@MarkKnudson41
Strike One: Practice may not make perfect, but it’s still pretty damn important. Just ask the New England Patriots.
A win-is-a-win-is-a-win and for the Denver Broncos, it doesn’t matter one tiny bit if their 18-12 win over the Pats in Foxboro – their first in that venue in more than a decade – was ugly or not. It counts just the same. And they’ll gladly take it.
But this win is as much about preparation – or the lack of it – as anything else. The Broncos practiced and prepared for two full weeks to play New England. Some of them grumbled about it – having worked hard in practice the previous week only to have the game pushed back to a scheduled start on Monday afternoon before it was postponed another week – and essentially forfeiting their bye week in the process. But they clearly got the better end of the deal.
The Pats, hit with positive COVID tests on quarterback Cam Newton and star defensive back Stephon Gilmore – had two weeks full of facility shutdowns, cancelled practices, and zoom meetings. And it showed.
If we’re being honest, if each team got its normal prep time, these Broncos would not beat these Patriots even once more if the two teams played nine more times. The fact is Denver benefited from New England’s COVID issues. So be it.
Will Denver pay a price on the back end? The win in New England came on the first of what is now slated to be – unless there are more COVID related postponements – 12 consecutive Sundays. That’s a meat grinder to be sure.
Still, chances are the way the schedule looks now will not be what it looks like even a month from now. Looking at the national trends surrounding the spread of virus, it’s unrealistic to expect there won’t be more games postponed and rescheduled. You just wonder how this can all fit in to the NFL calendar.
All Denver can worry about is how they handle their business. The Broncos clearly need all the practice time they can get. New England’s stout defense kept Drew Lock and the offense out of the end zone for 60 minutes. If not for the heroics for placekicker Brandon McManus, even the discombobulated Pats would have scored enough points to win. Denver’s offensive line was just…okay, but the young guys in the middle still need growth and tackle remain two weak spots. Lock was having an okay day before he threw two head scratching fourth quarter interceptions that almost wrecked the whole thing. He’s still a work in progress.
Practice man, practice.
Denver will have plenty of practice time ahead. Not sure how the players are feeling about things now, but it’s safe to assume Vic Fangio and his coaching staff would trade that bye week for a win in Foxboro anytime, ugly or not.
Strike Two: Those in charge have decided to make every college football team bowl-eligible this season, regardless of won-loss record. Many see this as a way to help ease the sting of the COVID-19 impacted season, with marquee non-conference games being eliminated, some teams and conferences playing more games than others, and several standout players opting out over safety concerns. At least the season could end better than it starts.
That’s the best case scenario.
The worst case is obviously the cancellation of some or all of college football’s post season. With two bowls – the Hawaii Bowl and the Bahamas Bowl – already cancelled for this year, and with the most recent college football weekend seeing the most cancellations – seven – of any of the weeks so far, the prospect of no bowls at all this year remains very real.
The reality probably lies somewhere in the middle, meaning a few more bowls may get called off, but most of them will get played, albeit in front of sparse (if any) crowds.
The reason those in charge (with a nudge from ESPN to be sure) made this decision doesn’t have anything to do with being kindhearted. It has everything to do with looking ahead and already being desperate to fill all the bowl slots.
The impact of the virus on the finances of college athletic departments hasn’t been a secret. Bowl organizers know that schools and conferences are hurting for money. They also know that aside from the top tier bowl games – the New Year’s Day games and those involved in the College Football Play-off – going bowling is NOT a money-making proposition for the teams involved. After factoring in the sharing of pay-outs with other conference members, and all the expenses involved with a bowl trip, including team travel, guaranteeing the sale of a large block of tickets (during a typical season), perks for boosters, etc., there are plenty of bowl trips that end up costing schools money when it’s all said and done.
While this season the sale of tickets won’t be the same kind of factor it typically is, the other factors remain in play, with things like travel taking on added importance. No ticket sales also means no ticket revenue, which will reduce payouts to teams as well.
This December, there are going to be schools that turn down bowl invites.
Which brings us to the front range. Even before their abbreviated seasons start, it’s fair to wonder what the University of Colorado or Colorado State would do if they finish their schedules with losing records…but end up with a bowl invitation to a lower-tier game that would not benefit – and could even hurt – their programs financially.
Hypothetical: What if the organizers of the New Mexico Bowl invited a 3-5 CU team to play a 2-6 New Mexico squad in Albuquerque in mid-December? Would enough Buff fans being willing to risk traveling to what is currently a COVID hot spot to watch a game between two losing teams? That’s doubtful.
And what would such a bowl trip be worth to a program like CU in terms of national exposure? Enough to warrant another financial hit?
Only in 2020, right?
Strike Three: Here’s another thought to ponder: What if someone could create a post-season game that pitted the Buffs and the Rams at Empower Field to finish this season?
We’ve learned something valuable during this pandemic wrecked year/season: Schedules can be altered. Game dates moved or even created on the fly. Colleges don’t have to schedule games years in advance.
So why not create a post season game – call it a bowl if you want – on the fly that will not require all of the usual preparations, expenses and travel?
It’s doable.
In order for something like this to happen, there has to be a benefit to someone other than those who get to watch at home. A sponsor would need to see a return.
Only a small number of fans – if any – would be allowed to attend, so prospective ticket sales and on-site promotions won’t be enough to lure in a sponsor. It would have to be all about TV and branding exposure.
Television plays the biggest role in the bowl games now, with ESPN owning 19 bowls (including the two that have been PPD’d for the year.) A regional match-up like this however probably wouldn’t be all that enticing to national networks like ESPN or Fox. For this game to garner more than regional interest, both programs would need to be in a better place.
So assuming this would be game that only draws a regional following, it would likely mean a regional network like AT&T Sports Net or Altitude would have to step in and become the TV partner of what we can call the Mile High Bowl for now. Perhaps enough local sponsors could be attracted to make the venture profitable for all sides?
There are plenty of big companies around here that could slap their name on this game and get the local benefit. One is a brewery in Golden. One makes cell phone cases in Fort Collins. One is a satellite TV provider. There are plenty of others.
For everything that’s so screwed up about 2020, it still does provide lessons. One is college football learning to call audibles on schedules. None of us know how the season will go from here or for how long. All we can do is hope for the best and plan for the worse. Part of the best could be bringing the Buffs and Rams together on the field to finish a season they were supposed to start.