Iowa State and Kansas State opting out of bowl bids

EvilMonkeyInTheCloset said:

Both schools will be fined $500,000 for declining their bowl bids. This is hilarious news and I love this for Iowa State fans. @Clonewithasigh

EvilMonkeyInTheCloset said:

Both schools will be fined $500,000 for declining their bowl bids. This is hilarious news and I love this for Iowa State fans. @Clonewithasigh

Link? They cant have that many players leaving not to have 50-60 suit up But they may have a legit argument about not having a coaching staff yet

What better way to break in a new coach than a meaningless bowl? Seems like the perfect game to experiment

But the extra practices will mean so much in 8 months later ……..

uihawk82 said:

Link? They cant have that many players leaving not to have 50-60 suit up But they may have a legit argument about not having a coaching staff yet

https://cyclones.com/news/2025/12/7/iowa-state-football-to-decline-postseason-invitation?fbclid=IwY2xjawOil_VleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFxeUxyTEJFV3h1c3M4YkFwc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHvLI_lYBydVBh7OPcyNm8I-e6f_tMiJUlqR1VSjbmYlhoDEtYJrXEx1o_A4-_aem_04mhseciPcjzU_YcrhSxqQ

I bet ISU loses money on these type of bowls like the Independence or Liberty (again).

They're passing up the chance to have another monumental 9 win season for their program.

OnlyTheObscure said:

But the extra practices will mean so much in 8 months later ……..

This is classic and hilarious

I have to be careful not to OD on schadenfreud. A friend linked me to one of the clone chat forums and I couldn't resist. It's glorious

No problem paying the half-million dollar fine. They can just raise ticket prices, fans will gladly pay for it.

OnlyTheObscure said:

But the extra practices will mean so much in 8 months later ……..

If they are going to lose a bunch to the portal, then the practices won’t mean as much certainly. For the average team, those practices do indeed mean so much to the team. And especially to the new starters next year.

EvilMonkeyInTheCloset said:

Both schools will be fined $500,000 for declining their bowl bids. This is hilarious news and I love this for Iowa State fans. @Clonewithasigh

No problem for ISU. Plenty of money in Ames.

rchawk said:

No problem paying the half-million dollar fine. They can just raise ticket prices, fans will gladly pay for it.

Slap a tariff on tickets. ISU fans should understand how that works. LOL

Bowls , even though meaningless now, are something the fans and players enjoy looking forward to all year long

EdgarAllenPodolak said:

I bet ISU loses money on these type of bowls like the Independence or Liberty (again).

The liberty bowl payout is 6 mil per team just to show up. Clown U’s AD is a moron. They only had 5 home games because he scheduled Ark St on the road, and accepted a trip to Ireland, he declines a free 6 mil and opts to pay a 500k fine instead. And then he complains they are in a deficit and don’t have the money to compete. This guy is actually unbelievably stupid.

Pollard, thinking to himself "Hmm. If we pass on the bowl game and Iowa loses theirs we'll finish the year with a better record..." What an absolute clusterf***.

Donny 2.0 said:

Pollard, thinking to himself "Hmm. If we pass on the bowl game and Iowa loses theirs we'll finish the year with a better record..." What an absolute clusterf***.

Bold prediction time. Pollard won't be employed in 2027. Great BB (basketball) team for sure, but football pays the bills.

Yes, Iowa State football is skipping a bowl game for the 2025 season, with players voting to decline the invitation due to numerous injuries and the recent coaching transition following Matt Campbell's move to Penn State and the hiring of Jimmy Rogers from Washington State. The 8-4 Cyclones, supported by athletics, prioritized player safety and focusing on rebuilding under the new coach, though the Big 12 Conference fined them $500,000 for breaching bowl contracts, notes Yahoo Sports. Key Details:

• Decision: Iowa State players voted to opt out of a bowl game after discussions with administration and the former coaching staff.
• Reasons: Lack of healthy players to safely practice and play, coupled with the disruption from the coaching change.
• Coaching: Matt Campbell left for Penn State, with Jimmy Rogers taking over as head coach, according to KIMT and On3.
• Conference Reaction: The Big 12 fined Iowa State (and Kansas State) $500,000 for not fulfilling bowl obligations, reports Yahoo Sports.
• Record: The Cyclones finished the regular season with an 8-4 record.

The ISU athletic department.

From a DSM Register article: "after a meeting between athletics administrators, members of Campbell's coaching staff and Iowa State players regarding the upcoming bowl game, players voted to not play in a postseason game, reportedly due to the lack of healthy players to safely practice and play." I have no idea why they have a lack of healthy players to safely practice and play -seems very odd to me. Before the Campbell announcement I heard nothing about their health issues. Anyway, here is the link: https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/sports/college/iowa-state/football/2025/12/07/iowa-state-football-cyclones-decline-bowl-big-12-fine/87656978007/

EvilMonkeyInTheCloset said:

Both schools will be fined $500,000 for declining their bowl bids. This is hilarious news and I love this for Iowa State fans. @Clonewithasigh

Once again you mistake me for someone else. I am not an “Iowa State fan”, and I like the decision the players made.

HawkInDenver said:

From a DSM Register article: "after a meeting between athletics administrators, members of Campbell's coaching staff and Iowa State players regarding the upcoming bowl game, players voted to not play in a postseason game, reportedly due to the lack of healthy players to safely practice and play." I have no idea why they have a lack of healthy players to safely practice and play -seems very odd to me. Before the Campbell announcement I heard nothing about their health issues. Anyway, here is the link: https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/sports/college/iowa-state/football/2025/12/07/iowa-state-football-cyclones-decline-bowl-big-12-fine/87656978007/

Maybe they all went pro, even the freshman

I’m guessing most/many of these bowl games are getting to the point of being money losers for the Universities anyways. I bet we will see this become more common place. If you don’t make the playoffs your season should rightfully be done, just like it is in FCS and how it used to be when there were only a handful of bowls.

Meanwhile I am watching bills throw the ball in the snow against bengals