Nebraska players suing over rejected NIL

[RikeMiley]

CFB is the Titanic. It's going to take a while before it sinks, but it's certainly hit the iceberg and is taking on water. Those who say otherwise are simply the band playing on while they go down with the ship.

Attendance is down YoY no matter how you slice it, and has been trending down for awhile:

College football attendance declines for seventh straight season to lowest average since 1981 - CBS Sports

Attendance at postseason FBS college bowl game was down 9% from 2024-25

The consolidation into 2 coast-to-coast super conferences, the transfer portal, the loss of traditional rivalries, the lack of interest in bowl games (other than the playoff), the absurd coaching contracts, these all undermine the things about college football that made it special. Regional considerations, school loyalty, tradition, getting attached to players over the course of their career, etc. etc. It's just a money grab. Fans don't matter. Tradition doesn't matter. Performance doesn't matter. Just get paid before the spigot gets shut off.

BORING

The 2025 season was the first in which the company’s Out-of-Home audience measurement, which includes sports bars, captured 100 percent of the country.

“It’s not just organic growth,” said Patrick Crakes, the head of Crakes Media and a former Fox Sports vice president for programming, research and content strategy. “The Out-of-Home (system) is a strong factor.

“The measurement changes have benefitted college football the most because it’s what people leave their homes to watch.”

Nielsen actually made two changes to its measuring system. One is the so-called Big Data + Panel methodology, which includes smart TVs and streaming views. But the impact of Big Data on college football ratings is “nominal,” according to Flora Kelly, ESPN’s senior vice president for research.

“ESPN had our highest (college football) ratings since 2011,” she added, “and without Big Data, we would have had our highest ratings since 2011.

“The part that’s important is Out-of-Home.”

Nielsen has been including its Out-of-Home audience data in TV ratings for years — but only with 60 percent of the TV markets represented, Kelly said. “And it was mostly the larger ones.”


The viewership numbers might not be higher either, they might just be more accurate versus past calculations.

 

[orclover11]

CFB is the Titanic. It's going to take a while before it sinks, but it's certainly hit the iceberg and is taking on water. Those who say otherwise are simply the band playing on while they go down with the ship.

Attendance is down YoY no matter how you slice it, and has been trending down for awhile:

College football attendance declines for seventh straight season to lowest average since 1981 - CBS Sports

Attendance at postseason FBS college bowl game was down 9% from 2024-25

The consolidation into 2 coast-to-coast super conferences, the transfer portal, the loss of traditional rivalries, the lack of interest in bowl games (other than the playoff), the absurd coaching contracts, these all undermine the things about college football that made it special. Regional considerations, school loyalty, tradition, getting attached to players over the course of their career, etc. etc. It's just a money grab. Fans don't matter. Tradition doesn't matter. Performance doesn't matter. Just get paid before the spigot gets shut off.

BORING

The fact that CFB is tied to university tribalism, and most people who graduate university have money to spend means it will probably always have some regional significance. I think there will be some culling of the schools that just don't care that much and we will be left over with the bluebloods, huge state universities, with huge alumni pools in places without NFL teams. I mean 80% of NU AD income comes from donations, which is insane if you compared it to like the Kansas City Chiefs. This is the strength and the weakness of the whole thing, it rides on donation, mostly from alumni...will that ever stop?

 

[Steely Dannebrog]

The fact that CFB is tied to university tribalism, and most people who graduate university have money to spend means it will probably always have some regional significance. I think there will be some culling of the schools that just don't care that much and we will be left over with the bluebloods, huge state universities, with huge alumni pools in places without NFL teams. I mean 80% of NU AD income comes from donations, which is insane if you compared it to like the Kansas City Chiefs. This is the strength and the weakness of the whole thing, it rides on donation, mostly from alumni...will that ever stop?

It will stop if it stops. I'm not donating nor spending one cent on tickets, travel, hotel, food and beverage, merch, anything related to NU football while this sham of a system and the clowns running it are in charge.

Truth be told, they should be paying us to keep showing up.

 

[Man Woman & Child]

The fact that CFB is tied to university tribalism, and most people who graduate university have money to spend means it will probably always have some regional significance. I think there will be some culling of the schools that just don't care that much and we will be left over with the bluebloods, huge state universities, with huge alumni pools in places without NFL teams. I mean 80% of NU AD income comes from donations, which is insane if you compared it to like the Kansas City Chiefs. This is the strength and the weakness of the whole thing, it rides on donation, mostly from alumni...will that ever stop?

Was just about to post this. Well...I wouldn't have said it the way you did. Of course, I wouldn't say anything the way you do. But, you. point stands. What ensures college football will never actually die is the ownership people feel as alumni. That's the differentiator from all other competing "products" and as long as that element stays in tact, it ain't ever going anywhere.

 

[Man Woman & Child]

It will stop if it stops. I'm not donating nor spending one cent on tickets, travel, hotel, food and beverage, merch, anything related to NU football while this sham of a system and the clowns running it are in charge.

Truth be told, they should be paying us to keep showing up.

I think it's much more because our coach and AD are dumbasses. Not because we don't like the new portal and NIL rules. If we didn't have clowns in charge and were even somewhat successful, I think you'd be all in. I know I would.

 

[nu2u]

The 2025 season was the first in which the company’s Out-of-Home audience measurement, which includes sports bars, captured 100 percent of the country.

“It’s not just organic growth,” said Patrick Crakes, the head of Crakes Media and a former Fox Sports vice president for programming, research and content strategy. “The Out-of-Home (system) is a strong factor.

“The measurement changes have benefitted college football the most because it’s what people leave their homes to watch.”

Nielsen actually made two changes to its measuring system. One is the so-called Big Data + Panel methodology, which includes smart TVs and streaming views. But the impact of Big Data on college football ratings is “nominal,” according to Flora Kelly, ESPN’s senior vice president for research.

“ESPN had our highest (college football) ratings since 2011,” she added, “and without Big Data, we would have had our highest ratings since 2011.

“The part that’s important is Out-of-Home.”

Nielsen has been including its Out-of-Home audience data in TV ratings for years — but only with 60 percent of the TV markets represented, Kelly said. “And it was mostly the larger ones.”


The viewership numbers might not be higher either, they might just be more accurate versus past calculations.

There are 777 college/university football programs in America. Most media and fans focus on the FBS division but FBS and lower level programs, despite less (or absence) of media exposure, contribute to college football attendance.