The college bowls now have me head scratching. With the advent of the 4 team ( & eventually more) playoffs, things are surely different. I know teams can practice more for next year & eveyone depends or makes $$$. But..... I really don’t care for a scholarship player quitting. Yeah I know the good reasons why. But damn, Ed Alexander appeared to give no notice. Will any teams give 100%? 80% Forget the old 110%. I know some players will, but will they ever risk injury at all during a non- playoff bowl game? Once again I hear good reasons for it all, but Frankly this new bowl systems, sucks. Call me old fashioned, but I liked the days of Sugar, Cotton, Rose, and Orange, sprinkled with a couple minors such as Gator & such. I understand the name changes to promote sponsors but I hate it too. Here it is the season of love & I have this hate.... oh well, I feel better now... Go Tigahs!
Alexander has to get out now while his knee is good. He will be a late round pick making a minimum contract but it is something. His knees won't allow him to have a long NFL career I am predicting.
In today's thought process, these college kids that have a shot at the NFL really don't owe anything else. They have made the school a ton of money. They have made (sometimes) coaches rich. Everyone is cashing in but them. While Devin White wants to play because this is what he signed up for, Alexander doesn't want to play because of a real possibility of another knee injury. Greedy does't want to play because of the possibility of a freak injury that will knock him out of top 10 money. I am torn like you @Chipeace but I do get the point. The veneer of this being a pure amateur sport is gone. Can't pretend
These two contradict each other, don't they? White is playing because "this is what he signed up for" but they "really don't owe anything else?" Don't owe anything except for what they signed up for? Which, would be playing throughout the entire season, right?
You have a good point, Terry, but let's also consider another thing often not discussed which is the amount of games. A mere 15 years ago which is in these kid's lifetime they only playes 11 games. Adding a twelfth regular season game makes more money for everyone except obviously the players who endure more physical risk. Heck there was no conference title games while I was in high school. The only way to play 12 games was with your bowl game. Now, you automatically play 12 and if you compete in your conference title game that's 13 and then if you qualify for the playoffs and compete for the title that's 15 games. One shy of what the NFL regular season holds. That's a lot of additional wear on these players. Rookies used to hit a wall late in their first year because 12 versus 16 (and 4 exhibition games) was such a dramatic difference. It rarely ever happens now for a reason. Yes, the players signed up for this, but it isn't like they got a vote on the added games. At least back then the 12th game was a bowl and the kids got a free trip and some swag for their efforts as a reward. Something to consider. It isn't going away that's for sure. More players will be sitting and eventually someone will sit for the playoffs and that's when things will really hit a watershed moment in how college football responds. The best lens with which to view these kids and their decisions is I all myself what would I advise my own son to do if he were facing the exact same decision. Peyton came from a financially sound home and wanted to win the title and the Heisman and enjoy every second of college. Had he been dirt poor I suspect his decision might have been different. Greedy has a young daughter he must provide for which is a massive difference. Devin may stay, and he's certainly going to play as it is truly important to him to finish what he's started. In each instance these kids made a choice that best reflected what they felt was best for their future given their family life and the needs therein. That makes every decision each one made for himself, to me, in fact the absolute correct one.
It is. That is what is frustrating about it. Do we cheer on White and curse the others or do we say White is doing a dumb thing? I don’t know. It is personal motivation. I want to see the team I cheered for play in the bowl game Not next years squad but I understand the issues. I am torn in what should be done.
I made a flippant post in a previous bowl thread about why should a future top NFL pick play in the playoff games. It is possibly two more games in which they could get injured. For what, a ring? It sounds silly now but do you think that could happen? It sounded silly just a few years ago to skip the bowl game but it is becoming, more often, standard practice.
I do believe that no one is holding a gun to their heads to make them play football. They could all go to college on their own dime and graduate and get a desk job making 100K a year with NO threat of blowing out a knee. Or they could graduate high school and get a manual labor job like 90% of us. I don't care what LeBron thinks, no one is a slave and forced to play sports and make millions a year. Poor fellow.
I love LSU and what is best for LSU, but the more college becomes like the pros, the less enjoyable the product. All this ME bullshit is hurting the brand. I guess it’ll have to get much worse, but there is a tipping point and it feels like we’re inching toward it. The playoff is a hot topic, but solving the early entry situation is a bigger deal. Maybe the NCAA could put money in escrow for top players to finish their season/career, with that money paid out if injury.
What's the attrition rate for early departures and bowl skips at bammer? The midg seems to do a pretty good job getting players to graduate. There are a few juniors who declare, but I'm guessing not at the rate LSU see's every year. We've become a farm team while the gumps play for a natty every single year and I'm getting pretty confident that that is a bigger sell for our kids than anything. On the fence just like everyone
