Opting out is not the problem...it's the symptom...

And you've got players who are trying to make an impression to POSSIBLY make it to the NFL...they are willing to destroy a sure fire NFL draft player if it means they get a chance at a pay day...of course players don't want to risk it.

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he real problem is there are too many bowl games that don't mean anything.

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So essentially you're saying the amount of meaningless bowl games is causing players to sit out of games that wouldn't exist if there were less meaningless bowl games.

College football is turning into pro football and it’s being done on purpose. It’s being done to maximize revenue.

We went from bowls to playoffs, and they are expanding.
We are going from conferences and traditional rivalries to super conferences that’ll eventually self govern.
We have free agency.
We have contracts that only benefit the player.
We have opt outs.

College football as we know it will never be the same.

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The playoffs killed bowl games.

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This and I don’t think going from 18 to 43 bowls helped either. Hard for a bowl to feel “special” when there are 6-6 and even a 5-7 team playing in one. And look at the attendance at these games. Stadiums less than half full.

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It’s an LSU game next week but it’s a little more exciting than the spring game in my opinion. It’ll only get worse with playoff expansion.

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Please tell me how the Citrus bowl was more exciting in 2000? Outside of treams playing for a title these bowl games have never meant anything and it just until now for players heading to the draft to realize it.

As a typical ranter you don't understand nuance. Im saying bubble players are going all-out and playing as hard as they can...and if they happen to injure another player on a "clean" play they have no problem doing it. Why risk an injury in a meaningless game?

I think we will eventually see guys opting out of playoffs. That’s Three extra games for some.

Opting out started with the talking sports heads pushing for Fournette to sit out his entire junior season. It peaked during bowl season and that’s what started it.

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Please tell me how the Citrus bowl was more exciting in 2000? Outside of treams playing for a title these bowl games have never meant anything and it just until now for players heading to the draft to realize it.

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Absolutely true. However, the (relative) "scarcity" of bowl games 30-40 years coupled with the traditional sentiment that reaching one was a significant accomplishment kept them meaningful for the players and fans. That sentiment has essentially disappeared for a number of reasons since that time.

1. The addition of more and more bowl eliminated the scarcity. When 6-6 (and sometimes 5-7) teams are reaching bowl games it completely eliminates the sense of accomplishment. With no feeling of accomplishment and no greater reward other than a trophy and t shirt for winning, why waste additional time and energy to prepare and play in a largely meaningless game. Particularly when most player are physically and emotionally spent after a grueling season?

2. "Fear" over covid normalized "opting out". Before 2020 it was very rare to see a player opt out. And the only ones who considered were sure fire first round draft picks who didn't want to risk injury. Like everything associated with the ridiculous pandemic response, doing something "out of an abundance of caution"...even though the risk was exceedingly low became accepted by society. So the negative stigma of "opting out" was significant diminished. What was once unthinkable became acceptable.

3. The early signing day combined with the new freedom of transfer rules made bowl games an avoidable nuisance for players looking towards next season. The early signing day forced coaches to make decisions on filling their rosters for next year BEFORE the bowl game was played. And with those roster spots potentially filling up in December, those looking to transfer wanted to get a jump on searching for their next school ASAP to avoid the risk a preferred spot might not be available for them.

In every other sport you end the regular season and jump right into the postseason...except for college football where even with the "big" postseason games you take a month (or more) off before playing again. With the postseason being so attenuated from the regular season, I COMPLETELY understand the mindset of a player saying "I'm hurt. I've been playing through injury. I'm tired of practicing every day and want a rest before starting the work for next season. I don't feel like spending another month practicing for a game where there is no real reward for winning."