Sixteen. Sixteen stadiums to go, including recent additions of Jacksonville State and Missouri State. Delaware also joined the list, but I have already been to the “Coop”, having long expected that storied FCS program to eventually make the jump to the FBS.
However, with so few teams left, the planning becomes much more difficult. As I set up my schedule, I am starting to see weeks when I am shut out of any potential box ticking games. In addition to Jax State and Missouri State being erm, ahh, geographically challenging, their Conference USA mid-week games do not fit well with my fall semester class schedule. While creating this season’s schedule is not exactly solving a Gordian knot, it is not as simple as ABC-123 either. Finding double weekends has been harder than finding ushers for the Belichick-Hudson wedding party. When the NFL had the wisdom to schedule the Vikings – Steelers Ireland game in the middle of the season, a critical block of games was also eliminated from my potential list. Lastly, convincing my wife that apple picking in the Ozarks (once you concede the reduced number of shoes and teeth) is equivalent to apple picking in New England has been harder than I anticipated.
This year, the struggle is real, and the schedule is more tenuous than ever before. I normally shoot for ten to twelve games but this year it may only be five or six. My wife tells me I should savor these last games instead of rushing to get them finished. However, I am not getting any younger and more importantly, the experience is starting to change. With the advent of NIL money and the transfer portal, the FBS landscape appears to be irrevocably altered. There have always been “haves” and “have-nots.” In the past, that distinction was between the Power Five and the Group of Five conferences. Now, it feels those groups are getting even more disproportionate. The future of FBS football may just be the SEC and Big Ten. As for the Group of Five conferences, some of those schools may not even be around in ten years, as crazy as that sounds.
Change is coming, sooner rather than later, and probably not for the better. I leave you with the image of my May 2025 SI wall calendar where covers of the Indy 500, the Kentucky Derby and boxing title fights serve as a reminder that nothing stays on top forever.
