Indy Bowl - Too Good Not To Pass On

[TechDAG]

I think the Indy bowl people are idiots to lock up the 8th place SEC team and a Big 12 cellar dweller. Those teams are available without a lock. The biggest Indy Bowl (by a few new seats) was the LSU - Notre Dame game. They can't get that game now because they have to lock in with both conferences. Why not be able to take the best of the rest? Tech would have packed the bowl when our really good teams had to stay home.

If the Indy bowl was in play every year, it would be talked about every year instead of being treated as a booby prize that you lose into.

[LTUIronDawg]

I know it's all about money but I'm sick of the bowl games inviting teams with mediocre records just because they are in one the "big" conferences. I want to see teams get rewarded for having successful seasons. Alabama is complaining about getting paid to play in what they consider a crappy bowl game. Didn't they get beat by ULM? They big conferences just keep rolling in the money. The little guys are left to fend for themselves. Every team that beat Alabama(or teams like them) should be entitled to a percentage of their bowl payday.

[T_Won]

I think the Indy bowl people are idiots to lock up the 8th place SEC team and a Big 12 cellar dweller. Those teams are available without a lock. The biggest Indy Bowl (by a few new seats) was the LSU - Notre Dame game. They can't get that game now because they have to lock in with both conferences. Why not be able to take the best of the rest? Tech would have packed the bowl when our really good teams had to stay home.

If the Indy bowl was in play every year, it would be talked about every year instead of being treated as a booby prize that you lose into.

I think they signed the deal with the SEC because in those days, LSU was the 8th best team in the SEC pretty regurlarly.

[TechDAG]

The only reason to "LOCK" the 8th in the SEC is to FORCE them to show up. It makes sense to to have a bowl eligible Miss State, LSU, Arkansas, Bama, Auburn, etc, if there is no better available team. It also make sense to have a bottom feeder Big 12 team available if no other team is available (like a Notre Dame.) If the Inky Dinky bowl wants to force those teams to go and thinks they would refuse if they had a choice, that's fine. But why not have some options? Let's face it, Bama is NOT excited about being there. Maybe it is good to force them to show. But it makes more sense to me to have a choice. If Bama would rather stay home, some other team on the outside looking in might want the bowl worse and be more likely to show up with fans.

[aubunique]

All true.

[LTUIronDawg]

The only reason to "LOCK" the 8th in the SEC is to FORCE them to show up. It makes sense to to have a bowl eligible Miss State, LSU, Arkansas, Bama, Auburn, etc, if there is no better available team. It also make sense to have a bottom feeder Big 12 team available if no other team is available (like a Notre Dame.) If the Inky Dinky bowl wants to force those teams to go and thinks they would refuse if they had a choice, that's fine. But why not have some options? Let's face it, Bama is NOT excited about being there. Maybe it is good to force them to show. But it makes more sense to me to have a choice. If Bama would rather stay home, some other team on the outside looking in might want the bowl worse and be more likely to show up with fans.

One of the final nails in Lou Holtz coffin at Notre Dame was when he turned down an invite to the Independence Bowl and they did not play in a bowl game that year. Sure, he thought the I-Bowl was beneath them but, let's face it, they didn't deserve a major bowl bid. He took away the opportunity for the seniors to play one last game by telling them no. That really upset a lot of people in South Bend. Not long after that guess who accepted an invite to the I-Bowl? That would be none other than the great Notre Dame minus one Lou Holtz. These schools kill me by complaining about playing in this bowl. They have all the money and resources to be successful yet this is the best bowl they can get. The small guys that are fighting for their lives to compete in the FBS consistantly would love to have a piece of that action. Schools like Alabama think they are better just because they play in the SEC even if they lost six games or whatever. To some extent they are probably right but the fact is that they didn't get the job done in their own conference. To me, a school from C-USA or the WAC that has only lost three games and placed near the top of their conference is more deserving of the bowl bid.

Since they won't have playoffs I'd like to see the NCAA step in a mandate that the top two or three finishers in each conference get an automatic bowl bid. Then after that select the remaining teams from a power ranking system and pair up all the bowl games by seeds like they do for the BCS bowl games. Make the #1 play #2, #3 play #4 and do that all the way down the line. The only question left is which bowls will host these games? The schools don't get a say so. Everybody must play the hand they are dealt. If you're Alabama and you don't like the fact that you're playing Fresno State in the Depends Undergarments Bowl in Kalispell, MT get over it. You obviously aren't as good as you think you are.