In two days, the longest wait is over for the fastest 15 weeks of the year.
The season informally kicks off Thursday, but the big day is this upcoming Saturday. This weekend gives us a few marquee matchups, however, Saturday’s slate is pretty ‘meh’ afterwards, with most teams opening the season against cupcakes from the FCS (formally Division 1-AA) or lower-level FBS teams. Most teams in the power five conferences use the first two weeks as an unofficial preseason, with their opponents looking to balance their school’s athletic budget for the year. Outside of the 2007 shocker of Appalachian State defeating Michigan in The Big House, overwhelmingly these games are automatic wins for the bigger program – with FBS schools having an all-time win total of 2028-423-18 – and don’t offer much in the way of entertainment for the average fan.
How can the NCAA increase the competitiveness and draw during the opening week of its biggest product? Here are three suggestions that can be a benefit to all.
Have the Final Four of the College Football Playoff play the final four of the FCS Playoffs.
Imagine the matchups; the two champions of their respective football divisions in a game for all the marbles. After several down years, NCAA sanctions, and a massive revival under Urban Meyer, the Ohio State Buckeyes face off against the four time defending FCS champs North Dakota State. Or how about a matchup featuring the high flying offenses of the Oregon Ducks and Illinois State Redbirds?
Pitting the best of the FBS against the best of the FCS will add a big boost for recruiting for the teams involved, bringing exposure to the smaller FCS schools and the sport of college football as a whole. This would improve the almost perfect college football schedule by adding increased competition and storylines to begin the season.
The bigger programs may be hesitant at first due the possibility of an upset (Appalachian State was the reigning FCS champion when they upset Michigan), but there is a reason they are playing at Sam Houston instead of Florida State when they both recruit the same areas.
Play in-state FCS teams.
The majority of teams already do this, for example, my home state Clemson Tigers and South Carolina Gamecocks have played against in-state programs South Carolina State, Wofford, Furman, The Citadel, and Coastal Carolina over the years. Those programs are made of players that may have been a step too slow on their 40 time or a tenth of a point off their GPA to enroll at the larger schools, and playing against the larger school will give those players an opportunity to show their worth, garner more exposure, and increase the support of the smaller school’s fan base.
Money is also another factor that programs at the FBS could take into consideration when scheduling games against FCS teams. According to Jeff Hartsell of The Post and Courier, South Carolina paid FCS programs an average of $260,000 to come to Williams-Brice, while paying smaller FBS teams an average of $804,000. Both Clemson and South Carolina schedule most of their FCS opponents from the in-state schools previously mentioned; and with athletic directors constantly looking for a way to maintain their program’s profit margin and cut cost, playing in-state FCS teams is a cheaper option than flying in programs for across the country and keeps the money within the state.
No games against FCS opponents late in season.
This piece is more about the beginning of the college football season, but this is another point that needs to be addressed.
I am reminded of Coastal Carolina’s 2013 season. It was a brisk, wet November day when I attended my first college football game that day. The Chanticleers entered Williams-Brice Stadium 10-1, ranked 11th in the FCS poll before taking a shellacking to the tune of 70-10 at the hands of the Gamecocks.
Though the loss didn’t affect their ranking, the FCS playoffs started the next week. Coastal was able to shake off the loss and defeat Bethune-Cookman in the first round.
Thankfully, the Chants didn’t suffer any injuries to their starters who played a majority of the game – even as the score had gotten out of hand. However, according to a University of New Mexico study, 67% of FCS athletic trainers said their players suffered from increased soreness and are “banged up” following games against FBS schools, and that playing multiple FBS opponents in the same season is detrimental to the player’s health.
Though the study did not show an increase of season-ending injuries to FCS players during games against FBS teams, the potential is still there; and with a guarantee game against a FBS opponent late in season, an injury to a starter could be devastating for a team with FCS Championship aspirations. Any games against FCS opponents should be restricted to the first two weeks of the season to give those teams time to heal and rest up as they begin their respective seasons. There are enough lower-tier teams at the FBS level for Power Five conferences to schedule for late season tune-up, stat-padding games.
Whether you root for a powerhouse like Ohio State, or your smaller local school such as Charleston Southern, for college football fans, the next 12-15 weeks is the best time of the year. A few changes to the NCAA’s college football schedule can make it ever better and give fans of all teams more of a reason to look forward to the first week of September.
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