Okay. Everybody's exhaling now that another round of realigning college allegiances has quieted down. However, I don't believe this game of Three-Conference Monte has been solved yet. With Texas A&M's acceptance into the SEC complete, and the ACC bumping their posse up a couple of newbloods, it appears that the "Mega Conference" reality will come about from a slow drip instead of a cascading waterfall.
I mean, do you think the SEC is satisfied staying with 13 members for the next decade-plus? Will a conference be satisfied with a lineup of 14? And do the Big 10-ish and Pac-12 really want to be seen as the little brothers to 16-team leagues?
Over the next few years, I think that the buzzards picking over the exposed carcasses of the Big East and Big 12 will get their fill, even if they don't pick the bones clean. And eventually, the Super Conferences will boast a roster of 64 schools that could ultimately leave the NCAA high and dry.
This will have experts of college days of yore screaming "Bloody murder!" all across the country. Where's the tradition? Where's the integrity? How is this any different from being a minor-league system to the NFL?
Well ... come to think of it ... how isn't it?
You know, with 32 teams dotting the professional landscape, 64 does make a nice round number. Plus, if the NCAA ends up not controlling any new conglomerate of football magnates, those conferences might need some direction.
Enter Roger Goodell and the suits over in New York. If this "pie in the sky" possibility of the Super Conferences breaking loose occurs, then what better time than now to setup what the other pro sports have been doing for decades (in some cases) ... a minor leagues of football.
Now, before you rail against my preposterous theory, hear me out a second. My version of an NFML (National Football Minor League) sets up two tiers of teams. Think of it as a Single-A/Double-A, A-Tier/B-Tier, or whatever. Thirty-two teams make up the first tier just below the NFL level. The second tier encompasses the other set of 32.
Each tier is divided up into regions and plays against one another. So, if Alabama and Oklahoma were in the same tier, they would be taking on one another. Tier one teams can play two tier two teams per year, and vice-versa. Each tier division plays just like today's conferences, with the winners of those four divisions going into a playoff to decide that tier's champion.
Confused yet? Oh, it gets better. So, how would you decide which team gets what University host?
Each NFL franchise gets to go into negotiations with whichever school they see as their top "farm system" locale. You would figure that most of the big boys would be hot commodities (Alabama, Oklahoma, Nebraska, USC, Florida, Ohio State). However, it might be advantageous for some teams to snap up a school with more local ties. After the Tier 1 schools are established, then you would do the same system to set up Tier 2.
The agreed money from the Pro team will basically act as a rental fee to use the school's stadium and facilities for their future prospects. The NFL team, in return, would receive a portion of the ticket sales from the university as a partial return on investment. The length of each contract would be a static timeframe set up through the league (probably five or seven years). This way, if any schools on the lower tier have proved they are ready for Tier 1 status, they can move up in class. Likewise, any upper tier program not cutting its weight can be left for demotion.
This will wreak havoc on current TV rights for college football, but could create a new boom for professional TV money, which would be infused back to the organizations and their new farm teams.
On to the players, who might see the most risk and reward out of this whole deal. Instead of holding the NFL draft for all players that are three years removed from their secondary education, it opens up to all eligible high school graduates. The draft itself is expanded to 53 rounds (yes, it's extremely watered down, but that's a number of NFL roster slots per team). Anyone who gets drafted will have to play at that franchise's schools.
The players evaluated at a Tier 2 level can make up to $100K per year. Tier 1 players can top out at $250K per season. Drafted players have four years of eligibility to reach the Pro level, otherwise they'll be left to fend on their own for free agent spots. These players must also follow NFL personnel conduct procedures and attend classes as long as they are at their assigned university.
And where do the college coaches stand in all of this? The basically become de facto personnel staff to their pro counterparts. They help decide draft strategies before actually working with the kids once they get on campus. To fill out squads, the coaches can also recruit some of their own talent. Like rookie free agents, undrafted can choose any college they wish to go to and will still get the chance for a full scholarship.
Your mind numb from all these possibilities? Perfect ... because it might just take a complex solution to settle this complicated situation that college football has gotten itself into. There's no easy way for purists to stomach the change that's happening from coast to coast, but the change is there. And what to say more change what happen even if we get these mega conferences in line?
Baseball has its set "A"-laden leagues. Basketball uses a "D" in its semi-pro effort. Hockey can start its process from the juniors on. Maybe its time for the huddle to expand, creating its own path to stardom.
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