Tired of seeing power houses playing patsies?

warren1st

Active member
This is getting sadder by the year. The big power houses now play much smaller and less talented school to rack up points to get into the playoffs. The smaller teams aren’t totally absolved off all the blame either as they take home a huge payday.

Looks like it’s all about money"……….sad.

I remember the years when Michigan played Norte Dame, UCLA, Washington, etc. and the big prize was going to the Rose Bowl for teams in the Big 10.

Guess I’m too old school but that’s how I feel.
 
 
Kent State will receive a total of $5.2 million in guaranteed payouts as a result of playing three road games against Power Five opponents. This money helps the entire athletic program keep running at a time of increasingly tight budgets.

As long as places like the Horseshoe and Nehlen Stadium are full for the likes of Toledo and Akron and the big schools keep writing enormous checks, things are not going to change.
 
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Ohio State Notre Dame
Georgia vs Oregon
Alabama vs Texas



just to name a few from this year.

Something to keep in mind with the small schools vs powerhouses, the small schools want them, and even depend on them. Small schools are paid a hefty sum to go get crushed by a powerhouse, and the money they make keeps their athletic programs afloat.

If not for those powerhouse vs small school games, many small school athletic programs (not just the football program) would end up shutting down due to lack of operating funds.
 
Toledo wasn't supposed to be a patsy and Ohio St should be playing in-state schools.

I wanted to get see if OP's view f scheduling was faulty memory or real somewhat. Looking at past OSU OOC schedules. It is real. Here are the ranked OOC.
1980: 11, 20
1983: 2
1986: 5, 17
1987: 4
1988: 7
1989: 12

2020: 12
2016: 14
2017: 5
2018: 15
2021: 12

In those 80s years in addition to ranked opponents, their OOC was primarily P5. They were losing too many games. With that model, they would not see play-offs in the four team era. Hence the "patsies."
 
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Oh yeah it's definitely about the money. The days of playing for the Big Ten title and facing off against the Pac 8 Champs for the right to play in the tournament of roses are in the rear view mirror. Things change and that's not a bad thing.
Here in Youngstown ever since the football team started taking these power 5 checks the entire athletic department has seen a significant transformation. New soccer,softball,lacrosse track and tennis facilities on and around campus.
Couldn't have been done without playing TOSU,Pitt, Kentucky, Penn St,etc. And I don't believe the power 5 plays the smaller schools to get higher in rankings with inflated records. I believe they play them as a quasi scrimmage. Get a victory while evaluating talent and establishing rotations.
However I think it would be beneficial if the NCAA sanctioned an actual preseason or scrimmage game. You can get rid of the Ohio State vs Toledo 77-21 game and that match up as a August scrimmage. You know the Buckeye faithful would at least fill up 90% of the shoe. You can still cut Toledo a check from the proceeds. FCS and lower group of 5 schools get their money and power 5 teams can face off against each other ( and competing group of 5 like Houstons and Cincys of college football)
 
Kent State will receive a total of $5.2 million in guaranteed payouts as a result of playing three road games against Power Five opponents. This money helps the entire athletic program keep running at a time of increasingly tight budgets.

As long as places like the Horseshoe and Nehlen Stadium are full for the likes of Toledo and Akron and the big schools keep writing enormous checks, things are not going to change.
I remember when Akron got $500,000 to go to Nebraska in either '97 or '98 and another $350,000 to go to LSU a few weeks later. Those were big paydays at that time. And, yeah, if the host school can cut a check for over $1.5 million to the visiting school, just imagine how much money the host school is grossing at the gate alone.

This is getting sadder by the year. The big power houses now play much smaller and less talented school to rack up points to get into the playoffs. The smaller teams aren’t totally absolved off all the blame either as they take home a huge payday.

Looks like it’s all about money"……….sad.

I remember the years when Michigan played Norte Dame, UCLA, Washington, etc. and the big prize was going to the Rose Bowl for teams in the Big 10.

Guess I’m too old school but that’s how I feel.
As clark mentioned, the smaller school programs need that money, much like inner-city HS football teams need the games where they get a guaranteed payout in order to fund their programs.
 
Always been the case, and I think we see better early season matchups nowadays than we did back in the day.

Prior to the BCS: Schedule easy enough to be undefeated. You stayed away from big time matchups as much as possible. Lose, and you are likely screwed on the national scene.
BCS: Little more balance, maybe one decent OOC game as you could lose early, yet still make the top 2. Big boys knew they could take a risk early, because if htey took care of business they could make the BCS title game.
4 team playoff: More risks taken by teams as they know 1 loss likley wont kill their chances.


So......and I have noticed it recently, we are getting more OOC big matchups now more than ever. Whether it be the made-for-tv events in neutral locals or organic scheduling, we are seeing better OOC games..

There will ALWAYS be dogs on the schedule. Always.
 
I don't see the problem. If anything, I think the gap is decreasing. With immediate eligibility available after transferring, I think we'll see a lot of buy games become more competitive as P5 talent has more incentive to transfer down if things just aren't working out for whatever reason. Sure, talent can transfer up, but that's more of a basketball thing.

It gets fishy when teams play other teams from way lower divisions than their own. I don't see the sense in FBS schools scheduling FCS schools from the NEC, which supports more than 20 fewer scholarships than most other FCS teams. Or did you see how D1 FCS Lamar played something called North American University last year?
 
I don't see the problem. If anything, I think the gap is decreasing. With immediate eligibility available after transferring, I think we'll see a lot of buy games become more competitive as P5 talent has more incentive to transfer down if things just aren't working out for whatever reason. Sure, talent can transfer up, but that's more of a basketball thing.

It gets fishy when teams play other teams from way lower divisions than their own. I don't see the sense in FBS schools scheduling FCS schools from the NEC, which supports more than 20 fewer scholarships than most other FCS teams. Or did you see how D1 FCS Lamar played something called North American University last year?


I do think for sure that the bottom is catching up to the middle, but I do think there's still 10-12 programs that still tower over the rest in recruiting.


But yes in general, with TV and Internet increasing the ability to watch more schools, you don't have to go to a big school to make it to the NFL anymore like you typically did in the past (with occasional exceptions like Jerry Rice, etc..).


Look at Appalachian State for example. Beat Texas A&M, should have beaten North Carolina, and even their game against Troy got some national attention.
 
So….Everything revolves about $$$$$$. Also, do you like paying big bucks when one team has NO CHANCE TO WIN?
 
Toledo wasn't supposed to be a patsy and Ohio St should be playing in-state schools.

I wanted to get see if OP's view f scheduling was faulty memory or real somewhat. Looking at past OSU OOC schedules. It is real. Here are the ranked OOC.
1980: 11, 20
1983: 2
1986: 5, 17
1987: 4
1988: 7
1989: 12

2020: 12
2016: 14
2017: 5
2018: 15
2021: 12

In those 80s years in addition to ranked opponents, their OOC was primarily P5. They were losing too many games. With that model, they would not see play-offs in the four team era. Hence the "patsies."
Then why don’t the Buckeyes play Cincinnati every year? Hmmm.
 
So….Everything revolves about $$$$$$. Also, do you like paying big bucks when one team has NO CHANCE TO WIN?


Yes, everyone profits, and thousands of players get to continue to play a game they love and try to live out their dream of making it to the NFL.


You're only looking at the on the field score aspect of this scenario. You're ignoring the fact that these games provided funding for small school athletic programs that is direly needed to keep their programs afloat. Without those funds, their athletic programs shut down. Which means thousands of kids, across multiple sports, don't get scholarships. For a great deal of them, that also means they can't afford to go to college.


This goes far beyond whether the on-the field competition is equal or not.
 
Honestly, both sides probably dont mind.

I bet if you ask the Toledo players and program if they woulda wanted to play XYZ State for an easy win, or visit the shoe, get pounded like a deshaun watson massuese, and get paid a ton of $$ for the program? I bet they chose the latter.
 
This is getting sadder by the year. The big power houses now play much smaller and less talented school to rack up points to get into the playoffs. The smaller teams aren’t totally absolved off all the blame either as they take home a huge payday.

Looks like it’s all about money"……….sad.

I remember the years when Michigan played Norte Dame, UCLA, Washington, etc. and the big prize was going to the Rose Bowl for teams in the Big 10.

Guess I’m too old school but that’s how I feel.
These patsy's willing come in and get curb stomped and take home a nice check to fund their athletic programs. My question is when there is actual conference realignment, will the leagues have more conference games and eliminate these games. Frankly, I wonder how the BG's and the Toledo's will make it without those checks.
 
I remember back when Tressel was here, it was reported that Ohio State schedules games against Ohio colleges with whom they have academic-program ties. Kind of as a payback for having programs where students start at one college then are required to complete the program at Ohio State.
 
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I was looking a the the schedule and realized I will to 82 and 83 when OSU plays Alabama as I looked a the future schedule I do want to see the Boston College game in 2035.
 
I don't see the problem. If anything, I think the gap is decreasing. With immediate eligibility available after transferring, I think we'll see a lot of buy games become more competitive as P5 talent has more incentive to transfer down if things just aren't working out for whatever reason. Sure, talent can transfer up, but that's more of a basketball thing.

It gets fishy when teams play other teams from way lower divisions than their own. I don't see the sense in FBS schools scheduling FCS schools from the NEC, which supports more than 20 fewer scholarships than most other FCS teams. Or did you see how D1 FCS Lamar played something called North American University last year?
Speaking of that, which DI schools play lower divisions the most during their yearly schedule?
 
Speaking of that, which DI schools play lower divisions the most during their yearly schedule?
In football, occasionally I've seen FBS schools play more than one FCS school. Which is a disservice because that puts bowl eligibility at seven games. Once you get out of FBS, it seems scheduling becomes a crap shoot. Georgetown plays in the same conference as Fordham but only one of those schools will play FBS teams. When's the last time you've seen an Ivy League team play an FBS team.

Basketball is even more of a crap shoot. You can schedule anyone in basketball with little limitations. Miami University-Hamilton, a branch campus, is playing at D1 Stony Brook this season. Miami-Hamilton isn't D2, 3, NAIA, or NJCAA. They're some other thing. I don't think D1s can play NJCAA schools, but every other combination, I'm finding, is fair game.
 
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