Patsy Central
posted by LW, Monday, June 15, 2009
For so long, college sports' governing body cited academics as the reason a playoff in college football was unworkable. That argument completely went out the window with the addition of a 12th game.
We were also told the 12th game would create a wave of compelling non-conference matchups.
That argument, with a few exceptions, is out the window as well.
The Birmingham News is the latest to tackle the non-conference scheduling issue, and Jon Solomon provides a comprehensive analysis of just how good -- or just how bad -- the non-conference scheduling has been for "Big Six" BCS schools.
When the NCAA adopted permanent 12-game football schedules in 2006, the main purpose was to increase revenue. One more game meant millions of dollars more for an additional home game at some schools, or another "guarantee" game to sell for a lucrative paycheck.
In the process, though, the 12th game has often accelerated the pace of easy scheduling. That might mean more money for schools and safe wins for coaches to reach bowls and keep their jobs, but nonconference games today often carry little appeal to fans.
Among the 65 teams in the six Bowl Championship Series conferences, only 34 percent of their non-conference games from 2006 to '08 were against fellow teams from the big six leagues, according to an analysis by The Birmingham News.
Some kudos are in order for the ACC, which had the highest rate of non-conference games against fellow Big Six teams (42 percent).
The SEC checks in at fourth (31 percent), followed by the Big Ten (29 percent) and Big 12 (26 percent).
And this:
No one travels less than the SEC, which played 19 percent of its nonconference games away from home.
The national rate for BCS conferences was 29 percent. On average, SEC teams traveled 1,209 miles one-way to an away or neutral game, 1,000 miles fewer per team than the next closest conference, the ACC.
Mike Huguenin of Rivals weighs in on the schedule discussion and says Virginia Tech has the toughest in the ACC, with N.C. State enjoying the easiest.
Big day for Wake Forest, which will learn whether point guard Jeff Teague will leave for the NBA or remain in Winston-Salem.
Same deal at Maryland with Greivis Vasquez.
Georgia Tech's Paul Hewitt already got the news he was hoping for with Gani Lawal's decision to withdraw his name from the draft.
Mark Bradley of the AJC says Lawal's return means there's no reason the Yellow Jackets shouldn't be a Top 10 team. In other words: The pressure is on, Mr. Hewitt.
In The Charlotte Observer, an interesting story on the growing appeal of playing professionally in Europe.
Beginning June 24 in Charlotte and June 26 in Durham, former Fayetteville State guard Larry Bratcher will host three-day seminars designed to help players learn about international agents, nutrition, salary stipulations, and what it takes to sign with a team.
Most participants are likely to come from smaller colleges. But on the heels of Clemson guard Terrence Oglesby's decision to leave school early to play in Italy and Florida sophomore Nick Calathes opting to pass on the NBA draft in order to sign with a Greek team, Bratcher's camps show how playing in Europe has become a viable option for more and more Americans who want to continue their basketball careers.
"There is an opportunity to make money over there doing what you love to do -- if you're prepared," said Bratcher, a Hillsborough resident who has played for basketball leagues in 14 countries over the past 10 years.
LW
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It's been assumed and accepted that the NCAA's permitting of a 12th regular-season game for I-A teams is the height of hypocrisy.
For so long, college sports' governing body cited academics as the reason a playoff in college football was unworkable. That argument completely went out the window with the addition of a 12th game.
We were also told the 12th game would create a wave of compelling non-conference matchups.
That argument, with a few exceptions, is out the window as well.
The Birmingham News is the latest to tackle the non-conference scheduling issue, and Jon Solomon provides a comprehensive analysis of just how good -- or just how bad -- the non-conference scheduling has been for "Big Six" BCS schools.
When the NCAA adopted permanent 12-game football schedules in 2006, the main purpose was to increase revenue. One more game meant millions of dollars more for an additional home game at some schools, or another "guarantee" game to sell for a lucrative paycheck.
In the process, though, the 12th game has often accelerated the pace of easy scheduling. That might mean more money for schools and safe wins for coaches to reach bowls and keep their jobs, but nonconference games today often carry little appeal to fans.
Among the 65 teams in the six Bowl Championship Series conferences, only 34 percent of their non-conference games from 2006 to '08 were against fellow teams from the big six leagues, according to an analysis by The Birmingham News.
Some kudos are in order for the ACC, which had the highest rate of non-conference games against fellow Big Six teams (42 percent).
The SEC checks in at fourth (31 percent), followed by the Big Ten (29 percent) and Big 12 (26 percent).
And this:
No one travels less than the SEC, which played 19 percent of its nonconference games away from home.
The national rate for BCS conferences was 29 percent. On average, SEC teams traveled 1,209 miles one-way to an away or neutral game, 1,000 miles fewer per team than the next closest conference, the ACC.
Mike Huguenin of Rivals weighs in on the schedule discussion and says Virginia Tech has the toughest in the ACC, with N.C. State enjoying the easiest.
Big day for Wake Forest, which will learn whether point guard Jeff Teague will leave for the NBA or remain in Winston-Salem.
Same deal at Maryland with Greivis Vasquez.
Georgia Tech's Paul Hewitt already got the news he was hoping for with Gani Lawal's decision to withdraw his name from the draft.
Mark Bradley of the AJC says Lawal's return means there's no reason the Yellow Jackets shouldn't be a Top 10 team. In other words: The pressure is on, Mr. Hewitt.
In The Charlotte Observer, an interesting story on the growing appeal of playing professionally in Europe.
Beginning June 24 in Charlotte and June 26 in Durham, former Fayetteville State guard Larry Bratcher will host three-day seminars designed to help players learn about international agents, nutrition, salary stipulations, and what it takes to sign with a team.
Most participants are likely to come from smaller colleges. But on the heels of Clemson guard Terrence Oglesby's decision to leave school early to play in Italy and Florida sophomore Nick Calathes opting to pass on the NBA draft in order to sign with a Greek team, Bratcher's camps show how playing in Europe has become a viable option for more and more Americans who want to continue their basketball careers.
"There is an opportunity to make money over there doing what you love to do -- if you're prepared," said Bratcher, a Hillsborough resident who has played for basketball leagues in 14 countries over the past 10 years.
LW
For questions or comments on this blog entry, please visit The West Zone message board.
Link to this entry - Discuss this entry - Return to Blog Home
Donnie Patterson. Donnie Patterson is the founder of Patterson Tax Service, located in Easley, S.C. He has been active in tax preparation since 1970, and offers a full range of tax and bookkeeping services.
Larry Williams. Larry has covered the daily beat at Clemson since 2004. Williams, who worked for the Charleston Post & Courier from 2004-08, joined Tigerillustrated.com in November of 2008. He may be reached by email at ldubya08(at)gmail.com. Replace (at) with @.