Bowl Game Skippin'... What Say Ye?

[Tour2ma]

McCaffery is skippin' Stanford's bowl game to "prepare for the draft."

 

I get the self-preservation aspects... especially in a meaningless, minor game as most bowl games are. But there's also the "for my teammates" factor which again is only amplified, if you're on a "Final Four" team.

 

Haven't really wrapped my mind around weighing the arguments, but I have found myself feeling my take on his draft stock has just dropped a bit.

 

But is it better to take a little hit rather than risk being the next Willis McGahee?

[flyingfooldoug]

Should loyalty and ego be included in the reasoning?

[gftChris]

Skipping team games is a no-no for me. Skipping the senior bowl, shrine games etc I can live with.

[Bob806]

It's selfish.

 

These guys get a scholarship to play and represent their school. Play in the Bowl game, the school counted on you.

[flyingfooldoug]

With players that like to play the bug and windshield game or riding crotch rockets off road.. fuck those selfish arrogant bastards. I hope they trip on their porch steps, break their phenorkle bone and ruin both their NFL and mating career.Like Chris sez, an all star type game is one thing but to turn their back on their teammates and school is unacceptable. Would you want this guy protecting your six? Or in a foxhole with you? That kind of team spirit screams bust anyway.

[Clevfan4life]

These kids can end up costing themselves millions just by turning an ankle in the final game. So im cool with it

[jrb12711]

Jaylon Smith really scared a lot of people last year. The guy went from a lock top 10 pick (and probably top 5) to 2nd rounder. We're talking about MILLIONS of dollars of guaranteed money he may never see again. Personally, I tend to lean on the "play ball" side. But honestly, I can't say for certain that I wouldn't go this route knowing millions of dollars could be on the line because of one bad play. You guys can say you wouldn't do it, but I'd love to see you stick to that if you were in this position.

 

I am interested to see how this might play out long-term though. If this becomes a more normal thing, the NCAA and the powers that be might try to enact policies to counter it. From a marketing perspective, whatever bowl Stanford is in took a serious hit because the past player is sitting out.

[flyingfooldoug]

Seems like a guy could make more than he may lose. Play good. Move up. More money.

[TexasAg1969]

Garrett has opted to play for his teammates. He is delaying any announcement as to intentions to enter the draft early or not until after the game.

 

Maybe he's waiting to see if the Browns get #1 overall first.

[Clevfan4life]

 

Maybe he's waiting to see if the Browns get #1 overall first.

Wuts sad is there might be truth to that. He may not want to go to a team that will not use him right and end up nerfing his career

[Dste Ace]

I remember when friends and family of Jadeveon Clowney were advising him to skip his

final college season. I thought it was a rather shitty attitude, that is until I saw North Carolina

O-linemen blatantly and unapologetically trying to take out his knees.

 

The NCAA and colleges are making ungodly $$$$ and only care about the players as far

as their ability to keep the money train rolling. So I have no problem with a player looking out

for Number 1.

[Clevfan4life]

Coaches leave before bowl games all the time is there a big uproar over that?

[mjp28]

These kids can end up costing themselves millions just by turning an ankle in the final game. So im cool with it

Players can and do get insurance policies against injury or dropping in the draft due to injury for tax free money in the millions. It can be complicated but is available.... SEE ARTICLE IN ESPN......

 

http://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/17328541/college-football-insurance-policies-big-complicated-business

 

Sources revealed Wednesday that Clemson's Deshaun Watson has taken out two insurance policies against a career-ending injury: a $5 million total disability policy and a $5 million loss of value policy.

 

The reality is, players rarely end up receiving a payout, even after they've sustained an injury. And when they do get paid, it's still unclear whether the IRS has dibs on a cut of the money.

 

Here's a primer on how these policies work:

 

What is a total disability policy?

 

It protects a player should he become unable to play football again because of an injury. This covers an injury on or off the field, usually from the time a player signs the policy until the following football season. The only reason something wouldn't be covered is if there's a pre-existing injury; the insurer might specify in the policy that the player would not be covered if the same injury occurs again.

 

A player can attempt to come back from an injury and still collect, but in general, policies won't pay out if he's able to play in more than four games following the injury.

 

A player can't just decide that he can't play. A doctor, sometimes one from the player's side and one from the insurer's side, must agree that is the case.

 

What is a loss of value policy?

 

It is an attachment to the disability policy. It projects where a player is supposed to go in the draft and then provides for a payment up to a specific amount, should the player fall in the draft order because of an injury.

 

A player can get paid a small amount if he doesn't slip far, or the whole amount, as Ifo Ekpre-Olomu received when he was projected to be a first-round pick and an injury caused him to slip to the seventh round. Someone who didn't collect in this year's draft was Myles Jack, who fell to the 36th overall pick, but only would have started to collect money at Pick 45.

 

The loss of value must be associated with an injury. There's no coverage for falling in the draft due to other issues.....CONTINUED IN ARTICLE......

[mjp28]

Now insurance policy or not it still might be an issue for top 5 or 10 draft picks for lower round picks playing probably will help their draft status.

 

Oh yeah D-1A football is big business for conferences (who get HUGE bowl payouts), schools, coaches (in their contracts and future earnings), some players....and insurance companies.

 

Policies are generally $10,000 per million.

 

Why do schools pay?

 

This is now a good way for a school to keep a player who might be scared to return. In other words, the school is saying, if you hurt yourself, we've got your back. GO TEAM!!

[Tour2ma]

And Fournette has now said he wil not play in LSU's bowl game...

[Tim Couch Pulls Out]

Circumstances. A first round RB skipping a meaningless bowl game, I'm fine with. Were it any even slightly larger Bowl, I'd be concerned. But the West Las Vegas Combination KFC Taco Bell Bowl means nothing.

[One Post]

You play! The college took you in and gave you a chance to shine with free tuition and whatever else. So you pay what you're supposed to. If you're going to get hurt playing football it can happen at anytime especially during the preseason.

 

These players know they're getting drafted high and I don't see any players that don't stand a chance in the nfl bowing out of a bowl game. I'm so happy the rules of rookie players' salaries have disapated.

[MLD Woody]

I have no problem with it. The players should be paid as it is. They've given the school much more than it has given them. Let them protecting their money. Plus, coaches do this shit all of the time and I one cares.

[tiamat63]

As a fan, no issue I guess. If I was a team mate, I'd have a couple parting words.

 

Then again I'm not a fan of coaches leaving before bowl games either.

[calfoxwc]

to me, a player who deserts his teammates isn't much of a teammate, probably all about himself.

 

It depends on circumstances, but if I had to choose between three equal players ...

the two who DID play that bowl game are the kind of kids who love the game,

and are about the team winning. It dpends on why, etc, but it reeks of "prima donna wanta money"

 

Just my opinion.

[Taco918]

I have no issue with the two major players (Fournette and McCaffrey) not playing. Both of their teams under-performed this year. Both have enough tape for scouts. They honestly have nothing to gain by playing in a meaningless bowl game.

 

Now if a prospect who was lacking tape, playing for a major bowl and/or championship decided not to play, then I'd consider having an issue.

[BrownPile]

Overall, it tells you something about the player's character.

 

What does that do to his draft position if he won't play for fear of getting hurt and costing him money?

Do I want that guy on my 'team' if he's showing he's not a team player?

[Canton Mike]

Hmmmm......What if there was a rule disqualifying them from the Combine and their school's Pro Days for skipping those bowl games? Just a thought.

 

Mike

[Furious Styles]

How about some of the other players getting full rides step up and play.They're on scholarship also riding the coat tails of star players. Put THEM in coach.

Like others have mentioned, coaches leave their teams right before bowl games all the time for "$elf".

[Tour2ma]

Not sure the NFL would ever want to take a position on bowl skippin'. Pretty sure whatever it might be that the NFLPA would not share it.

 

To someone's point about the draft, there is already talk of these players hurting themselves in some teams' eyes. How many? How badly? Probably never know. But I do not think there is one answer for all cases. At minimum I think bowl skipping says something about a player's "love of the game". But in every case it intersects their concern for their "financial future" at some point.

 

 

McCaffrey's decision surprised me. Every time I'd seen him he played like a player whose skills were augmented by something inside... an RB with a "motor", if you will, who was passionate about the game. What's hard to know is how hard he needs to work to get his combine numbers in line with his late-1st projection. That is his stated reason for skipping his bowl.

 

Fournette on the other hand has obviously been an athlete supreme for years... one more year than he consistently showed it on field. Due to injury this year he only flashed what we saw, and came to expect, play after play, game after game in prior years. Worse yet for him we saw his back up look more like the Fournette we used to know. I can better understand his rationale for bowl skippin'.

 

There are a couple things both have in common:

• both will now have the same question to answer in their NFL interviews; and
• they are both coming out a year early, now it's a year and a game early.

[Furious Styles]

Hmmmm......What if there was a rule disqualifying them from the Combine and their school's Pro Days for skipping those bowl games? Just a thought.

 

Mike

Why would the NFL do that ? NFL teams have all the collegiate tape they need from most players.

These are grown men ready to make a living and I don't get this mentality that they can do so when "others" (fans, team mates, talking heads, bowl organizers) say they can. Its their life.

[mjp28]

Just another way of judging the whole bowl, conference, team, coach (often in their contract), player incentives to play or not and maybe even some stipend for D-1A players to get "pay for play" for at least needs based players.

 

Yes it's expensive to send a team to an away game but judge for yourself.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

College Football Playoff Revenue-Distribution Policies

 

The following estimates of the CFP revenue distribution are based on preliminary calculations for the 2016-17 season and are only approximate projections of potential revenue distribution from each component:

 

(1) Each conference will receive $300,000 for each of its schools when the school’s football team meets the NCAA’s APR for participation in a post-season football game. Each independent institution will also receive the $300,000 when its football team meets that standard.

 

(2) Each of the 10 conferences will also receive a base amount. For conferences that have contracts for their champions to participate in the Orange, Rose or Sugar Bowl, the base combined with the full academic performance pool will be approximately $55 million for each conference. The five conferences that do not have contracts for their champions to participate in the Orange, Rose or Sugar Bowls will receive approximately $83.5 million in aggregate (full academic pool plus base), which the conferences will distribute as they choose. Notre Dame will receive a payment of $2.83 million if it meets the APR standard; the other three independents will share $930,462.

 

(3) A conference will receive $6 million for each team that is selected for the semifinal games. There will be no additional distribution to conferences whose teams qualify for the national championship game. A conference will receive $4 million for each team that plays in a non-playoff bowl under the arrangement (in 2014-2015, the Cotton, Fiesta and Peach Bowls).

 

(4) Each conference whose team participates in a playoff semifinal, Cotton, Fiesta or Peach Bowl, or in the national championship game will receive $2.16 million to cover expenses for each game.

 

Additionally, certain conferences in the Football Championship Subdivision conferences will receive $2.43 million in aggregate.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Whoa lots and lots of zeros.

[flyingfooldoug]

I believe Youngstown state falls in the latter. It'd be good for them and the valley to win it all again. National championship game Jan 7th.

[mjp28]

I believe Youngstown state falls in the latter. It'd be good for them and the valley to win it all again. National championship game Jan 7th.

The 1-AA FCS payouts are different and very tricky to find and naturally far less than the 1-AA FBS games.

[flyingfooldoug]

Still very cool to see Tressel and Pelini taking the team to the big game. They'll make their money more ways than one