How to fix College Football?

[Jiggafini19Deux]

Ryan Clark on Instagram: "“The game ain’t softer… folks want free labor off these boys” @i_bee.22 asked, “has N.I.L. made college football softer? The answer is no. The rule changes have made the game safer, but I do believe in ways the lack of N

3,035 likes, 140 comments - realrclark on April 4, 2026: "“The game ain’t softer… folks want free labor off these boys” @i_bee.22 asked, “has N.I.L. made college football softer? The answer is no. The rule changes have made the game safer, but I do believe in ways the lack of N.I.L & portal...

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I think what RC says here is spot on.

He's also talked about how The Portal and NIL doesn't allow kids to be held accountable. You can be late for practice, do whatever, and just leave. And someone will take you. It's going to put certain kids in bad positions, but frankly, I could care less what position it puts the schools in. They've made a lot of money off of these athletes for decades. Gravy train made it to the station at long last.

I think the way Marcus and Notre Dame are handling this is a great path. It won't be perfect, it may not even be the best way to go about it, but I like their intent and motivation.

But this assessment here I completely agree with. The people who are the most outspoken against all of this change are very much the ones who are losing out as others are able to gain.

 

[Jiggafini19Deux]

I'm firmly in the camp of there's nothing that needs fixing.

Agreed. If a dude wants to go to four schools in four years, so be it. I don't understand where the negative or positive effect falls anywhere else but the individual. Does nothing for me as a fan or spectator in terms of diminishing my enjoyment or experience of watching college football. If an English major changed schools four times, the sun is going to come up tomorrow. Same goes for the special teams coach that has four jobs in six years.

Michigan wants to give a kid down the street from them millions so he won't go to LSU? That's not going to bother me on Saturdays when I'm watching games. I think it's funny as hell. Save college sports? From who? From what? Let Michigan.....Michigan.

Folks need to come down from their ivory towers a bit and really ask themselves what it is they're so upset about and what is really in need of "saving." A commission that includes millionaires like Randy Levine, Nick Saban, Ron DeSantis and Jonathan Kraft assigned to "save college sports" really rings hollow to me. To each their own.

 

[Dale]

Agreed. If a dude wants to go to four schools in four years, so be it. I don't understand where the negative or positive effect falls anywhere else but the individual. Does nothing for me as a fan or spectator in terms of diminishing my enjoyment or experience of watching college football.

One devils advocate, do you currently root for any teams that this actually happens? Because if you’re main a ND football fan, I would say we are spoiled to A) not have this experience yet and B) be winning.

Are you actually a fan of any middling team that changes players annually?

 

[Jiggafini19Deux]

One devils advocate, do you currently root for any teams that this actually happens? Because if you’re main a ND football fan, I would say we are spoiled to A) not have this experience yet and B) be winning.

Are you actually a fan of any middling team that changes players annually?

 

[Dale]

As someone who roots a for a middling CBB team as of late that changes players annually, I would say I was apathetic to my team more than ever before, and by a decent gap.

 

[Huntr]

I'm a long-time fan of some FCS football and mid-major CBB (less so). Coaches and players constantly leave these teams for FBS/major programs, every year, and did so even before above-board NIL and the relaxed transfer rules.

I kind of feel like fans of major programs who are now dealing with that are just going to have to figure out their fandom. I'm not hardcore by any means, don't gaf if they win a championship, just trying to enjoy myself and watch them get a W on a random Thursday night.

 

[Dale]

Fighting fan apathy is also why .500 basketball teams and being in 7th in the Big Ten will mean playoff contention

They know fans will lose interest in a sport where only really good teams generate fan support, so let’s stick out a carrot for mediocrity to chase.

 

[Dale]

 

[IRISHDODGER]

This is a red herring. Young adults are going to young adult and that includes blowing gobs (relatively) of money. I'm not surprised in the slightest that the "concern" over young black men coming into money is primarily coming from the south.

On topic, if I'm being unrealistic and ignoring egos, promotion/relegation is a structure that can handle haves and have nots without adding socialism to create parity. I have no idea how it would work or even if it could work, but with the sport continuing to consolidate at the top, this creates equal competition levels and earned opportunity for movement between the levels. You see it at the high school level and with professional soccer outside of the US

The southern school fans aren’t concerned w/ athletes blowing their money. Just the opposite as they’ve always seen the athletes as commodities. They want to win at any cost & now they’re pissed b/c it’s on the up & up w/ NIL so naturally the B1G & ND made instant progress on the SEC domination b/c my guess is they have plenty of more well-heeled alums willing to spend.

 

[jprue24]

Here is attendance data for 140 schools. It includes one year and five year trends and might clear up some assumptions (not saying good or bad) that are being made.

edit - here are FCS numbers: 2025 FCS Regular-Season Attendance Leaders

2025 FBS Attendance Trends - D1.ticker

Data through Week 14.

www.d1ticker.com

 

[jprue24]

Maybe but there will be some sob stories once they’ve burned thru their money and have nothing to fall back on. My perception on the “pearl clutching” is that it’s coming from SEC fans, coaches, ADs & politicians. I think B1G and ND fans are quite satisfied w/ paying players. Again that’s just my perception from down here in SEC country.

The southern school fans aren’t concerned w/ athletes blowing their money. Just the opposite as they’ve always seen the athletes as commodities. They want to win at any cost & now they’re pissed b/c it’s on the up & up w/ NIL so naturally the B1G & ND made instant progress on the SEC domination b/c my guess is they have plenty of more well-heeled alums willing to spend.

So which is it?

Or have you just been talking out of your ass?

 

[IRISHDODGER]

So which is it?

Or have you just been talking out of your ass?

Two different points answering Jigga’s retort. The first acknowledging his point that there‘s likely not a basis for lawsuits. The second (thanks for highlighting!) is directed at his point about fans’ (in general) pearl clutching and that my “perception” is that it’s mostly SEC fans B/c of the reasons I stated. Make sense?

 

[Huntr]

As someone who roots a for a middling CBB team as of late that changes players annually, I would say I was apathetic to my team more than ever before, and by a decent gap.

Kentucky basketball misses you!

 

[stlnd01]

Here is attendance data for 140 schools. It includes one year and five year trends and might clear up some assumptions (not saying good or bad) that are being made.

edit - here are FCS numbers: 2025 FCS Regular-Season Attendance Leaders

2025 FBS Attendance Trends - D1.ticker

Data through Week 14.

www.d1ticker.com

From that I take that people in Iowa, Nebraska and North Carolina have an appreciation for in-person college football that is out proportion with their team's success, and far greater than people in California (UCLA, Stanford and Cal being the bottom three in % attendance among P4 programs).

 

[NumbersGuy0520]

I'm firmly in the camp of there's nothing that needs fixing. You like capitalism? Good me too.

Selection process needs an overhaul, no? A bunch of corrupt old timers with SEC ties who get to hand wave arguments is really the best solution?

Needs some combination of human touch coupled with statistics. Give me some composite of commitee-based rankings, BCS formula-style rankings, and oddsmakers who can actually quantify who the best teams are.

In the current landscape, I don’t see a route where each year at least one-two fringe teams don’t get hand waived out for another one-two fringe teams that benefit the committee. And with Miami barely making it, yet going to the championship, and ND being third in championship odds going into selection Sunday, this shows that it can literally leave out a potential champion.

Very broken.

 

[MeanGreenBeans]

Selection process needs an overhaul, no? A bunch of corrupt old timers with SEC ties who get to hand wave arguments is really the best solution?

Needs some combination of human touch coupled with statistics. Give me some composite of commitee-based rankings, BCS formula-style rankings, and oddsmakers who can actually quantify who the best teams are.

In the current landscape, I don’t see a route where each year at least one-two fringe teams don’t get hand waived out for another one-two fringe teams that benefit the committee. And with Miami barely making it, yet going to the championship, and ND being third in championship odds going into selection Sunday, this shows that it can literally leave out a potential champion.

Very broken.

I agree that the selection process is a grimy circle jerk, but we were talking about NIL/portal.

 

[Irish#1]

I don't know of anyone who is against players getting paid. They want to blow through their money? Go ahead, it's a free world.

The top programs in college football will always cycle—just like they have in the past. Teams like Notre Dame, USC, Alabama, Michigan, and others have all had periods of dominance and times when they weren’t at the top.

One thing I’ve always enjoyed is the familiarity that comes from following the sport—not just Notre Dame, but other teams’ rosters as well. By keeping up with scores, watching games, and tracking rankings, you naturally get to know players across the country. I still check scores, but I don’t watch as many games as I used to, so I’m less familiar with who’s playing where now. That connection was a big part of why I’ve always preferred college football over the NFL.