College Football's Golden Age: BCS vs CFP - Josh Pate Cut

[@p.johnson1]

I'm not sure I've ever cared less about the conclusion of a college football season. No one knows ⅔ of their teams from one year to the next. Only thing that's ever mattered is money, sure, but cfb didn't have to make it so obvious that this statement is fact.

[@bambapro8329]

Oh please most ppl don’t know the names of the ppl even on their local team, it was all about money but those of you who loved to ignore the reality of things and be sheep for the “amateurism” BS and now that your fantasy has been broken y’all can’t live in reality

[@gregmoralesCA90]

Must be a Bama or SEC fan 😂😂😂 Salty that the playing field was finally evened out

[@p.johnson1]

@gregmoralesCA90 Nah, I've cared when there's been A) teams that at least on paper seem deserving (7 vs 8, exciting) or B) they've had any kind of name recognition. Most of the stars transferred in from somewhere else, and possibly putting a crown on a team that lost to Illinois... oh wait, Northern Illinois, makes it all feel watered down. But good luck tho.

[@gregmoralesCA90]

@@p.johnson1 Well go watch the NFL then it’s even worse with how rigged the game is nowadays.

[@p.johnson1]

@gregmoralesCA90 Yeah, same reasons with the NFL. It's as if the higher-ups believe they HAVE TO inject parity into the sport, and for the pros, I can see that argument. But you tampered too much with a good thing in college, and it's almost unrecognizable.

[@BB13131313]

Jim Tressel truly is one of the most "underrated" head coaches ever.. he won 4 Championships at Youngstown St., 1 at Ohio State with 3 Natty appearances.. yes Urban took Ohio State to a level that was necessary at the time, but the program was incredible throughout the 2000s BCS era.. love Tressel!

[@Stringerbell5]

@@BB13131313 crazy to me that sweater vest was forced out for Pearl clutching player behavior at the time, which is just a normal Sunday now.

[@zebratroopfan6695]

This is old man syndrome early. My dad said the same thing to me and I find myself saying the same thing to my kids and I’m sure they’re gonna say the same thing to their kids.

[@jamesmarshall6619]

It really is because I came of age as a kid in the 1980s when I became an ASU fan and we went to the Rose Bowl, we had just finished almost two decades of Frank Kush so we were always relevant. Wishbone Oklahoma, Nebraska, Miami who I hated, Tony Rice and Rocket Ismail Fighting Irish who I loved, Penn St beating Miami in the Fiesta Bowl, etc. The Golden Age is usually when you came of age and grew up to love a sport. Reality is though I'm not a nostalgia person, I always try to embrace the new and appreciate what it has to offer because I never ignore the problems prior time periods have. We tend to remember what we love of those times and forget all of the complicated realities that weren't so great.

[@Yoboy2300]

@@jamesmarshall6619this is so true

[@larrycox7169]

@jamesmarshall6619 yeah, the cheating scandals were a big black eye on the sport at the time.

[@tideatmilehigh2727]

"Old man syndrome" is a thing, but don't let nefarious people gaslight you into thinking the past was always shit.

[@zebratroopfan6695]

I’m old. Earl Campbell was my favorite player growing up. I loved college football in the 70s and 80s. Watching Tony Dorsett at Pitt was also a great memory. My dad, however, grew up with Jim Brown and OJ Simpson. He was telling me the kids were soft and the game was dying in the mid-70s. No one likes change. My kids think LeBron is the GOAT. I think it’s Michael. My dad thinks it’s Wilt. Ultimately, it’s perception. We are all biased.

[@H0kie]

Agree with Josh’s golden age, because my Hokies were still relevant in that era 😭

[@steventorrence1803]

I completely agree with you JP. I miss the BCS era and think the playoff era was a bad idea. Now, the BCS era wasn't perfect on figuring out who's going to the championship game every year. But, the regular season games mattered so much more. And, the Bowl games were epic and teams, players and the fanbases took so much pride in knowing they're getting the opportunity to go to a Bowl game.. And, who can forget when South Carolina and Michigan met in their Bowl game a Jadeveon Clowney showed Michigan the difference in men and boys? JP just mentioning Jadeveon Clowneys name brings back a flood of nostalgia and memories that have been burned in my head. Roll Tide Roll!!!

[@JJJJ-he8bz]

The BCS was terrible at defending champions it should always be decided on the field just like every other sport or level of football. A BCS system would never be tolerated in any level of football or any other sport. Also don’t tell me the regular season mattered when Florida State went 13-0 and was still left out just so the SEC could get a team in.

[@steventorrence1803]

The BCS era wasn't perfect by any means at selecting who would be playing for the national championship. But, it wasn't built solely on what two teams would end up playing for the national championship. It was built more on the entirety of the each and every teams and fanbases entire seasons experience. Rivalry games, bowl games and conference championships just meant more. It was more about heart and determination.

[@MattBuild4]

@@steventorrence1803 I think we watched two compeltely different sports...... How exactly did conference championships matter when KSU beat OU by 38 points in 2003, yet somehow OU still managed to be selected for the national championship anyways? Tell me how in the world you people justify claiming that the regular season mattered in this era, when crap like this happened? This isnt the only example either - the list controversies is as long as the bible in this era. Literally years before this Colorado demolished Nebraska at home - and yet that game clearly didnt matter at all.

[@steventorrence1803]

I'll say it for a 3rd time. THE BCS ERA WASN'T PERFECT BY ANY MEANS AT FIGURING OUT WHAT TWO TEAMS ARE GOING TO PLAY FOR THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP. When I say conference championships, rivalry games and the entire regular season means more, I'm not talking about only the ones with national championship implications. Not every team had that luxury of being considered a national championship contender every year. A team that loses five or six games getting invited to play in a bowl game with one last chance to go out with a bang, that's what matters in my opinion. Not what two teams are playing for the national championship at the end.

[@MattBuild4]

@@steventorrence1803 Its not that it wasnt perfect - it was FREAKING GARBAGE..... You think the problem was just the national championship? Dude Boise State had 5 undefeated seasons yet made only 2 BCS bowls - you wanna explain how tf thats possible? That program beat P5 conference champions during the season, only to watch them play in BCS bowl over them even when they had better record than them.... 2010 #7 12-1 BSU missed a bowl game in favor of UNRANKED 8-5 UCONN.... Do you think that was a fun and good decision? You think the problem was just the title games? 98 and 99 KSU ranked #3 in the nation - and yet didnt make a BCS either season.... They literally had to make a rule on behalf of KSU because the system couldnt realize that this was dumb af... In fact from 1998-2003, 80% of the league wasnt even allowed to play for a BCS bowl - it took the US CONGRESS to step in to change this garbage! Which fyi happened more than once. It is insane to me that you would think that the BCS was even decent. How tf do you imagine any post season system could possibly be considered legitimate, when it is literally getting sued by the FEDERAL GOVERNMENT for CORRUPTION...... (2009-2012 lawsuits) I know you blocked out this reality, but sweeping the bs under the rug doesnt mean it didnt happen. Imo you were either in a coma, smoked a mountain of weed, lived in mental institution or all three at the same time to actually think the BCS was even a good system......

[@lawrencedockery9032]

2007-2019 It started with App St/Michigan launching the most insane season in the history of the sport and ended after the 150th anniversary season of college football

[@greg7964]

I miss the BCS era.

[@dentonyoung4314]

I'd put it even a little before Josh. I'd say the Golden Age was from 1983 through 1997, right before the BCS era began. Conferences still made geographic sense, everything wasn't so obviously all about the Benjamins, and you had great teams such as Penn State under Paterno, Osborne's Nebraska, Spurrier's Florida, Bowden's Florida State, Jimmy Johnson's Miami (stewarded pretty well by Erickson after Johnson jumped to the NFL), and Beamer's Virginia Tech. As Oklahoma slipped, Colorado rose, so Nebraska always had a difficult rival in the Big 8. Notre Dame, Michigan and Ohio State were all powerhouses too. So many great games between all those great teams. The very first year of that era (1983) you had the epic showdown between Miami and Nebraska in the Orange Bowl to decide the national title, and Osborne could have played for a tie and probably won it, but he went for 2 and Miami won the game and the natty. John Cooper finally breaking through against Michigan with a 13-13 tie where Ohio State rallied from 10 points down in the 4th. Florida State finally breaking through against Miami after Wide Right I and Wide Right II. The "Catholics vs. Convicts" game, where, trailing 31-24, Miami threw an incomplete pass on 4th and goal, the refs cheated in their favor and gave them an undeserved touchdown, and the football gods set things right by making sure they missed the 2 point conversion. I could keep going, but I'd be typing all day.

[@TheDrRJP]

The BCS era that Josh spoke about was from 1998 to 2010 meaning you were only off by 15 years

[@ChazzWilhite1028]

He wasn't at all? He literally said he thought the golden age was right before the BCS era..

[@andreasstratemeyer407]

You nailed it, Josh!

[@IRISHBee4]

Could not agree more!

[@derekwarr8567]

The golden Age was Pre-B$ECS, when you had 10 Bowl Games on New Years Day

[@dangerousdylan6262]

And 5 different teams claiming a national championship every year lol shit sucked

[@samrauch8334]

I think it really just depends on your age. Being in my early 20’s I can remember a lot of the BCS era and it was great. However, for the 4 team was when I really got into football and I think it was a great era.

[@dougdebiase1827]

Couldn’t agree more with this. Only modification I’d make is adding in the 80s as well. The players in the 80s were like major motion picture action heroes.

[@coltonherb2438]

they shoulda just used the BCS ranking system for a 6-team CFP and use the 5 BCS Bowls for playoff games. would have been perfect and avoided the committee

[@greenballoons09]

I agree. CFB was magical. Every game mattered.

[@ColtHend]

I popped when you mentioned the Lou Holtz and Mark May stuff. I miss the hell outta that stuff.

[@dare2554]

Golden Age will never be back as along as we have NIL and unlimited Transfer portal. The sport is dying

[@seanflack6605]

I think age will cloud our judgement. 1985-1995. Mainly because I was in high school and college during that time. Bowls on New Year's day were the best. Yes, they voted on the national champion but that time is just special to me.

[@BetterDays-e8h]

CFB is openly a professional sport, there was an era where it was professional but closeted and then a time when it was mostly amateur and a few teams operating outside of rules.

[@kevinfry1850]

Agree 100 percent. I would also add we had conference identity, and non championship seasons weren’t seen as failures, but that might just be me as an Ohio state fan.

[@MattBuild4]

Well you got the benefit being a major brand team. If you werent a major brand (not even G5) it was a nightmare. Just ask K-State who finished ranked in the top 5 in both 1998 and 1998 - yet didnt make a major bowl in either season.... Ask Cal fans how things went down when they had Aaron Rodgers. Top 6 program, one of the best QBs going to be a major draft pick in the NFL - missed a BCS bowl in favor of Texas, because Mack Brown pushed AP voters to give Texas the selection of the BCS bowl over them. Its funny to me how, so many people forget stuff like this happened all the time in the BCS era. So many amazing players never got a chance to showcase talent in the BCS, because the program wasnt considered having enough value to be put into the BCS bowls.

[@TheDrRJP]

The most memorable year in your 12-year BCS era was 1999 when FSU became the first team to be ranked #1 wire-to--wire, from preseason to postseason. In fact, had Chris Weinke not suffered a season-ending and nearly life-ending neck injury in the prior season, FSU would have won the Natty in that year as well.

[@FootballDictionary-e2p]

I’d actually argue the golden age was shorter, from 04 to 09. USC vs Texas, the 2007 season, the beginning of the Bama dynasty, recruiting pipelines still mattered. I think anything before that is too flawed and anything after means money is in control

[@dyt2000]

College football grew so much during that era and I credit ESPN for a lot of that growth. ESPN seemed determined to turn CFB into a national sport and they were pretty successful. The BCS system was horribly flawed but that controversy added to appeal because it kept people talking and watching.

[@caleb_clement_]

I’ve never been less interested in college football. The actual games come secondary now.

[@ezbread14]

Bcs or 4 team format

[@j-vx1he]

4-team

[@EzzyEz2011]

It’s not nostalgia. That really was a golden age.

[@26michaeluk]

1990-2009 as a Florida Gator fan. Spurrier throwing the ball over the field in a 3 yard and cloud of dust league. Curb stomping Florida State in what was essentially the title game by the time it was played in 1996. Ruining their chances in 1997 in the "Greatest game ever played in the swamp". Beating Peyton Manning 4 years in a row. It was magical as a kid. Then Chris Leak committing, promising to win a title. Urban Meyer coming in with Tebow committing. Humiliating OSU as the HEAVY underdog in 2006. Beating Alabama in the SEC title game in what was a damn good game and then holding the highest scoring offense in history up to that time in Oklahoma to 14 points to win a second Natty in 3 years. Man it was great to be a Gator during those two runs. Then the bottom fell out unfortunately.

[@jameskirkland1899]

What's funny was half of the clips shown were from the 2012 season which wasn't included in his golden era lol

[@dylanogden95]

This is my golden age of college football too.

[@Stringerbell5]

2004-2008 golden era

[@TheDrRJP]

Was that the Al Golden era?

[@sophisticatedsavage7146]

Long time CF fan …. Golden years in quality of teams competing . ( which makes the sport better ) Was from mid 90’s to 2010’s , imo …. The product on the field was at its peak . Those teams would beat the champions of the last 10 years , imo …. This is why I put the golden years during that time .

[@tideatmilehigh2727]

I think college football's "golden era" was the early 80s through 1997. It's apex moment was the 1987 Fiesta Bowl between #1 Miami and #2 Penn State, which to my understanding, is still the highest viewed college football game of all time. Throughout the 80s and 90s, the sport received additional exposure through national networks and a very young ESPN, which satisfied the demands of many regions in the United States to view their teams on TV. Circling back to the 1987 Fiesta Bowl, I think this is where the "seeds of destruction" are initially planted sadly. Reacting to the positive viewership figures that the 1987 Fiesta Bowl produced, I think power brokers had an interest in ensuring #1 and #2 played each other in the postseason. This led to proto-BCS systems like the Bowl Coalition and Alliance Bowls. Was this good? I would argue it ultimately wasn't. College football has always been described as a chaotic sport that featured the best regular season of any sport in the country. When you have a post-season system that ensures #1 and #2 play each other every year in a championship game, the emphasis of the games start to drift away from the regular season... But still, college football retained a lot of its "chaotic beauty" because of the reluctance of the PAC 10 and Big 10 to refrain from participating in a Bowl Alliance/Bowl Coalition system. This led to situations like an undefeated Arizona State playing Ohio State in the Rose Bowl in 1997 instead of #1 FSU. ASU would lose that game, which ultimately enabled Florida to win its first national title in a rematch with FSU in the 1997 Sugar Bowl. FWIW, I was born in the early 90s, and my thoughts are not based on nostalgia, as I wasn't even alive to see games like "Catholics vs Convicts". As far as the game goes today, I think it's disgusting, and I would rather have "under the table" 1980s SMU styles of cheating than this dumpster fire we have today. This sport has fallen so far in the last 7-8 years that I find it almost unwatchable. I find it even more disgusting when I see room-temperature IQ nimrods defending the current state of affairs of college football. I have no hope for these people, as it is clear they simply parrot the talking points of big media conglomerates.

[@dlpaul345]

BCS and it aint close

[@RoadTo19]

🏆 Ditto!

[@derekrials4932]

I agree but I would stretch the start back to te 1980’s. It ended with the playoffs. Went further down with nil and transfer portal

[@OriginalBadRobotz]

Just going to remind you 2005 is just pre iPhone not pre smartphone

[@drewp.weiner2473]

The 1960’s was the golden age of college football

[@yung1smitty]

@@drewp.weiner2473 so the segregation era in the South you cannot be serious

[@sammalone6714]

Future.

[@larrycox7169]

In the past. It's semipro crap now. 70s-80s for me. Money killed the game.

[@austinchristmas6033]

At least players get paid now in the open rather than it being hidden, also a lot of people get opportunity to play for the championship

[@robert5755]

yup nil 1 transfer to a different school, and have to stay there.

[@MattBuild4]

If money didnt exist in the 70s-80s then why did SMU get the death penalty in this era?

[@larrycox7169]

@MattBuild4 i didn't say it didn't exist. SMU paid dearly, GETTING CAUGHT AFTER GOING BIG. Far different in scale than today. It's no longer amateur sports. The bigger pocket "schools" win.

[@jackshaftoe1715]

No idea who the QB is going to be season to season. Portal in Portal out. (This sucks) !😞

[@alabamafootballpodcast3582]

Preach

[@ksimon6485]

The BCS was fine just needed 4 teams.

[@josephp2109]

The SEC ruined the golden age with oversigning and paying players.

[@rich0471]

agree

[@scottbarth7155]

I hate that I agree with you

[@taketheredpill1452]

nice

[@dougsholly9323]

College football cannot possibly have its golden age in the future. Playing players openly will change the game into NFL farm system. That means the golden age has passed. What era is the 'golden age' is subjective, but it is in the past.

[@hugebamafan]

It's gone

[@Jay-pd9kc]

Lol of course you’re a Bama fan. Your reign of paying players and getting picked in the playoffs every year is OVER

[@hugebamafan]

@Jay-pd9kc nah, I like college football best back in 80s and 90s when the players for most programs were regional and the rivarys meant something to the players. Now not so much,

[@raniebranson8051]

I hate everything about the game now... The current age is by far the worst age.

[@truthlevato]

Typically disagree with JP takes. Having as hard time finding gaps in this reasoning. Jackson & Musberger, no smart phones, May & Holtz. Might be right

[@JJJJ-he8bz]

The BCS era was terrible. In any other sport or level of football something like that would never be tolerated. This how true championships are determined. Like should we just automatically have put the chiefs and lions in the Super Bowl just because we assume they were the two best teams? God no. This is just screaming that everyone is mad to SEC won’t be automatically given opportunities based on hypotheticals and will have to prove it on the field.

[@yung1smitty]

So the regular season shouldn't matter let's give everyone three mulligans lose all your biggest games no problem lose to a Mac team no problem .... .most ************ title ever I will not be watching this sham

[@drewp.weiner2473]

The World Series worked like that for 65 years and was better for it. Why play a regular season if you’re going to let anyone into a playoff.

[@JJJJ-he8bz]

@@yung1smitty Just like regular season mattered for Florida State last year? Oh wait…….

[@KingE34]

@@JJJJ-he8bz why do people have to bring conference nationalism into everything? This has nothing to do with conferences it’s about how people valued the regular season more and bowls and prestigious rivalrys were still cared about When teams weren’t in the national championship convo. There were also many more relevant teams from every conference aka more variety. Btw if you think that the conference with the national champion is the best conference by default you’re delusional and if you wanna talk about fsu vs bama look at how fsu had the 48th best sos and still had a lot of struggle wins meanwhile Alabama had the third highest sos and had their starting qb.

[@JJJJ-he8bz]

@@KingE34 I never said the conference who won the championship was the best conference genius

[@HWEWSWEW]

College football is dead. It’s over. Someone saying that the golden era is ahead of us is like saying that the golden age of Jimmy Carters life is ahead of him… there is not a single aspect of college football that made me enjoy it that still exists today. It’s a terrible product played by terrible people…

[@vincentjames7210]

I love Pate but he's so damn negative about the future . Team Klatt all the way

[@drewp.weiner2473]

Klatt is a shill for the big tv networks. He wants a 14 team playoff because fox wants a 14 team playoff

[@yung1smitty]

@@vincentjames7210 klatts a moron that would be outta a job if you didn't tune into the games of course for him it's a golden age for him oh and he also has a podcast where he pushes this agenda which keeps him employed.....NO Way fox should fire Gus and klatt and rehire Joshua Perry and promote DG at least they come to work prepared unlike Gus and Joel

[@brysondunn238]

Ahhh yes, the BCS era. Where computers decided the fate of everyone and everything was a beauty contest.

[@MattBuild4]

Except that wasnt the era at all, seeing as Human polls were always used in the BCS rank. 1998-2001 it was 50:50 human and computers, 2002-2013 it was 66:33 human vs computers.

[@clintbaros2764]

First

[@bitwise2832]

BCS was MID.

[@johnrainbolt6758]

"You are looking live..." "Whoa Nelly!"

[@andreasstratemeyer407]

You nailed it, Josh!