Dominos Fall Correctly – Pack to Play in Charlotte

General NCS Football34

When we learned late this afternoon that Clemson & Colorado where going to play in the Champs Sports Bowl in Orlando, it was all but a formality that NC State would be the Meineke Car Care Bowl’s selection to match up with South Florida in Charlotte.

As of 4:27pm, we have the news…Pack Pride has the news…but GoPack is still telling you about the women’s basketball victory and a wrestling match. Is this really that surprising?

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General NCS Football

34 Responses to Dominos Fall Correctly – Pack to Play in Charlotte

  1. Jim 12/04/2005 at 5:42 PM #

    This is the way it should have happened. 4th tier and below bowl games do not have the luxery of “rewarding” the best team on the board. They are trying to make money and sell tickets. Swofford tried to force the bowls to be “fair” to BC (by keeping them out of Boise) but was apparently unsuccessful.

    This is the second time our good fan base has kept us out of Boise.

  2. Trout 12/04/2005 at 7:35 PM #

    I’ve heard, through the grapevine, that the StateFansNation has volunteered to host anyone attending the game at the Corporate Headquarters!

    I’ll be there!

  3. Rick Jernigan 12/04/2005 at 8:18 PM #

    The best part of this is the accompanying whining that has already commenced from the enemies of NC State. They really wanted to see us playing on the shameful blue field in Idaho. UNC-Chapel Hill fans are in a particular conundrum – they badly want to point out that we have to play a pitiful South Florida team. Unfortunately, USF jack hammered their best out of conference opponent, Louisville. Since they played the most difficult schedule in the history of the modern era of college football, USF must be great. USF is also on their 2006 schedule.

    One down note is that the George Washington basketball game at home is at Noon on the same day as the bowl.

  4. Class of '74 12/05/2005 at 7:10 AM #

    With the season we had let’s be glad we’re in a bowl no matter what. At least Chuck can get some extra practice time for the guys we will have next year.

  5. Saul 12/05/2005 at 7:39 AM #

    How long as Amato coached State? Pack Pride says this is his 5th year.

    http://northcarolinastate.scout.com/2/474526.html

    “With a loud roar from the team in the background, NC State fifth-year head coach Chuck Amato accepted.”

  6. Tom 12/05/2005 at 8:19 AM #

    I agree with Jim, except for his use of ironic quotes. Contrary to other sports, the college bowl system is not about merit, it is about money. If it was about merit, two ranked teams with better records — BC (which crushed State) and Georgia Tech (which beat Auburn and Miami) — would not be going to Boise and SF, respectively, behind a State squad that received no votes in the polls. If we were being honest with ourselves, we would not be hailing this state of affairs as correct.

  7. Alpha Wolf 12/05/2005 at 8:25 AM #

    Tom,

    College *sports* are all about money. Keep in mind that in basketball, a lot of picks and seedings are based solely on TV marketability. Add to that the utter hypocrisy of the college presidents saying that a playoff system is a bad thing because teams would “miss class” but then it is okay for every D1 team to add a 12th game…so that the big schools can squeeze their boosters for an extra home game and the little schools can get a big payoff by playing the big boys at their place.

    It’s sad really. We’re taught as kids to play “fair” and as adults, we hope that sports is the last refuge of that lost ideal. Unfortunately, it turns out that the mighty dollar rules sports and the concept of fairness went into the scrap heap a long time ago.

  8. smile 12/05/2005 at 8:26 AM #

    Any bowl is better than no bowl. W/ 28 or so bowls, almost half of D-1 teams go, but it’s still good. We all know the astericks to attach- it’s a touch of salve on a sore season. Oh well, on to b’ball.

  9. Jim 12/05/2005 at 10:10 AM #

    Swofford would have had to convince a bowl to give up money to take BC instead of us (or Clemson). There is no way the Champs, Charlotte, or Nashville bowls are going to give up money. They are trying to run a business and sell tickets.

    BC, who is better than us (and GT and UVa), ends up with a better opponent than those 3 anyway. It all sort of worked out. If he thinks Boise is such a shameful bowl then Swofford should end the ACC’s contract with them.

    I don’t see why we should feel guilty.

  10. choppack 12/05/2005 at 10:17 AM #

    Jim – Amen. Funny, the man who creates this whole mess doesn’t seem to like the agreement he brokered. It’s worth repeating over and over again that this is the second consecutive year a Top 20 8-3 ACC team has gone to Boise. Another thing I’m repeating again and again is that in terms of the combination of location and opponent, this is by far the worst agreement amongst the conferences.

    Could be worse, we could be Oregon playing OU. Of course, at least they are playing in San Diego.

  11. VaWolf82 12/05/2005 at 10:53 AM #

    No one would ever pretend that Boise is an ideal location for a bowl game. However, the bowl tie-ins were set when the conference decided to expand. With 11 teams last year and 12 teams this year, I’m glad that Swofford got the blue-carpet so that teams would at least have some place to go.

    Also, it looks to me like the conference office moved pretty quick and got agreements with the Music City and Emerald bowls when it became obvious that the ACC would have 8 bowl eligible teams. In 2001, WF was bowl eligible at 6-5 and didn’t get a bowl. I’m glad that this is not happening to the Pack this year.

    The bigger issue with respect to BC, is when will they ever get a better bowl if fan attendance is substantially more important than the records. This could get ugly if BC starts to consistently turn in 5-3 conference records.

  12. choppack 12/05/2005 at 11:01 AM #

    Well, they’ll either have to start traveling better or finishing in such a fashion where these aren’t an issue. Sorry, but you can’t be “big-time” football w/out traveling well.

  13. Jeff 12/05/2005 at 11:06 AM #

    Bowls = Business

    Next year, the Boise Bowl drops to 8th in the pecking order. That is perfect and fair for all. The fans of the 8th place team aren’t going to head ANYWHERE…and few people are every going to go to Boise no matter what place their team finishes. It works out well for all.

  14. Rick Jernigan 12/05/2005 at 11:42 AM #

    Georgia Tech has to be feeling “hosed” by their bowl situation. They were essentially handed the 8th place bowl – Emerald and I believe are making their 4th trip to the West Coast in 5 years. Seattle, Boise (twice?). They seemed to be a natural fit for the Music City in Nashville this year. Can anyone explain how Virginia got the Music City?

  15. Jim 12/05/2005 at 11:53 AM #

    GT had the chance to render us bowl-ineligible on their home field. That would have sent them to Charlotte (or better) I assume.

    I’m still mad at GT for the game they flat-out cheated from us in Atlanta in the early 90s. (very late in the game the clock should have restarted [and run out] and didn’t — the ACC office came out the week after the game and said so). That loss screwed us and severly downgraded our bowl that year. Karma.

  16. Trout 12/05/2005 at 11:56 AM #

    I too am surprised Nashville selected UVA ahead of GT.

  17. Trout 12/05/2005 at 12:03 PM #

    From the Atlanta paper:

    “That was probably the feeling of the committee,” Ramsey said. “Virginia did as good as anybody selling us on their program and their fan base. They really impressed us the last week and a half to two weeks. Virginia was probably the most organized and prepared. Their organization, preparation and consistency made it a good feel for us.”

    The Virginia athletics department sent the Music City a marketing program that included newspaper, TV and radio ads, a postcard mailing to season-ticket holders, an e-mail campaign and a dedicated bowl Web site. But it wasn’t just the athletics department that made an impression, Ramsey said. Several hundred Virginia fans e-mailed and called the Music City expressing their enthusiasm about the possibility of coming to Nashville.

    GT AD Dave Braine’ respons:

    “Georgia Tech athletics director Dave Braine wasn’t buying Ramsey’s explanation.

    “We have the Web sites, and we have the postcards, and we have everything else,” Braine said. “It comes down to one school outbidding another school. When you have a 7-4 record which is better than Virginia’s, and when you have a 5-3 conference record which is better than Virginia’s, you shouldn’t have to buy a game.

    “Until the ACC does something about bowls taking schools because of the number of tickets they’ll sell and fans they’ll bring, we’ll have this situation.”

    Braine said he told Ramsey Tech would buy 20,000 tickets and bring 10,000-12,000 fans.

    “Scott Ramsey from Day 1 gave every indication to us that he would take Virginia. None of us believed the conference would let him do that.” ACC officials could not be reached Sunday night.”

  18. Class of '74 12/05/2005 at 1:00 PM #

    The fact is there are way too many bowls period.
    We may be the exception but most schools don’t travel for 6-5 bowl teams. After you go past 15 bowls there is little interest in the teams and games but as long as civic organizations want to host them and can find a corporation willing to fund it the conferences will encourage it.

  19. Jim 12/05/2005 at 1:07 PM #

    “None of us believed the conference would let him do that.” What the hell is THAT supposed to mean? Aren’t bowls fairly autonomous? Aren’t they businesses trying to sell tickets? Why would “the conference” come swooping in to tell the bowls what teams they get?

  20. VaWolf82 12/05/2005 at 1:12 PM #

    From the source of all football knowledge (College Football Data Warehouse), recent GT bowls are:
    12/29/1997 Carquest Bowl
    1/1/1999 Gator Bowl
    1/1/2000 Gator Bowl
    12/29/2000 Peach Bowl
    12/27/2001 Seattle Bowl
    12/31/2002 Silicon Valley Classic
    1/3/2004 Humanitarian Bowl
    12/21/2004 Champs Sports Bowl

    So they went out west three years in a row and this will make four years out of five. (Note that the quality of their bowls have dropped off substantially.)

  21. Charles 12/05/2005 at 1:45 PM #

    Jim,

    The conference office has to do something to keep the smaller schools happy. The state schools have an inherent advantage, and GT is in between us and them in scope and size.

    Keep in mind how much money the likes of Duke, a smaller private school, brings in from the basketball side of the equation.

    Swoffy is in a tough spot of having to try to please everyone. I agree it is business and the bowls are going to decide their bids often upon fanbase size, but look at it from Swofford POV and keep in mind who he has to please.

  22. Jim 12/05/2005 at 1:47 PM #

    I also don’t think there are too many bowls. Nobody has a gun to anyone’s head forcing them to watch or attend bowl games. So what if some mediocre teams get to play an extra game? What harm is there in that? You can always change the channel. For people who like college football they get to see more games.

  23. Mr. O 12/05/2005 at 1:55 PM #

    Agree with Jim about the number of bowls. I like to watch my favorite teams. If we aren’t in the game, then I don’t really care.

  24. Jeff 12/05/2005 at 2:06 PM #

    These comments are super!!! I was wondering about the GT-UVA situation and come here and then I learn about it.

    Tough situation.

    Being as ‘free market’ as I like to be, I totally agree with Jim’s perspective and have never thought that there are “too many bowl games” I have never watched the Motor Bowl because it doesn’t interest me in the least. But, if a market exists for them….then that is great. If a market doesn’t exist, then they won’t make survive.

    Additionally, the remedy for “good teams” like Georgia Tech is not to REDUCE the number of bowls. What if the Emerald Bowl didn’t exist? GT would be going nowhere. Citing good teams who are going to bowls seems to endorse the role of so many bowls. Heck…this year, both BC and GT may not have made bowls if there weren’t so many.

  25. BJD95 12/05/2005 at 2:32 PM #

    As I’ve said before, the solution is a merit-based 16-team playoff. Everybody (including BC and GT) can strive for that. And if they fall short, take whatever you get in the bowl system and don’t complain. Like the NIT, the bowls in a playoff world would ALL exist solely for money, and invitations (like NIT home dates) would be made solely with the bottom line in mind.

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