Bowl Time

Fisher Deberry often said there's no such thing as a bad bowl. He's right, especially if you are a football coach. The Falcons are headed to a bowl. Which one is still up in the air. The Independence Bowl would love to have Air Force back. The Military Bowl had an agreement with Navy, but the midshipmen are not eligible. The Falcons appear to be an attractive alternative. For head coaches a bowl gives you about 15 extra practices to work with guys coming back next year. You also get extra exposure when it comes to recruiting and this year that's more critical than ever since Army and Navy are not bowl eligible. And if you work the dollars right you can add to the bottom line based on the bowl payout. Are some bowls more glamorous than others? No question. But for a head coach, or a senior, getting one more game is critical. I remember my last football game in HIGH SCHOOL, and I would have given anything (event today) to suit up one more time.

You can make a good argument 35 bowls is too many, and the number taints the bowl system. But that's the way things are set up. And if you are one of the 50 teams not going to a bowl, guess what? There's no such thing as a bad bowl.