They came for the NIT, and the Pop-Tarts Bowl said nothing. But as they come for the Pop-Tarts Bowl, let me say:
We stand with you, giant anthropomorphic edible pastries. And we stand with your bowl game.
To be clear, this isn’t only about Notre Dame’s shameful decision to skip the postseason. We’re mad at Iowa State and Kansas State too. Do you know what would’ve happened if the Union Army went home every time its head coach changed? We’d live in a dystopia. The SEC’s NIL budget would only go to quarterbacks and tight ends.
We don’t know what bowls ISU and K-State were bound for, so we can’t name those by name. Was the Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl jilted? Was the SRS Distribution Las Vegas Bowl left hanging? Perhaps it was the Trust & Will Holiday Bowl, the first bowl in history to make us ask, “Hey, did that Pop-Tart have an estate lawyer?” Whatever bowls were affected, we stand with them too. We, the NIT community, stand with Coca-Cola Bowl Season.
There are a few issues at play here, and we want to handle them delicately, lest Kirk Herbstreit break down our door and haul me to the gulag for the heretical claim that Alabama lost by 21 points this weekend.
- Yes, ESPN openly campaigned against Notre Dame’s inclusion in the playoff, and the arguments were pretty dumb. But just because ESPN made dumb arguments doesn’t mean Notre Dame should have been in. There were good arguments too! Notre Dame lost to Texas A&M and Miami. In three weeks, one of those teams will play Ohio State. You’ll see what I mean. Also, there are better ways to give ESPN the finger than by marginally hurting bowl season’s ratings. For example: Marcus Freeman could have shoved Dusty Dvoracek into the giant Pop-Tart toaster and then eaten him.
- Yes, bowl season’s a little silly. But that’s part of college football’s yin and yang. You don’t get the glory of Alabama vs. Clemson in the 2010’s without the different–yet–comparable glory of the Dr. Pepper Tuition Toss.
- Yes, football players have free will. But they also are football players. If they stop playing football, what do they become? Bowl games are part of the season. Everyone should finish their season.
Opt-outs are bad. College football is good. And, uh, Pop-Tarts Bowl, if you’re out there? Please remember all of this come March.
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