It’s no secret that college football is trying to expand its playoffs from 12 to 24 teams rapidly. ESPN had reported on Thursday that a deal was close, while On3 later reported that no official vote had been made yet.
Florida would still be left out of a 24-team format, but that also ties into the point we are about to make:
Florida fans won’t benefit from a 24-team format.
A 24-team format would be just another strain in a growing list of strains that could threaten to pop the fandom bubble that has filled The Swamp year after year.
Florida fans faced with another strain with looming 24-team format
The Swamp is on a sell-out streak, and given the quality of football that has been played in Gainesville over the past five years, it’s actually quite impressive. Now, let’s also be honest: there are some gimmicks with the tickets to get to these “sellouts,” like peeking into the upper decks to find available seats, but overall, attendance hasn't been an issue.
But as we have talked about over the past couple of years in relation to the upgrades soon to come to The Swamp, there is a genuine strain being placed on Florida fans from a financial standpoint.
So where does the 24-team format create another strain for fans?
Well, consider that Scott Stricklin has essentially admitted that ticket prices will go up to help pay for the renovations. As it stands, tickets to a Florida game tend to cost more than tickets to an NFL game in Florida, and fans will be asked to pay even more. But now throw in a 24-team playoff format, and every year is going to create one of two problems:
- Florida will be so bad they can’t even make a 24-team format; thus, home games won’t be as enjoyable.
- Florida is good and is in a position to make the playoffs easily; thus, home games in November won’t really matter and won’t be as enjoyable.
And while Florida fans are a loyal bunch, the past couple of months in the sports landscape have showcased that virtually every fanbase has its limit. In baseball, multiple teams have struggled to fill seats due to a combination of inconvenient start times and hijacked ticket prices. In hockey, franchises like the Vegas Golden Knights and the Edmonton Oilers, teams that have been in the Stanley Cup Finals in recent years, aren’t selling out due to ticket prices. And even with Penn State football, they just set an “attendance record,” but they have also been grappling with signs of sluggish in-person attendance.
We aren’t saying The Swamp is all of a sudden going to be empty because of a potential 24-team playoff, but what we are saying is that prices are going to continue to go up while the games themselves will matter less.
And while college football is a bit different than baseball or hockey because fans go for the festivities as much as the game itself, the warning signs are there.
And ultimately, every man has his price.
Add us as a preferred source on Google