A year after three 5-7 teams reached (and won) bowl games, the NCAA has opted to ban the creation of new bowls until 2019 at the earliest, according to ESPN’s Brett McMurphy.
McMurphy reported Austin, Texas; Myrtle Beach, S.C; and Charleston S.C. were hoping to add bowl games, but will have to freeze that process for three years. Last year, there were a record 41 bowls, meaning 82 of FBS’ 128 teams (64 percent) played in a postseason game.
McMurphy has more details on why the moratorium was put in place here.
On one hand, 41 bowls seems like a lot. And having those three 5-7 teams play was certainly embarrassing for the NCAA.
But consider this, too: Western Kentucky, which was one of college football’s most exciting teams last year, missed bowl games in 2011 and 2013 despite going 7-5 and 8-4 in those seasons. Georgia State, which has only been an FBS school for three years, ripped off four straight wins to end its season and become bowl eligible.
For all the complaints about too many bowls or 5-7 teams, there’s a Georgia State that helps make having 41 bowls worth it. No, it’s not especially glamorous to counter a sub-optimal Nebraska team playing in a bowl game against a .500 Sun Belt side, but it’s something, right?