I have heard stories about the glory days of college football. Back then, teams had to have winning conference records to play in the post season. Back then, bowl games were fewer in number and named after fruit instead of investment banks. Sadly, I cannot remember those days, and I doubt they will ever return.
To conclude the 2006 season, NCAA teams will partake in a virtual bowl game bonanza with 32 contests scheduled between Dec. 19 and Jan. 9. This means 64 teams—more than half of the 119 programs in Division I-A college football—will participate in post season play. Although more games might bring more teams and more excitement, fans may also have to watch more sub- par competition.
Actually, they have seen plenty of mediocre football already.
Aside from Ohio State, Texas and Notre Dame, the college football kingpins have fattened their bowling resumes early in 2006 by feasting on non-conference nobodies. With millions of bowl game dollars potentially on the line, why shouldn't they get the easy Ws early in the season?
Simply put, the fans deserve better.
In 36 out of their last 37 seasons, the Nebraska Cornhuskers have punched a ticket to the post season. So how did the No. 19 team tune-up for this weekend's showdown with No. 2 USC? The Cornhuskers took on Division I-AA Nicholls State. Or was it St. Nicolas St.? Either way, Nebraska knew it had a victory wrapped last weekend in Lincoln.
While the Huskers downed the Colonels 56-7, No. 5 West Virginia walloped the Eastern Washington Eagles, another Division I-AA squad. The Mountaineers, who won 52-3, played four different quarterbacks and outgained EWU by 406 yards.
I must also mention Florida State's epic 24-17 victory over Troy and Miami's light-hearted 51-10 romp over Florida A&M.
In Madison, however, the Badgers need only look in the mirror to see a schedule bloated by a steady diet of non-conference cupcakes.
Yes, that's right folks. I said it. Call them what you want: cream puffs, sugar bunnies, apple turnovers. The Badgers have more pastries in their Camp Randall cupboard than Greenbush has in its bakery.
Alright, so I am exaggerating a little. Neither Bowling Green nor San Diego State will vie for the national championship or, most likely, their respective conference championships, but both provide formidable Division I-A competition.
This brings us to Division I-AA Western Illinois. Believe it or not, I attended the first contest between the Badgers and the Leathernecks. UW's 31-13 victory came in 1991—before Vanilla Ice lost his street cred before MC Hammer went bankrupt and before an idealistic five-year-old turned into a cynical sports writer.
In 1991, the Badgers had every right to play Western Illinois. The team posted a 1-10 record just a year before and head coach Barry Alvarez had not even won a conference game.
Yet, a team that has been to 11 bowl games in the last 13 years has no business padding their record by trouncing a Division I-AA team.
Some might argue that everyone wins with more bowl games. The competing schools receive money. The corporate sponsors ranging from Brut to Auto Zone to AllState get to plaster their names and logos on the fields. Networks can charge high prices for commercial spots. The only losers in this equation are the fans who get to watch two 6-6 teams battle it out for the golden muffler given to the winner of the Meineke Bowl.
Playing Western Illinois might help UW get to a bowl game, but it will not win them any victories with their 12th man. College football has become a multi-million dollar business, and the fans deserve a better product.
