on this side of the debate. Kirk Herbstreit said, “I’d want to play another game with my boys, are you kidding me? Ask anyone from my generation. If that’s (injury) is the concern they should skip their whole careers”. While NFL rookie Zeke Elliott had a similar opinion, “I would do anything to play one more time with my brothers in Scarlet and Gray.” Another less known player left Oklahoma this year with two games left in the season. Projected 3rd round pick DT Charles Walker left the team during the season to prepare for the draft. This led Oklahoma DC Mike Stoops to say “Quitting on your team, that’s hard to take as a coach. Everything we stand for is our commitment to one another.”
The Case Not To Play
I think it all starts with the story of Jaylon Smith. He was a projected top 5 pick, which would have meant roughly $23.5 million guaranteed. But Jaylon was injured in the bowl game, and he fell to the second round in the draft signing a contract for $6.5 million guaranteed. He lost roughly $17 million playing in that bowl game. Besides injury, there is also a case to be made about having sufficient time to prepare for the NFL Combine. The NFL takes the skills at the combine very seriously, whether they ultimately translate to the field or not. 40 yard dash times, high jumps, bench press, ect., all matter in terms of draft positioning. College kids can gain an extra 3-4 weeks of preparation for the combine by leaving school and not participating in practices leading up to the bowl game. Then there is the importance of the game itself. These non-playoff bowl games are meaningless to many, and for those entering the draft process it is all the more trivial.
Is There Anyway To Change This?
These bowl games are not going anywhere, as they generate a ton of revenue for the Conferences. Each of the Power 5 Conferences will receive and estimated $50 million during bowl season, while non-Power 5 Conferences will each receive and estimated $18 million. There is also a $6 million bonus for conferences who send a team to the College Football Payoff. Money is always the driving factor, for both the universities and the players who choose to skip the bowl games.
-Do we pay the players for participating in the bowl games? Honestly, if we paid each player $10k (just a wild guess number) would that make any difference when we’re talking about MILLIONS at the next level? Probably not.
-Do we move the bowl games up 3 weeks, or so? This would help alleviate the concerns over lost combine preparation time. Maybe this would help somewhat.
-Do we do away with the combine, and let athletes college career speak to their abilities? Personally, I love this idea, but I’m not sure the NFL would go for it. Even then, would that change McCaffrey or Fournette’s mind about playing one more game? Who knows..
I’m pretty sure this is a trend that will only gain momentum. And, I could see it only getting worse and worse. More players leaving mid season, and larger numbers of star athletes not participating in the teams bowl games. Truly unfortunate..
