Good article on the economics of the small bowls and ESPN's role:

https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nc...940670001/

Here is a link that works

https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nc...940670001/

Many of these Bowls exist for mid-week TV programming on ESPN in December, for the same reason MACtion exist in November.

Over simplification. The crappy bowls were there before the CFP and ESPN began hoarding them prior to the CFP. That said, the CFP money does offset some of the money teams lose by participating in the low end low payout games.

(12-18-2017 11:24 PM)Attackcoog Wrote:  Over simplification. The crappy bowls were there before the CFP and ESPN began hoarding them prior to the CFP. That said, the CFP money does offset some of the money teams lose by participating in the low end low payout games.

It offsets more than some. As the AAC example indicates, last year, the AAC schools spent about $6m sending teams to bowl games, but received $20m from the CFP.

So since the schools are all making money from the overall CFP/bowl regime, the only risk is on the side of the owners of the bowls. Historically, those were local entities interested in using the bowl to boost tourism, so butts in the seats - and therefore in the hotel rooms and restaurants - was critical. But with ESPN, their goal is TV, so that pressure is largely removed as well.

That's why it doesn't matter much when a bowl is played before almost nobody, like the Cure Bowl this past weekend, where the two school's bands seemed to outnumber the fans in the stands.

For these bowls, they might as well play them on a movie lot or sound stage.

(12-18-2017 09:40 PM)Stugray2 Wrote:  Here is a link that works

https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nc...940670001/

Many of these Bowls exist for mid-week TV programming on ESPN in December, for the same reason MACtion exist in November.

FWIW, I've tried my link on three different devices, and it works just fine.

(12-18-2017 11:57 PM)quo vadis Wrote:  

(12-18-2017 09:40 PM)Stugray2 Wrote:  Here is a link that works

https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nc...940670001/

Many of these Bowls exist for mid-week TV programming on ESPN in December, for the same reason MACtion exist in November.

FWIW, I've tried my link on three different devices, and it works just fine.

I figured it out. Somehow there is some adware link that was associated with this forum for me that I had to turn off. I tested several other sites to see if they were affected also (meaning something slipped in my browser), but no just this site.

My bad, I should have suspected that first.

(12-18-2017 11:54 PM)quo vadis Wrote:  So since the schools are all making money from the overall CFP/bowl regime, the only risk is on the side of the owners of the bowls. Historically, those were local entities interested in using the bowl to boost tourism, so butts in the seats - and therefore in the hotel rooms and restaurants - was critical. But with ESPN, their goal is TV, so that pressure is largely removed as well.

That's why it doesn't matter much when a bowl is played before almost nobody, like the Cure Bowl this past weekend, where the two school's bands seemed to outnumber the fans in the stands.

For these bowls, they might as well play them on a movie lot or sound stage.

Very true.

* The smaller bowls serve as programming for the ESPN networks. They still provide great exposure for G5 schools.

* They also serve as 3 1/2 hour infomercials for places such as Montgomery, Mobile, and Boise. The bowl host communities are gaining exposure that they wouldn't otherwise have. There's a reason why the state of New Mexico sponsors a bowl game in Albuquerque. We may laugh at the bowl formerly sponsored by Weed Eater, but lots of people outside the region now know about Shreveport.

* And yes, some of these bowls could be played on a movie lot or sound stage. When attendance is secondary to TV programming, some creative things can be done. Hence, events like the Bahamas Bowl. Who wouldn't want to go to the Bahamas? It doesn't matter if they don't fill a small soccer stadium in another country. The players get a great trip, ESPN gets to fill programming time, and the Bahamas gets to promote itself as a destination. I think more Caribbean islands with resorts/hotels should use their soccer stadiums for small bowl games. It's a great idea.

(12-18-2017 11:24 PM)Attackcoog Wrote:  The crappy bowls were there before the CFP and ESPN began hoarding them prior to the CFP.

Not as many of them.

Per the USA Today article, there were 28 bowls in 2005 and ESPN owned 3 of them. This season, there are 39 bowls (not including the CFP title game) and ESPN owns 13.

In other words, the increase in the number of bowls is pretty much the same as the increase in the number of bowls owned by ESPN.

Many of the new bowls that ESPN set up serve to fill valuable inventory space for the network in the week leading up to Christmas. This is normally a pretty dull week in Sports outside of the NFL on Sunday. NBA and NHL are still early season. College Basketball teams are winding down for Christmas with cupcakes to prepare for league play. There's just very little used inventory this week without the bowl games.

By organizing 11 new games, and setting up the College Football Playoff, ESPN managed to design an inventory schedule that fit its needs. Smaller Bowl games Pre Christmas. Medium sized Bowl games post Christmas, the Major Bowls on New Years Eve and Day along with the playoff Semifinals, and then a full week break where the Network can load up with tons of College Basketball conference openers to prop up its upcoming weekend telecasts of an NFL Wild Card Game and the National Title game.

It's interesting to note that the Bowl Game schedule drastically changed about the same time that ESPN won the rights to an NFL Playoff Game. Suddenly, instead of needing inventory that smaller and medium sized bowls could fill in the few days before the National Title game, ESPN had an NFL playoff game it could use instead.

(12-19-2017 03:05 AM)chiefsfan Wrote:  Many of the new bowls that ESPN set up serve to fill valuable inventory space for the network in the week leading up to Christmas. This is normally a pretty dull week in Sports outside of the NFL on Sunday. NBA and NHL are still early season. College Basketball teams are winding down for Christmas with cupcakes to prepare for league play. There's just very little used inventory this week without the bowl games.

By organizing 11 new games, and setting up the College Football Playoff, ESPN managed to design an inventory schedule that fit its needs. Smaller Bowl games Pre Christmas. Medium sized Bowl games post Christmas, the Major Bowls on New Years Eve and Day along with the playoff Semifinals, and then a full week break where the Network can load up with tons of College Basketball conference openers to prop up its upcoming weekend telecasts of an NFL Wild Card Game and the National Title game.

It's interesting to note that the Bowl Game schedule drastically changed about the same time that ESPN won the rights to an NFL Playoff Game. Suddenly, instead of needing inventory that smaller and medium sized bowls could fill in the few days before the National Title game, ESPN had an NFL playoff game it could use instead.

I do think ESPN wants more bowl games. They showed the D2 championship game on ESPN 2 between West Florida and Texas A&M-Commerce. I heard the commentators during the game that both schools should move up to D1. The coach at Commerce said that they are happy at D2 level. But, it does not sound like it with the his bosses who said they would look into joining D1 after ABU and IWC moved up into the Southland. The coaches have no say so in the matter. It is his bosses that have the say so.

Bottom line - bowl games are funded primarily by television, not ticket sales. Given this, it makes sense to play more games in smaller venues closer to where one or both of the participating schools are located, which should reduce the cost of traveling to the game for teams and fans.

I for one love bowl games. Let's face it, this time of year would you rather watch The Menard's Kitchen Sink Bowl or another rerun of Blue Bloods?

It gives national exposure to programs and teams than probably won't get prime time coverage during the season.

It gives the kids a chance to be rewarded for hard work. Some of those "gift bags" given out by the bowls are pretty darn nice.

It gives fans a chance to see match-ups they normally wouldn't see. I mean how many times would you get to see Wisconsin v Miami or Utah v WVU?

I say if someone wants to sponsor a bowl game and a network like ESPN wants to show it, I say more power to them.

(12-19-2017 12:50 AM)johnintx Wrote:  * And yes, some of these bowls could be played on a movie lot or sound stage. When attendance is secondary to TV programming, some creative things can be done. Hence, events like the Bahamas Bowl. Who wouldn't want to go to the Bahamas? It doesn't matter if they don't fill a small soccer stadium in another country. The players get a great trip, ESPN gets to fill programming time, and the Bahamas gets to promote itself as a destination. I think more Caribbean islands with resorts/hotels should use their soccer stadiums for small bowl games. It's a great idea.

Nearly every time i hear about the Bahamas Bowl i think of the 2014 video where the Central Michigan players learn their bowl fate:

http://www.bahamasbowl.com/central-michi...-bowl-bid/

(12-19-2017 09:11 AM)BadgerMJ Wrote:  I for one love bowl games. Let's face it, this time of year would you rather watch The Menard's Kitchen Sink Bowl or another rerun of Blue Bloods?

...
I say if someone wants to sponsor a bowl game and a network like ESPN wants to show it, I say more power to them.

I'm torn. I grew up in the 1970s, when bowl games were few and going to one was reserved for the teams that had great years, it really meant something. So conceptually, i chafe at everyone-and-their-mother going to a bowl game with a 6-6 record.

But practically, I'm with you! I love bowl season and the proliferation of bowls, i watch as many as i can. I watched all five bowl games on Saturday, and will watch probably all but 3-4 over the next couple weeks, and will miss those purely because of unavoidable family commitments.

It's just more college football at a time when it is painfully clear that college football is coming to an end for 8-9 long months.

(12-19-2017 09:11 AM)quo vadis Wrote:  

(12-19-2017 12:50 AM)johnintx Wrote:  * And yes, some of these bowls could be played on a movie lot or sound stage. When attendance is secondary to TV programming, some creative things can be done. Hence, events like the Bahamas Bowl. Who wouldn't want to go to the Bahamas? It doesn't matter if they don't fill a small soccer stadium in another country. The players get a great trip, ESPN gets to fill programming time, and the Bahamas gets to promote itself as a destination. I think more Caribbean islands with resorts/hotels should use their soccer stadiums for small bowl games. It's a great idea.

Nearly every time i hear about the Bahamas Bowl i think of the 2014 video where the Central Michigan players learn their bowl fate:

http://www.bahamasbowl.com/central-michi...-bowl-bid/

I think if I was from Michigan, and my choice was between Detroit and the Bahamas, I believe I would react the same way.

(12-19-2017 10:27 AM)ken d Wrote:  

(12-19-2017 09:11 AM)quo vadis Wrote:  

(12-19-2017 12:50 AM)johnintx Wrote:  * And yes, some of these bowls could be played on a movie lot or sound stage. When attendance is secondary to TV programming, some creative things can be done. Hence, events like the Bahamas Bowl. Who wouldn't want to go to the Bahamas? It doesn't matter if they don't fill a small soccer stadium in another country. The players get a great trip, ESPN gets to fill programming time, and the Bahamas gets to promote itself as a destination. I think more Caribbean islands with resorts/hotels should use their soccer stadiums for small bowl games. It's a great idea.

Nearly every time i hear about the Bahamas Bowl i think of the 2014 video where the Central Michigan players learn their bowl fate:

http://www.bahamasbowl.com/central-michi...-bowl-bid/

I think if I was from Michigan, and my choice was between Detroit and the Bahamas, I believe I would react the same way.

That would be my only caveat, if you're going to have a bowl game, it has to be some place nice, and preferably warm.

Sorry, but I wouldn't be overly thrilled about going to Detroit or Boise....

(12-19-2017 09:02 AM)orangefan Wrote:  Bottom line - bowl games are funded primarily by television, not ticket sales. Given this, it makes sense to play more games in smaller venues closer to where one or both of the participating schools are located, which should reduce the cost of traveling to the game for teams and fans.

Except that part of the appeal is getting away from the cold weather to somewhere warm and sunny.

As an Orange fan, you should be familiar with what upstate New York is like in the winter. Going to Boston or New York City or Philadelphia or Detroit or Chicago doesn't help that in the same way that going to Miami or Myrtle Beach or Memphis or Mobile, AL or Phoenix does.

(12-19-2017 09:16 AM)quo vadis Wrote:  

(12-19-2017 09:11 AM)BadgerMJ Wrote:  I for one love bowl games. Let's face it, this time of year would you rather watch The Menard's Kitchen Sink Bowl or another rerun of Blue Bloods?

...
I say if someone wants to sponsor a bowl game and a network like ESPN wants to show it, I say more power to them.

I'm torn. I grew up in the 1970s, when bowl games were few and going to one was reserved for the teams that had great years, it really meant something. So conceptually, i chafe at everyone-and-their-mother going to a bowl game with a 6-6 record.

But practically, I'm with you! I love bowl season and the proliferation of bowls, i watch as many as i can. I watched all five bowl games on Saturday, and will watch probably all but 3-4 over the next couple weeks, and will miss those purely because of unavoidable family commitments.

It's just more college football at a time when it is painfully clear that college football is coming to an end for 8-9 long months.

I like bowls also, but I wouldn't mind if it got trimmed down a little bit with 7 wins teams as the requirement. I would like a few more spread out after Christmas, rather than the plethora of before Christmas.
In addition, having fewer bowls make those bowls more valuable and therefore the payouts would be a little bigger also...especially on the G5 side of things.

(12-19-2017 11:07 AM)johnbragg Wrote:  

(12-19-2017 09:02 AM)orangefan Wrote:  Bottom line - bowl games are funded primarily by television, not ticket sales. Given this, it makes sense to play more games in smaller venues closer to where one or both of the participating schools are located, which should reduce the cost of traveling to the game for teams and fans.

Except that part of the appeal is getting away from the cold weather to somewhere warm and sunny.

As an Orange fan, you should be familiar with what upstate New York is like in the winter. Going to Boston or New York City or Philadelphia or Detroit or Chicago doesn't help that in the same way that going to Miami or Myrtle Beach or Memphis or Mobile, AL or Phoenix does.

How many fans are going to spend over $1000 to see their 6-6 team in a bowl game 2000 or 3000 miles away? No matter how much the bowl guys in bright blazers try to talk up games like that, it's nothing like (for example) Georgia fans deciding to make the trip to Pasadena; that's a unique opportunity for them to see their team in the Rose Bowl. The weather might be just as nice for the hundreds who sat in the stands at the Cure Bowl, but if you're spending significant money it's got to be about more than the temperature at game time.

(12-19-2017 11:34 AM)MWC Tex Wrote:  

(12-19-2017 09:16 AM)quo vadis Wrote:  

(12-19-2017 09:11 AM)BadgerMJ Wrote:  I for one love bowl games. Let's face it, this time of year would you rather watch The Menard's Kitchen Sink Bowl or another rerun of Blue Bloods?

...
I say if someone wants to sponsor a bowl game and a network like ESPN wants to show it, I say more power to them.

I'm torn. I grew up in the 1970s, when bowl games were few and going to one was reserved for the teams that had great years, it really meant something. So conceptually, i chafe at everyone-and-their-mother going to a bowl game with a 6-6 record.

But practically, I'm with you! I love bowl season and the proliferation of bowls, i watch as many as i can. I watched all five bowl games on Saturday, and will watch probably all but 3-4 over the next couple weeks, and will miss those purely because of unavoidable family commitments.

It's just more college football at a time when it is painfully clear that college football is coming to an end for 8-9 long months.

I like bowls also, but I wouldn't mind if it got trimmed down a little bit with 7 wins teams as the requirement. I would like a few more spread out after Christmas, rather than the plethora of before Christmas.
In addition, having fewer bowls make those bowls more valuable and therefore the payouts would be a little bigger also...especially on the G5 side of things.

True, but for a team that goes 6-6 or 7-5, fans may have a hard time justifying incurring a significant travel expense to go to a bowl. If it's possible to drive, take a train or get a cheap flight on Southwest, it becomes easier to justify for a larger number of fans.