In light of recent events in the landscape of college athletics

[BleedCrimsonandGray]

I'm struggling with the concept of supporting college athletics outside of ticket purchases. It is a defacto pro-league now, chock full of free-agency, rich teams and poor teams, and everyone and their brother chasing the almighty dollar. I don't send the Seahawks extra money, why would I send the Cougs? I mean, if athlete X isn't getting paid (enough), just jump ship and go somewhere else, right?

I'm posting to get opposing perspective, because like I said I'm just not seeing it right now. If I want to support a child's college educationand be altruistic I can just donate to the Business School.

 

[mikalalas]

I'm struggling with the concept of supporting college athletics outside of ticket purchases. It is a defacto pro-league now, chock full of free-agency, rich teams and poor teams, and everyone and their brother chasing the almighty dollar. I don't send the Seahawks extra money, why would I send the Cougs? I mean, if athlete X isn't getting paid (enough), just jump ship and go somewhere else, right?

I'm posting to get opposing perspective, because like I said I'm just not seeing it right now. If I want to support a child's college educationand be altruistic I can just donate to the Business School.

That's a perfectly ok view to have and be that way, IF IF IF IF, you don't care that WSU would finish dead last in Pac 12, only win 0,1,2 wins each year, have WSU maybe have to go down to either Mountain West, Sun Belt, Conference USA, Big Sky, etc, and that that would probably cause WSU to loose prestige, both athletically, and academically, and that that would cause WSU student enrollment to go down, and WSU would, could probably also lose Tier 1 research university status, and research grants, due to lower prestige, lower student enrollment, lost academic money, etc, IF IF IF not only you, but a lot of others have the same feelings as you, and would do the same as you, IF IF you really did that, and IF IF you and others didn't come to their senses, didn't realize the possible consequences of this kind of course, action.

Like others have said, that like it or not college football is the front porch that draws in everything else.

I understand, get why you feel that way. I feel that way at times myself.

But since I like, am a FAN of WSU, and WSU athletics, academics, etc, even if it is, becomes like minor league semi professional baseball, football, etc, then I will continue to support WSU the best I can(I know it's not much(But if I had more, I would give, support more).

But IF IF you don't care about WSU, etc, and feel fed up, then certainly your position is, would be certainly understandable.

But whether it's understandable or not, whether get it or not, it's still your money, time, etc, your decision, however wrong it may or may not be, if it's wrong.

I am certainly not going to tell you or anyone else how to spend your money.

It all boils down to what's important to you.

All I have done is explain what might semi probably be at stake if you decide that's what you want to do, and if others join you.

 

[roses04]

Let's not jump the gun and start pulling dollars, Billy Bean was successful at Oakland playing "money ball". The teams with all the money already have a tremendous advantage, yet we have a winning record against Oregon, as an example, it is 3-2 over the last 5 years. Let's see how this thing all plays out. I know ESPN sees themselves with a super conference of 20-30 teams, which I think will happen, but it will fail. 80% if not more of your fans went to the school they root for. If 80-90 of those schools no longer have a chance to participate in a playoff, and if they do make a super league, those 80-90 schools should refuse to play the other 20-30 schools. The TV ratings for the super league will drop like a rock, it doesn't have enough national exposure and it will turn off a lot of fans, I know I will refuse to watch it. The power 5 with 60-70 teams works, just like minor league baseball most of the players will never make the majors, but you need the rest of them there to field a team. The BCS needs 60-70 teams to be successful, I think many realize that, too many greedy donors with blinder on adn ESPN don't. There will be a lot of bumps in the road until this thing all settles. Remember the NCAA has nothing to do with the BCS, they do control March Madness and that is where they make all their money these days. A larger field makes for a more exciting tournament, you narrow it down, and people lose interest.

 

[How_did_this_happen?]

If you watch the college football playoffs, you are contributing to the concentration of power/money.

 

[BleedCrimsonandGray]

If you watch the college football playoffs, you are contributing to the concentration of power/money.

why would I? I hardly pay attention to it now unless a P12 team is in, and thats been what... twice?

 

[BleedCrimsonandGray]

Let's not jump the gun and start pulling dollars, Billy Bean was successful at Oakland playing "money ball". The teams with all the money already have a tremendous advantage, yet we have a winning record against Oregon, as an example, it is 3-2 over the last 5 years. Let's see how this thing all plays out. I know ESPN sees themselves with a super conference of 20-30 teams, which I think will happen, but it will fail. 80% if not more of your fans went to the school they root for. If 80-90 of those schools no longer have a chance to participate in a playoff, and if they do make a super league, those 80-90 schools should refuse to play the other 20-30 schools. The TV ratings for the super league will drop like a rock, it doesn't have enough national exposure and it will turn off a lot of fans, I know I will refuse to watch it. The power 5 with 60-70 teams works, just like minor league baseball most of the players will never make the majors, but you need the rest of them there to field a team. The BCS needs 60-70 teams to be successful, I think many realize that, too many greedy donors with blinder on adn ESPN don't. There will be a lot of bumps in the road until this thing all settles. Remember the NCAA has nothing to do with the BCS, they do control March Madness and that is where they make all their money these days. A larger field makes for a more exciting tournament, you narrow it down, and people lose interest.

I'm 50 years old. I'm not waiting 20 years for the NCAA paradigm shift all the while pumping dollars into the Bank of Disney. I've been super patient with all the meddling that big corporations and big money has had in manipulating schedules and games and locations and tv deals and this is simply a bridge too far. I 100% believe that the old model of "amateurism" is dead and that there needs to be a better compensation model going forward, but this is not it.

As an aside - in this day of EVERY FCKING THING having to be equitable, regardless of if its earned or deserved, how in the hell is any of this NIL bullshit just being blindly accepted? Women's soccer just won their case to get 100% equal compensation as the USMNT, so why aren't title IX proponents screaming from the rafters about a boy getting $8mil while Sally-non-revenue-sport gets zero?

 

[How_did_this_happen?]

I'm 50 years old. I'm not waiting 20 years for the NCAA paradigm shift all the while pumping dollars into the Bank of Disney. I've been super patient with all the meddling that big corporations and big money has had in manipulating schedules and games and locations and tv deals and this is simply a bridge too far. I 100% believe that the old model of "amateurism" is dead and that there needs to be a better compensation model going forward, but this is not it.

As an aside - in this day of EVERY FCKING THING having to be equitable, regardless of if its earned or deserved, how in the hell is any of this NIL bullshit just being blindly accepted? Women's soccer just won their case to get 100% equal compensation as the USMNT, so why aren't title IX proponents screaming from the rafters about a boy getting $8mil while Sally-non-revenue-sport gets zero?

...and it is completely ridiculous that women's soccer should get the same money as the men...if that was the ruling.

Seeking utopia has a tremendous cost to society.

 

[kougkurt]

I'm 50 years old. I'm not waiting 20 years for the NCAA paradigm shift all the while pumping dollars into the Bank of Disney. I've been super patient with all the meddling that big corporations and big money has had in manipulating schedules and games and locations and tv deals and this is simply a bridge too far. I 100% believe that the old model of "amateurism" is dead and that there needs to be a better compensation model going forward, but this is not it.

As an aside - in this day of EVERY FCKING THING having to be equitable, regardless of if its earned or deserved, how in the hell is any of this NIL bullshit just being blindly accepted? Women's soccer just won their case to get 100% equal compensation as the USMNT, so why aren't title IX proponents screaming from the rafters about a boy getting $8mil while Sally-non-revenue-sport gets zero?

This

 

[FnuLnu]

Let's not jump the gun and start pulling dollars, Billy Bean was successful at Oakland playing "money ball".

You are confusing 2 baseball people here.

Billy Bean without the "e" is the baseball player who likes the "d".

Billy Beane with the "e" is the A still without the big W while GM.

"Moneyball" is fascinating but he inherited 3 number 1 starters had Tejada, Giambi, Chavez.
Since then has been a vehicle for ownerships primarily to make more money from low payrolls than to put actual championship teams on the field. The extra money saved in Oakland was never put back into marketing the A's

But point in regards to WSU, very good. A Billy Beane at WSU would be fabulous. Chaplin did that in track until they changed the rules on schollies and the upper ages for overseas athletes.

 

[Cougsocal]

NIL just creates greater inequities in a system that was never equitable to begin with. However, "the portal" is an existential threat to college sport as we know it. While pro sports have free agency, they also have long term contracts. So teams can maintain a core of players upon whom fans can identify as part of the "us" and "them" concept upon which "fandom" is base. Are we really going to continue to support teams and programs where there are wholesale annual changes to the roster? "de Laura's" every year? The breaking down of the ability to identify and become emotionally invested in a group of students athletes will slowly erode alumni support across the board, leaving more casual, "bandwagon" fans. Casual bandwagon fans are not the financial engine of college athletics, and major college sports will struggle as a result.

 

[Wazzubrooz]

College football is going into the toilet and fast.

 

[Flatlandcoug]

NIL just creates greater inequities in a system that was never equitable to begin with. However, "the portal" is an existential threat to college sport as we know it. While pro sports have free agency, they also have long term contracts. So teams can maintain a core of players upon whom fans can identify as part of the "us" and "them" concept upon which "fandom" is base. Are we really going to continue to support teams and programs where there are wholesale annual changes to the roster? "de Laura's" every year? The breaking down of the ability to identify and become emotionally invested in a group of students athletes will slowly erode alumni support across the board, leaving more casual, "bandwagon" fans. Casual bandwagon fans are not the financial engine of college athletics, and major college sports will struggle as a result.

You just nailed the issue with NIL. In other paid sports, players have a contractual obligation once they accept money to play for a program. The transfer portal silliness blows that up. At the end of the day, the onus falls on the colleges and universities that stuck their collective heads in the sand hoping that this wouldn't happen, but they need to find a way to stabilize the situation and create some order or this thing is going to blow up fast. Fans are going to get disenchanted if their star players keep leaving for greener pastures if their teams are losing ball games. Winning cures everything and the coaches and programs that can hold on while this mess gets sorted out are going to be fine. Some schools will implode. Only time will tell what will happen to WSU. I agree with the OP's notion that the whole NIL business makes the casual fan's donations even more irrelevant than they already were.

 

[95coug]

You just nailed the issue with NIL. In other paid sports, players have a contractual obligation once they accept money to play for a program. The transfer portal silliness blows that up. At the end of the day, the onus falls on the colleges and universities that stuck their collective heads in the sand hoping that this wouldn't happen, but they need to find a way to stabilize the situation and create some order or this thing is going to blow up fast. Fans are going to get disenchanted if their star players keep leaving for greener pastures if their teams are losing ball games. Winning cures everything and the coaches and programs that can hold on while this mess gets sorted out are going to be fine. Some schools will implode. Only time will tell what will happen to WSU. I agree with the OP's notion that the whole NIL business makes the casual fan's donations even more irrelevant than they already were.

Problem is that there’s no way for the colleges and universities to do it. They’ll never agree on it - the USCs and Alabamas who stand to benefit the most will be against the WSUs and Kentuckys (and the G5 and FCS) who stand to lose. Even if they could agree, the schools have no mechanism for enforcement without the participation of conferences and the NCAA…and the only real tool at their disposal is eligibility, which they’ve already essentially given up.

Consider also that the schools could make some licensing money off NIL, if players are pictured in their uniform or using school names & trademarks (which is almost certainly going to happen). If that exceeds the reduction in donations from disillusioned fans, then there’s little incentive for the school to get behind a change.

 

[Flatlandcoug]

Problem is that there’s no way for the colleges and universities to do it. They’ll never agree on it - the USCs and Alabamas who stand to benefit the most will be against the WSUs and Kentuckys (and the G5 and FCS) who stand to lose. Even if they could agree, the schools have no mechanism for enforcement without the participation of conferences and the NCAA…and the only real tool at their disposal is eligibility, which they’ve already essentially given up.

Consider also that the schools could make some licensing money off NIL, if players are pictured in their uniform or using school names & trademarks (which is almost certainly going to happen). If that exceeds the reduction in donations from disillusioned fans, then there’s little incentive for the school to get behind a change.

True enough. Just a hot mess right now.

 

[12375CAT]

Are there any W-State alumni in congress (that you know of) that can introduce legislation to cap NIL? If the supreme court rules the NIL cap/player as unconstitutional then college pigskin & hoops are completely finished because the rich will get richer & stay that way forcing the (have nots) to not have to bother with it any longer.
Or the pigskin (also rans) would have to (threaten to) break away & form their own coalition if the (rich) don't agree to a voluntary NIL cap/player.