Comments on: Pomp, pageantry & pizza http://www.brendanloy.com/lrt/2009/12/pomp-pageantry-pizza/ All the Nose that's fit to blog Sun, 05 Feb 2012 19:45:15 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: <img src='http://www.brendanloy.com/lrt/wp-content/plugins/rpx/images/facebook.png'/> Brendan Loy http://www.brendanloy.com/lrt/2009/12/pomp-pageantry-pizza/comment-page-1/#comment-3320 Brendan Loy Sat, 26 Dec 2009 21:08:03 +0000 http://www.brendanloy.com/lrt/?p=6689#comment-3320 David, of course I "can do better," but I'm not making a serious argument for a playoff or against the bowl system -- I'm just engaging in a bit of mockery. Must every post be a Master's thesis on the flaws of the BCS? I think my positions are well-known, and have been well-expressed in the past. In this post, I'm just saying that, all other considerations aside, a game called the Little Caesars Pizza Bowl is ridiculous, particularly when it matches up a pair of mediocre teams from bad conferences that nobody wants to watch. But really, I'm not even "saying" that, because that implies a serious argument, and I'm just making a joke about how absurd the whole thing is. Also, the small bowls are frequently held up by the BCS powers-that-be as a part of the tradition that needs to be preserved (often in rebuttal to playoff schemes that would try to keep alive the larger bowls -- as parts of a playoff -- but kill off the small ones). So I'm not the one inventing this idea that the small bowls have some relevance to the playoff debate. As far as I'm concerned, they can <a href="http://www.brendanloy.com/lrt/2009/12/21/twitter-rt-andy_staples-very/" rel="nofollow">absolutely continue to exist</a> in a playoff system, but some BCS advocates don't seem to think so, and further seem to think that preserving them (and their middle-school-ish everybody-gets-a-trophy mentality) is more important than, y'know, crowning a national champion in a remotely defensible way. David, of course I “can do better,” but I’m not making a serious argument for a playoff or against the bowl system — I’m just engaging in a bit of mockery. Must every post be a Master’s thesis on the flaws of the BCS? I think my positions are well-known, and have been well-expressed in the past. In this post, I’m just saying that, all other considerations aside, a game called the Little Caesars Pizza Bowl is ridiculous, particularly when it matches up a pair of mediocre teams from bad conferences that nobody wants to watch. But really, I’m not even “saying” that, because that implies a serious argument, and I’m just making a joke about how absurd the whole thing is.

Also, the small bowls are frequently held up by the BCS powers-that-be as a part of the tradition that needs to be preserved (often in rebuttal to playoff schemes that would try to keep alive the larger bowls — as parts of a playoff — but kill off the small ones). So I’m not the one inventing this idea that the small bowls have some relevance to the playoff debate. As far as I’m concerned, they can absolutely continue to exist in a playoff system, but some BCS advocates don’t seem to think so, and further seem to think that preserving them (and their middle-school-ish everybody-gets-a-trophy mentality) is more important than, y’know, crowning a national champion in a remotely defensible way.

]]> By: David K. http://www.brendanloy.com/lrt/2009/12/pomp-pageantry-pizza/comment-page-1/#comment-3319 David K. Sat, 26 Dec 2009 20:41:56 +0000 http://www.brendanloy.com/lrt/?p=6689#comment-3319 Come on Brendan, you can do better. First, the existence of the Papa John's bowl does nothing to slow the implementation of a top playoff system. The major bowls are the hinderance to that and if you try and tell me that pagentary and tradition don't play in to the Sugar and Rose Bowls, you aren't allowed to comment about college football ever again. Second, I realize its hard for you to get excited about this bowl game, but for the players, fans, schools, and cities involved its a big deal. Going to bowl games, playing in bowl games, being involved in bowl games is a big deal. It makes money for the schools involved and usually the host cities (otherwise they would stop doing them). That money in many cases will go not just to the football program, but other sports at the respective schools as well. Most college sports are money losers, but we value them anyway, the way we fund them is, in a number of cases, through revenue from the money making programs like football and basketball. Third, having been involved, in the marching band, in two bowl games (Holiday and Sun) I can tell you that even in a losing game its still a great experience and even if you aren't playing for the national championship can be a big deal fro the school and its fans and players. Come on Brendan, you can do better.
First, the existence of the Papa John’s bowl does nothing to slow the implementation of a top playoff system. The major bowls are the hinderance to that and if you try and tell me that pagentary and tradition don’t play in to the Sugar and Rose Bowls, you aren’t allowed to comment about college football ever again.
Second, I realize its hard for you to get excited about this bowl game, but for the players, fans, schools, and cities involved its a big deal. Going to bowl games, playing in bowl games, being involved in bowl games is a big deal. It makes money for the schools involved and usually the host cities (otherwise they would stop doing them). That money in many cases will go not just to the football program, but other sports at the respective schools as well. Most college sports are money losers, but we value them anyway, the way we fund them is, in a number of cases, through revenue from the money making programs like football and basketball.
Third, having been involved, in the marching band, in two bowl games (Holiday and Sun) I can tell you that even in a losing game its still a great experience and even if you aren’t playing for the national championship can be a big deal fro the school and its fans and players.

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