Here's a story we can tell our grandchildren.
CF was created for young men that wanted to play football. Colleges brought those players to campus with a promise to provide them with an education and room & board. There was balance in the universe. These young men received a free education and got to display their talents for pro scouts. It was a fair deal.
Fans flocked to the stadiums in droves to cheer on the student-athletes that represented their favored school. Coaches and boosters decided that they would do anything to win, and routinely started getting fired if they didn't. Fans wouldn't give the needed donations to the schools without enough W's. Fans that didn't or couldn't go to the games clamored for TV games.
TV obliged. Night games, late afternoon games, an explosion in bowl games. Then Thursday & Friday games. Three or four games on Saturday on the same network.
Coaches started making millions. Athletic facilities became an arms race, turning the weight room into 4 star hotels. Multi-million dollar stadium renovations, luxury boxes, Bowl reps making $500k per year.
The money was flowing like water from the sky - all was great, except ....
The players still had the same deal they had in 1960. Go to school for free, play football and tryout for the pros.
NOW, the players are starting to enjoy some of the unlimited money flow. But it is unbalanced and unregulated. Players are basically free agents - they can go to the highest bidder. The "have not" fans feel helpless. The schools that hang on to the "old rules" are going to become dinosaurs. The has game changed, but not at the same pace everywhere. The playing field is no longer level. Schools, coaches, players - all now chasing the money.
So, here's the result - college football and basketball are on the precipice of a calamity. It has become stock cars racing against station wagons. Or, thoroughbreds competing against donkeys. If there is no competition, there is no joy in being a fan.
College football and basketball have jumped into an ocean of money without a life preserver. If they don't figure this out, the ocean of money could start to run dry.