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significant influence in determining the teams that will compete for the championship.

If your team made the playoffs, then you are one smiling although only one team will hold the championship trophy. If you can remember how challenging it was to get to a playoff format, you are likely to recall that the old Bowl Championship Series (BCS) was castigated with the greatest of contempt by many.

Are we any better off now than we were back then? Vibrant controversy remains. For sure we are richer, but what has all this money done for the game?

Whatever takes place, we should make sure the classroom remains prominent in whatever format involving all college competitions. And I will always support the concept of bowl involvement. The bowls have done so much for college athletics over the years.

Bowl receipts have improved and enhanced facilities on campus, and in some cases, have helped the non-revenue sports. To say nothing of what bowls have done for the charities in their communities.

There have been many other ancillary benefits from the bowl arrangement. Let’s show gratitude—and never give the bowls the back of our hand.