• Loading stock data...
Saturday, October 12, 2024
The Best Employers in Sports survey is now open! Take the survey

Weekly Whip Around: The Bowl Abundance Problem

By: Trace Welch, @twelch88

The holiday season, when everyone thinks of family, food, friends, and of course, the Raycom Media Camellia Bowl. This year’s inaugural Camellia bowl pitted the highly anticipated matchup of Bowling Green vs. South Alabama. Although the game was an exciting matchup, it is time to take a look at the overabundance of College Football bowl games and whether they are really necessary to the functioning of the College Football postseason. College Football bowl season is an exciting time of year for sports, drawing large television audiences and providing student athletes an opportunity for all of their hard work to be rewarded. There are benefits as well as disadvantages to having such a large allotment of bowl games, and these two factors must be weighed against each other in order to determine if change is necessary or if the format is acceptable as it currently is.

The 2014–2015 NCAA Division I bowl season has 39 bowl games ranging in locations from Detroit, Michigan to Nassau, Bahamas. The majority of these bowls have contracts with respective conferences that guarantee that if there is a bowl eligible team from a conference that the bowl will choose that team and pit them against a team from another conference who also holds a contract with the bowl game. This can cause some financial strain for the conferences when it comes to ticket allotment. One provision of the contract is that the conference guarantees to buy a certain allotment of bowl tickets. After the conference buys these tickets, it is then the responsibility of the conference/ school to sell these tickets. A majority of the low tier bowls have sparse attendance that is noticeable to anyone watching on television. When the attendance numbers are so low for these games that means that the conference has taken a financial hit, as they were not able to sell the tickets that they were required to purchase from the bowl game. During the 2013–2014 bowl season, conferences and schools once again had trouble selling tickets, which resulted in a record $23.8 million of unsold tickets according to NCAA records.[1] This lost money is a wasted resource that could be used by the conferences for the betterment of student athletes.

The question to consider however is if the money made from television programming makes up for the lost money in attendance. The figures suggest that the driving force behind all of these bowl games is the television viewership that is almost guaranteed by the bowl games. In 2013–2014 the lowest number of viewers that a bowl had was 1.1 million people, which will more than make up for the lost money in attendance. This television thirst for college football bowl games is what drives the creation and maintenance of such a large number of postseason contests. The viewership numbers is not the only thing that keeps these bowl games so stable. Sponsorship, support, and commitment from large corporate entities allow bowl games to operate effectively. Support from the local community whose economy is boosted also allows bowl games to function. Lastly, the coordination between conferences, the NCAA and these bowl games allows for the bowl season to go off without a hitch. All of these reasons contribute to such a long and plentiful college football postseason and my next article will delve deeper into the factors that contribute to such a large amount of bowl games, as well as the pros and cons from so many postseason contests.

[1] https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ncaaf/2014/12/25/college-football-bowl-games-attendance-bahamas-camellia-espn/20896969/

Linkedin
Whatsapp
Copy Link
Link Copied
Link Copied

What to Read

Emmanuel Acho Set To Land Solo Show on Fox Sports

Rising star Emmanuel Acho is poised to land his own solo show at Fox Sports, say sources. He currently co-hosts FS1’s ‘Speak for Yourself.’
Sponsored

Varsity Partners Steps Up the Sponsorship Game with TBT Teams

TBT has thrived on innovation and forward thinking through its seven year existence —including being the first indoor U.S. sporting event to return to action during the pandemic with a 24 team bubble in Columbus,Ohio —brand sponsorships for teams was the next opportunity for growth.
Sponsored

Executive Roundtable: Putting Employees First

Best Employers in Sports, Charlotte Hornets, Miami Dolphins, remote work, diversity, inclusion, COVID-19, leadership, career development
Sponsored

Putting Fans At The Center of Your Data Strategy Post-COVID

The Portland Trail Blazers are one example of an organization offering a more personalized customer experience thanks to data.
podcast thumbnail mobile
Front Office Sports Today

Inside CFB’s Biggest Day of the Year

0:00

Featured Today

Sep 21, 2024; Boulder, Colorado, USA; Colorado Buffaloes quarterback Shedeur Sanders (2) walks through Buff Walk before the game against the Baylor Bears at Folsom Field.
opinion

The NIL Era Is a Wild West. Is Anyone Surprised?

Amateurism is dead and college athletes are professionals. How’s that working out?
October 11, 2024

‘We’re Ready for FBS’: Sacramento State Is Serious About the Jump

How the Hornets got themselves on the short list of potential call-ups.
Duante' Abercrombie News Ch.4 interview
October 9, 2024

Tennessee State’s Ambitious Plan to Launch an HBCU Hockey Program

TSU has big plans, but the university is facing an existential dilemma.
October 8, 2024

Ryan Smith Sees Salt Lake City As Next Vegas-Like Sports Town

Utah Hockey Club’s owner says all the pieces are falling into place.
Sponsored

Rivalries Reign Across Red River and the Beltway, London Calling

According to data from TickPick, renewed battles between bitter foes are spiking ticket prices.
Kylian Mbappe at the 2022 World Cup final at Lusail Stadium
September 12, 2024

PSG Says It Will Fight Order to Pay Mbappé $61 Million in Salary Dispute

The French league’s legal commission gave a nonbinding order Thursday.
Sep 30, 2024; El Segundo, CA, USA; The Nike shoes worn by Los Angeles Lakers guard Bronny James during media day at the UCLA Health Training Center.
October 1, 2024

Nike Avoids Surprise With Expected 10% Sales Dip

New Nike CEO Elliott Hill starts his role Oct. 14.
Sponsored

Rivalries Reign Across Red River and the Beltway, London Calling

According to data from TickPick, renewed battles between bitter foes are spiking ticket prices.
August 1, 2024

Factle – now on Front Office Sports

Hello, Factle player! You might notice that the game looks a bit…
Sponsored

How Sportradar and the NBA are Partnering to Fuel Fan Engagement

How Sportradar and the NBA are utilizing data to enhance fan engagement
Sponsored

MLS’ Chris Schlosser on Pioneering the Digital-First Sports League with AI

Chris Schlosser discusses MLS’s growth and digital transformation.
Oakland-A's
April 25, 2023

Oakland A’s Could Share Stadium with Triple-A Team

The Oakland A’s could be searching for a place to play.