A quick Google search shows roughly 5% of viewers bet on each game. So they’d go down a little? But the sport would still be wildly popular?
Does that include prediction markets like Kalshi and Polymarket?
Look at how we got to this popularity number.
Whether you believed it was always pay-to-play or not, there used to be some continuity in college sports. Players stayed on the same team for many years. Teams stayed in their conferences long term. Now we're in an environment where conference alignments are shifting at a more rapid rate. When Texas vs. Ohio State is generating this many views, the logical question will arise as to why all the top P4 teams don't play one another more frequently. This has been the basis for why the playoff has only expanded (and why the NCAA touranment is expanding).
You can see a collusion of forces where betting/prediction markets, escalating NIL budgets, record viewership numbers, complete farce made of the notion of a "student-athlete" (despite the fact that majority don't end up going pro) is essentially turning college athletics into yet another billionaire gladiatorial playing field.
Did Mark Cuban help Indiana secure their 'ship? What was the split of Indiana basketball fans vs. Indiana football fans in 2023? What is it today?
Did Larry Ellison help Michigan secure their 'ship by helping them land Yaxel and persuade Morez into reneging on us?
These are the intangible cracks I'm talking about. This is why I'd rather win the 'ship sooner rather than later. It's becoming NBA/NFL-lite by the day. At some point, the mystique of school spirit, pageantry, and history will all but evaporate out of the sport.
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But, yes, I will take my mounds and eat my crow and confirm that my line that "
we're already starting to see cracks in college football" was factually and measurably wrong.
Thank you for fact checking me on that. I'll do better next time.
