Well, 1 down, 29 non-BCS bowls to go.
(Writer’s note: by the way, that fizzing sound you hear is a couple of Alka-Seltzers in water)
BYU’s 52-24 win over UTEP in the New Mexico Bowl wasn’t even close to the best way to start the 2010 bowl season (unless, of course, you’re a BYU fan), and unfortunately for the casual observer, there’s no guarantee it’s going to get any better.
Somewhere between the R&L Carriers New Orleans Bowl and Kraft Fight Hunger with Beef O’Brady’s Pizza Bowl, it all starts to get a little blurry.
Still, there are some advantages to bowls that those of us sitting at home don’t always consider. From the perspective of the players and coaches, it’s seen as a reward and a chance at extra practice. Bowls are, more often than not, held in decent locations and the bowl SWAG is usually pretty good.
For the traveling fans, bowls make a nice vacation and are easier to plan around than a 3 or 4 round playoff.
No, bowls aren’t completely bad, but there are still way, way too many of them. And while ESPN claims it’s “the most wonderful time of the year”, games like BYU-UTEP beg the question “Do the fans really win?”
In marquee out-of-conference games like Virginia Tech and Boise State, the fans win. When two high-quality teams like Arkansas and Ohio State play in the Sugar Bowl, the fans win -- provided, of course, that it’s a good game.
It’s much easier to get those fan-friendly matchups when you’re dealing with 8, 10, 12 or 16 teams instead of 70.
I’m not going to scream for a playoff because, honestly, I’ve never heard a consensus format, but when you get blowout games like the New Mexico Bowl today, it makes you wonder if there’s a better alternative.