on average, about $100K reduce coach salaries to equal those of teaching staff and the schools will have more revenue to buy such housing or for study halls making tickets more affordable will not impact on the TV contract while that is often true, there are many who get free tickets and do not appear for the game as the OP reported ~ the University of Minnesota is one such example where there are several thousand unoccupied seats in every game there are others who miss out because of the high cost of tickets - the Minnesota program is financed by taxpayers, both rich and poor, and should be accessible by all of course it is and that's why I watch it - none of my comments are intended to denigrate the game in any way I have watched college football since the early 1960s. Over the years I have enjoyed watching greats like Ara Parseghian (Notre Dame), James Street (Texas), Richmond Flowers (Tennessee), IM Hipp (Nebraska), and, oh, did I mention OJ Simpson? Over the years I've repeatedly re-played the Army fight song in my mind and continue to watch the annual Army-Navy match though I've always thought the Penn State-Pittsburgh game was the # 1 rivalry in the game's history. Making the game more affordable will not in any way harm the sport. On the contrary it will make it more accessible. As you acknowledged, college football is an amateur game, not professional. As such, it is supposed to be accessible for all, not just for wealthy elitists. Reducing coaches salaries will help do that and this is something all of us should want.
(Gives @Mr_Truth a round of applause) Yes. Football used to be a working-class sport. A game where a guy working in a coal mine could knock off early on a Saturday and go watch his WVU team take on a rival. Football, much like hockey (at least in Boston and DC for hockey- not sure about others), has become EXPENSIVE. Working class families essentially have to BUDGET just to attend one single game!
Excellent post. My hero Sam Huff was the son of a coal miner. Indeed, many of those greats (and many today) came from very humble backgrounds. All of whom pay taxes which keep those football programs going. Because of that, everyone should always have access to the games.
Folks were hyping Florida.... yeah, shouldn't anymore. Mullin's left Frank in the game. Poor choice, poor results. The loss to KY should be a wake up call for gator nation. Mullins as a coach, and the team, in general as one that might be competitive.... On a brighter note. A&M takes it to Clemson. Now that was fun, even though A&M lost. It shows just how vulnerable even the most celebrated in the constellation of college teams can be taken out on any given Saturday.....
Excellent post by you. I just feel bad that the average joe needs to SAVE up money just to go see their die-hard team play. Tickets should be like 10 bucks
Clemson trains hard. I was able to visit their practice last season (I won this random event when I was in SC). They train harder that I thought any team would
I've been to the Alabama practices multiple times for Armed Forces customs action. Alabama doesn't train like Clemson does. And I like the Alabama team. You'd have to see Clemson to believe it. Their practices are like SF selection lol
Will Alabama be upset by Ole Miss who has the best wide receiving core in the country, but a bad defense?
Nope. My wife is an Ole Miss alumna so I've been watching their games and the Rebels' defense is horrible against the run and the pass. In this game, Ole Miss's best defense is their offense, so the only way I see them winning is in a high scoring shootout where Jordan Ta'amu plays the game of his life (no INTs and fumbles) and Ole Miss's NWOs (Nasty Wide Outs) dominate Alabama's DBs and make numerous big plays. This also means that Ole Miss's offensive line has to keep Ta'amu clean, and with a prospective Outland Trophy winner at LT it will be interesting to see if they can do that against the Crimson Tide's front seven. On top of that, Ole Miss is going to need a lot of help in the form of turnovers and special teams and hopefully they can get some juice from a home crowd that should be fired up after tailgating in The Grove all day long. Knowing this, 'Bama may want to exploit Ole Miss's terrible run defense and control the clock to keep Ta'amu and his receiving corps off the field. What I'll be interested to see is how Alabama chooses to deal with Mississippi's passing game - will they flood the secondary at the expense of the rush or will they blitz like crazy? Another thing to consider here is that Matt Luke will be coaching Ole Miss, not Hugh Freeze who seemed to have Nick Saban's number for a couple of years. While I'll be rooting for my wife's alma mater, the most likely scenario is that the Crimson Tide will cover the 3 touchdown spread in this game. Last year Alabama blew out Ole Miss 66-3 in Tuscaloosa. Hotty toddy - Go Rebs!
Ole Miss will certainly put up more than 3 points. Sure they won't win, but their QB, O line, and ESPECIALLY their receivers are stacked. Their RB aint to shabby either. I think it'll be high scoring on both sides
Honestly, I don't know what to think this year. My traditional teams all pretty much blow this year. Unless all of them suddenly or magically get better. I doubt this will be the case. So, it's a lackluster year for me. I find I'm more "against" teams, than actually for them this year. Now that FL has demonstrated their wrecked train, it's going to be hard to be motivated to still watch their games. FSU doesn't look good. Miami got crushed by LSU. In the big 10, who cares? right? Penn St was tested by App state. OSU hasn't, and won't play anyone hard this year, Michigan lost, MSU lost, Cheddar doesn't move me. The big 12 is likely an Okie rules, and the Pac 12 is a mess. The only relief is that perhaps LSU (nephew went there) might find some legs this year. A&M might be ok, but I just never get excited about AL or GA. So, Clemson? yawn... They could barely beat A&M at home. So, for me, this year, it's ambivalence. Now, don't get me wrong, I'm a fan, and will watch games, but unlike other years, I have to expectations of super years for those I follow. Who knows, maybe I'll be pleasantly surprised. At least in college FB, you never actually know.
I hope so because Ole Miss is going to have to rack up the touchdowns to win - they can't settle for FGs against the Tide. I have a feeling Alabama is going to open things up but if I were Nick Saban I would run the ball down Ole Miss's throat. Got any other games you like? I'm wondering how many games Hurricane Florence is going to cancel this weekend and whether I'll be able to get a satellite signal in order to watch them...
I feel your pain. What the heck is Florida doing losing to Kentucky in the Swamp??? And Alabama - again? Ugh. Fortunately, I'm a Virginia Tech fan so they've been a bright spot so far, but there's a reason why I call them the Chokies. They looked good against FSU and they've got a pretty soft schedule ahead (save for Notre Dame on Oct. 6) but I'm confident they'll figure out a way to gag on a Georgia Tech or Pitt somewhere along the way...
They've had some great games in the past - I can remember when Chris Johnson and the Pirates wrecked a promising season for the Chokies. I can't believe Tech is a 28 point favorite in that game. Looks like UVA's gonna stink it up again this year. Wahoowhaaaat?
Feel free - they earned it. I love that they beat FSU, though. They now have my permission to lose the rest of their games.