Tuesday, October 3, 2017

What happens to college football if the NFL implodes?

Colleges have become the minor leagues for the NFL. Where the MLB has farm teams and calls players up, the NFL uses a daft system instead, but the results are nearly the same. College ball has enough of a following that if the Pros were taking players out of school in hte midleof the year, folksvwould get UPSET!
A fair percentage of the men who play college ball are there only for the opportunity to make it to the NFL. They walk out of the University with a meaningless degree having never taking a class that challenged their intellect. No NFL, no point in playing. Many of them come from poor neighborhoods where the schools offer little in terms of hope education or opportunity. The chances of a successful transition from college to the NFL has always been dismal. less than 5% of college players make the cut, and many of them get their pink slip with their first check. If the KSU college of Veterinary medicine had a placement rate comparable to Bill Snyder's, they would close the doors.
The NFL implosion is happening whether the owners, sponsors or players want to admit it. Fans are turning their backs, long time die hard fans.
People claim that the demographic is dying, that the NFL fans are becoming old and withering away. Seriously??? Ever go to a college game? The stands are packed with kids! When Joe football graduates, his class mates continue to follow him into the NFL. Jordy Nelson had enough of a following at KSU that Green Bay games are nearly always broadcast her in Kansas. Before that it was Darin Sprolles. Football would have continued to be a draw.
Maybe the owners were looking at the changing climate on campus and looking to tap in to the snowflake crowd, but the simple fact is those snowflakes are not a majority,  and they view football players as the rapists they want to see eliminated.
If the NFL dies, they would claim victory, and the sport might very well perish on campus.
I don't see that scenario happening, but losing the NFL will mean a major drop in college football viewers.  The change in the total demographic would make the game less appealing, people want to see some violence. Hockey maybe?
For me, what I see is that if the NFL completely implodes, college ball will suffer. There will be less incentive for guys who would have no other chance to venture on to campus. They would stay in their neighborhood and either find jobs or find out what jail is like. Instead the players will be students who are actually working on degrees. They would have less time for practice, and would be less apt to risk injury. That wold make for a less exciting game.
There is also the chance the USFL comes back to life. Was this a business decision by the President? Be a fat cat team owner again after he leaves the oval office? NAH.

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