With all the talking heads on TV proclaiming that this season is unlike any other, I’m curious how the community feels. Totally new landscape of CFB or just more of the same? How do we all feel about:
- Helmet communication (for only 1 player on the field per team except on free kicks)
- Tablets on the sidelines (up to 18 per team)
- The 2 minute timeout
- Corporate logos on fields (no longer requires the stadium to be named after the sponsor)
- New homes for Arizona, ASU, Cal, CU, Oregon, ou, SMU, Stanford, Texas, UCLA, USC, Utah, Washington
- Expanded playoff (probably too early to tell on this one)
- New TV deals (SEC on ABC, B1G on CBS)
- Current season of Fansville (Ewers could be a Heisman candidate but he sure won’t be winning any Oscars)
For reference, here are the P4 vs P4 records so far:
- ACC: 6-8
- B1G: 5-5 (or 5-6 if counting ND)
- Big XII: 5-6
- SEC: 8-5 (or 8-6 if counting ND)
I think people assumed that helmet comms would be deployed and simply work like the NFL. But NFL stadiums generally don’t get as loud and crazy as several major CFB stadiums. Arrowhead and Lumen Field are the only two that come to mind as coming close, but how do they compare to a Penn State white out game? Or to a chorus of ringing cowbells in Starkville? Or the paddle people in Stillwater?
The silly guys on the sidelines with the signs are probably never really going to go away unless the NCAA expands the use of wearable tech like smart wristbands (some D3 schools are permitted to use them this season as a trial).
That’s unfortunately predominant with most changes to the sport. Playoffs, clock rules, coaching aids. But no one is taking the time to ask why these things hadn’t already come to the sport. CFB will generate it’s own innovation that is suitable for the sport. Heck, gatorade was invented because the gators are so bad and they were desperate to be competitive with foes from superior climates. Video review came to the sport just about when it came to the pros, because it’s suited for both versions of the game. College football had already put AC in practice helmets at LSU, yet no coach was lobbying for headsets though the tech had been officially adopted by the pros over a decade ago.