Does the conference move diminish enthusiasm for this year?

Does the conference move diminish enthusiasm for this year? - Printable Version

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Does the conference move diminish enthusiasm for this year? - 81alum - 09-07-2023

I've been thinking about this. How does knowing that this is the last year of the Pac 12 alter your enthusiasm for the various sports this year?

It is complicated with football, since I think most everyone had sharply reduced expectations anyway. But what about sports where we are expected to do well?

In WBB, for example, winning the conference has been a major challenge the last few years, with Oregon, Arizona, UCLA, Utah etc. putting up some major obstacles. While the main goal for Stanford WBB has always been the Final Four and another shot at a natty, as the quality of WBB in the Pac 12 increased I think we all started to care about winning the conference as a second significant goal.

This year, for example, we might not even be the favored team to win the conference, given that Utah gets everyone back. And UCLA, bolstered by Betts, will be even stronger this year after defeating us last year. So winning the conference will not be easy and doing so would seemingly be a major accomplishment. It should, on paper, be a real dogfight.

But now I wonder how much anyone will care who wins the final title of a moribund conference? Will attention and interest instead start to shift to our future conference? Will we be more interested in how Notre Dame and Duke are doing this year than UCLA or poor Oregon State?

One final WBB thought. This may be the last year we ever play Washington State. It is hard to imagine scheduling an out-of-conference trip to Pullman when our travel situation will be abhorrent in the ACC. Currently we are 72-0 against them--going back about 40 years-- the most impressive streak in college basketball history. So there is something to cheer for--finishing up at 74-0.

RE: Does the conference move diminish enthusiasm for this year? - BobK - 09-07-2023

I’m very excited for this season in all Stanford sports I follow. WBB included
Plus I’m excited that we are in the ACC. Why? because I thought doomed to be in a minor league when the Pac 12-10 imploded

I’ll miss the Pac 12 but then I still miss the SF Seals

RE: Does the conference move diminish enthusiasm for this year? - Mick - 09-07-2023

(09-07-2023, 06:16 AM)BobK Wrote: I’m very excited for this season in all Stanford sports I follow. WBB included
Plus I’m excited that we are in the ACC. Why? because I thought doomed to be in a minor league when the Pac 12-10 imploded

I’ll miss the Pac 12 but then I still miss the SF Seals

Same. I'm excited about ACC football, and I'm really excited about ACC MBB. Playing Miami, Pitt, Duke, North Carolina, Virginia, NC State, Clemson...all of them won at least 20 last year. VaTech and Wake Forest won 19. And Louisville was a power up until two years ago. If nothing else, I think our recruiting will get much, much better against this competition. YEs, we should get rid of Haase, and Dawkins wasn't good. I don't know where the next Mike Montgomery is coaching, but I'm sure Bernard Muir will find him... ;)

RE: Does the conference move diminish enthusiasm for this year? - AlbanyCardinal - 09-07-2023

I'm still very curious to see what football looks like under a new coach, irrespective of the conference shakeup. The past few years I stopped watching football altogether, so this is a change for me. So far so good. I'd say it's the inverse with MBB. I can't stand watching Haase-coached basketball. It's absolutely maddening. I'm of course excited for ACC hoops, but until there's change at the top or a sea change in how he coaches, I'll be safely removed from the fray (for the sake of my blood pressure).

(09-07-2023, 06:09 AM)81alum Wrote: I've been thinking about this. How does knowing that this is the last year of the Pac 12 alter your enthusiasm for the various sports this year?

It is complicated with football, since I think most everyone had sharply reduced expectations anyway. But what about sports where we are expected to do well?

In WBB, for example, winning the conference has been a major challenge the last few years, with Oregon, Arizona, UCLA, Utah etc. putting up some major obstacles. While the main goal for Stanford WBB has always been the Final Four and another shot at a natty, as the quality of WBB in the Pac 12 increased I think we all started to care about winning the conference as a second significant goal.

This year, for example, we might not even be the favored team to win the conference, given that Utah gets everyone back. And UCLA, bolstered by Betts, will be even stronger this year after defeating us last year. So winning the conference will not be easy and doing so would seemingly be a major accomplishment. It should, on paper, be a real dogfight.

But now I wonder how much anyone will care who wins the final title of a moribund conference? Will attention and interest instead start to shift to our future conference? Will we be more interested in how Notre Dame and Duke are doing this year than UCLA or poor Oregon State?

One final WBB thought. This may be the last year we ever play Washington State. It is hard to imagine scheduling an out-of-conference trip to Pullman when our travel situation will be abhorrent in the ACC. Currently we are 72-0 against them--going back about 40 years-- the most impressive streak in college basketball history. So there is something to cheer for--finishing up at 74-0.

RE: Does the conference move diminish enthusiasm for this year? - fullmetal - 09-07-2023

I'm very excited, but I don't think that's the case for other alumni in my region. There might be one or two other watch parties this season.

RE: Does the conference move diminish enthusiasm for this year? - martyup - 09-08-2023

I'm ready for T² to shock the world and take this team to a bowl game in his first year.

I'm ready for Tara to ride the Brink train to another Natty.

I'm ready for a double NC in soccer.

I'm ready. Let's go!

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RE: Does the conference move diminish enthusiasm for this year? - MV72018 - 09-08-2023

(09-08-2023, 12:37 PM)martyup Wrote: I'm ready for T² to shock the world and take this team to a bowl game in his first year.

I'm ready for Tara to ride the Brink train to another Natty.

I'm ready for a double NC in soccer.

I'm ready. Let's go!

25 words: "point guard with great handles and who shoots treys well" and "wing who shoots treys well and takes it to the hoop and dishes or finishes"

RE: Does the conference move diminish enthusiasm for this year? - SkiBum80 - 09-08-2023

(09-08-2023, 12:37 PM)martyup Wrote: I'm ready for T² to shock the world and take this team to a bowl game in his first year.

I'm ready for Tara to ride the Brink train to another Natty.

I'm ready for a double NC in soccer.

I'm ready. Let's go!

Yes! Go Card!! Kick some PAC traitor "butts" (family board)!!
... wait.. is that in our "Culture"?!

RE: Does the conference move diminish enthusiasm for this year? - Softball Fan - 09-08-2023

I'm as enthusiastic as ever about this year. I was never interested in winning the conference. It was always about the NCAA tournament in the sports I follow.

I very much look forward to next year in the ACC. It will take a few years to get familiar with the ACC teams, coaches, and players. But within a few years I will be all in following ACC sports.

RE: Does the conference move diminish enthusiasm for this year? - chrisk - 09-08-2023

I would think the last year of the Pac-12 as we know it would increase interest.

Last games vs USC, UCLA, Oregon, Washington etc.

RE: Does the conference move diminish enthusiasm for this year? - Snorlax94 - 09-08-2023

(09-08-2023, 08:10 PM)chrisk Wrote: I would think the last year of the Pac-12 as we know it would increase interest.

Last games vs USC, UCLA, Oregon, Washington etc.

This is exactly how I feel! I have been watching more football than I have in years! Really looking forward to watching games at Stanford Stadium — final matchups in the stadium against Washington, Oregon, UCLA, Arizona.

I have been curious to see whether there is conference-wide boost for the Pac-12 in ratings.

Will see what Stanford Stadium is like for Arizona and Oregon

RE: Does the conference move diminish enthusiasm for this year? - lex24 - 09-09-2023

The transfer explosion couple with the demise of the PAC-12 has greatly diminished my interest in college football.

RE: Does the conference move diminish enthusiasm for this year? - Mick - 09-09-2023

(09-09-2023, 06:04 PM)lex24 Wrote: The transfer explosion couple with the demise of the PAC-12 has greatly diminished my interest in college football.

Same. It makes Stanford football ridiculously uncompetitive. Why I wasn't wild about the move to the ACC, but that's over and done.

I don't really care about the demise of the Pac-12, although I hope OSU and WSU make out. I'm looking forward to next year, when Stanford will be a better football team (theoretically) and in a conference that's better for us. But I'm really looking forward to Stanford basketball when they have a new, competitive coach and home games against ACC opponents.

RE: Does the conference move diminish enthusiasm for this year? - cardcrimson - 09-09-2023

(09-09-2023, 09:06 PM)Mick Wrote:
(09-09-2023, 06:04 PM)lex24 Wrote: The transfer explosion couple with the demise of the PAC-12 has greatly diminished my interest in college football.

Same. It makes Stanford football ridiculously uncompetitive. Why I wasn't wild about the move to the ACC, but that's over and done.

I don't really care about the demise of the Pac-12, although I hope OSU and WSU make out. I'm looking forward to next year, when Stanford will be a better football team (theoretically) and in a conference that's better for us. But I'm really looking forward to Stanford basketball when they have a new, competitive coach and home games against ACC opponents.

Anybody watch the Bama game? Ugh, their QB is abysmal. They're normally stout D struggling, as well. Lots of turmoils in the game right now.

RE: Does the conference move diminish enthusiasm for this year? - Red80 - 09-09-2023

(09-09-2023, 06:04 PM)lex24 Wrote: The transfer explosion couple with the demise of the PAC-12 has greatly diminished my interest in college football.

Completely agree. It's beyond tragic that the P12 has ended. Regional rivalries and great history are what made this conference so special.

Going to the ACC leaves me feeling empty.

The portal, NIL, and conference restructuring are going to ruin college football.

But it was great while it lasted.

RE: Does the conference move diminish enthusiasm for this year? - Snorlax94 - 09-10-2023

E

(09-09-2023, 09:37 PM)cardcrimson Wrote:
(09-09-2023, 09:06 PM)Mick Wrote:
(09-09-2023, 06:04 PM)lex24 Wrote: The transfer explosion couple with the demise of the PAC-12 has greatly diminished my interest in college football.

Same. It makes Stanford football ridiculously uncompetitive. Why I wasn't wild about the move to the ACC, but that's over and done.

I don't really care about the demise of the Pac-12, although I hope OSU and WSU make out. I'm looking forward to next year, when Stanford will be a better football team (theoretically) and in a conference that's better for us. But I'm really looking forward to Stanford basketball when they have a new, competitive coach and home games against ACC opponents.

Anybody watch the Bama game? Ugh, their QB is abysmal. They're normally stout D struggling, as well. Lots of turmoils in the game right now.

I don’t think Alabama struggling is “turmoil.” They had a great run but, despite 2020, have been on a downward slide for years. Saban has been railing against changes — up tempo offenses, NIL, transfer portals — for years, but despite their attempts to keep things static, the world changed anyway, and the game is no longer the same game they dominated. Plus, coaches age. Coach Shaw was at his peak in 2015, perhaps Saban’s peak has passed as well. 71 is really old for a high energy sport like football; Kyle Shanahan is 43.

Anyway, I don’t weep for Alabama’s fall. What do they stand for? What does the university contribute to the world and to the advancement of knowledge? It’s just another school that had some success in a sport, and then their time passed.

RE: Does the conference move diminish enthusiasm for this year? - JohnR34231 - 09-10-2023

(09-09-2023, 09:37 PM)cardcrimson Wrote:
(09-09-2023, 09:06 PM)Mick Wrote:
(09-09-2023, 06:04 PM)lex24 Wrote: The transfer explosion couple with the demise of the PAC-12 has greatly diminished my interest in college football.

Same. It makes Stanford football ridiculously uncompetitive. Why I wasn't wild about the move to the ACC, but that's over and done.

I don't really care about the demise of the Pac-12, although I hope OSU and WSU make out. I'm looking forward to next year, when Stanford will be a better football team (theoretically) and in a conference that's better for us. But I'm really looking forward to Stanford basketball when they have a new, competitive coach and home games against ACC opponents.

Anybody watch the Bama game? Ugh, their QB is abysmal. They're normally stout D struggling, as well. Lots of turmoils in the game right now.

Interestingly enough, Alabama's QB is from Texas and was highly pursued by the Longhorns along with many other schools.

RE: Does the conference move diminish enthusiasm for this year? - Austroturf - 09-10-2023

(09-09-2023, 06:04 PM)lex24 Wrote: The transfer explosion couple with the demise of the PAC-12 has greatly diminished my interest in college football.

I share these sentiments. The demise of the PAC-12 was driven by forces that are destroying traditional college football and replacing it with a two-tier semi-professional feeder system for the NFL. But let's be clear: the NFL now has stricter guidelines and regulations on who can play where and who can transfer when and how much each team can spend on its roster.

USC and UCLA dumped a century of tradition to increase their take in the media payout package. With that money, they are certainly hoping to buy more transfers via NIL, more TV exposure for their athletes, better facilities, higher profile coaches, etc. They kick-started an exodus of other PAC-12 members with the thinking that those who wait will lose (and they weren't wrong). And all of this was just for football (maybe a bit for basketball) and completely ignored the needs of student athletes in other sports.

Conferences used to have a regional significance, simply because excessive travel is onerous for the athletes, who are also students. Even the NFL has regional divisions in which you play each divisional member home-and-away -- this builds meaningful rivalries that spur fan interest.  Regional significance is also reflected in many of the conference names in college sports: PAC-12, SEC, ACC, MWC, etc. The B1G and the SEC have been driving the demolition of the traditional conference structure. And the only driver for this? Bucks.

I still enjoy college football; but these developments (and every ad I see while watching the livestreams) make it clear that the product is no longer the same. And the blow-out we witnessed in the Coliseum yesterday is clearly a sign of how winners and losers are being tailored in this brave new world of "media-money-rules-all".

So it's not the move to the ACC that diminishes my interest; it's the root cause of that move that diminishes my overall interest in college football as a whole. Monied programs will rule; and the winners will drive further consolidation until, maybe, there is a semi-professional Power 1 "conference" of teams.

RE: Does the conference move diminish enthusiasm for this year? - chrisk - 09-10-2023

Austroturf Wrote:
lex24 Wrote:The transfer explosion couple with the demise of the PAC-12 has greatly diminished my interest in college football.

I share these sentiments. The demise of the PAC-12 was driven by forces that are destroying traditional college football and replacing it with a two-tier semi-professional feeder system for the NFL. But let's be clear: the NFL now has stricter guidelines and regulations on who can play where and who can transfer when and how much each team can spend on its roster.

USC and UCLA dumped a century of tradition to increase their take in the media payout package. With that money, they are certainly hoping to buy more transfers via NIL, more TV exposure for their athletes, better facilities, higher profile coaches, etc. They kick-started an exodus of other PAC-12 members with the thinking that those who wait will lose (and they weren't wrong). And all of this was just for football (maybe a bit for basketball) and completely ignored the needs of student athletes in other sports.

Conferences used to have a regional significance, simply because excessive travel is onerous for the athletes, who are also students. Even the NFL has regional divisions in which you play each divisional member home-and-away -- this builds meaningful rivalries that spur fan interest.  Regional significance is also reflected in many of the conference names in college sports: PAC-12, SEC, ACC, MWC, etc. The B1G and the SEC have been driving the demolition of the traditional conference structure. And the only driver for this? Bucks.

I still enjoy college football; but these developments (and every ad I see while watching the livestreams) make it clear that the product is no longer the same. And the blow-out we witnessed in the Coliseum yesterday is clearly a sign of how winners and losers are being tailored in this brave new world of "media-money-rules-all".

So it's not the move to the ACC that diminishes my interest; it's the root cause of that move that diminishes my overall interest in college football as a whole. Monied programs will rule; and the winners will drive further consolidation until, maybe, there is a semi-professional Power 1 "conference" of teams.

With UCLA ranked this week, the PAC now has 7 ranked teams. The competition should be easier next year. The new conference will provide much more national exposure.

46 years ago, Walsh lost by a bigger margin at USC than Taylor did last night. There are some short cycles and some longer cycles, but nothing is permanent. It is possible that if college football sets up a top tier of 30-40 schools, Stanford may end up in the 2nd tier. If tier 1 goes to a completely pro model, Stanford may be a better fit in Tier 2.

The current transfer mania has been partially fueled by the COVID eligibility rules.
Stanford will not be at as much of a disadvantage going forward.

RE: Does the conference move diminish enthusiasm for this year? - oman - 09-10-2023

Very psyched about the move to the ACC. Complete invigoration in interest in Stanford football. Complete new opportunity and check out the options in the new world.

I've been lucky because the school that's tended to be my number one, Texas, has had enough drama over the last few years so that the descent of Stanford football hasn't stung quite as much.

Stanford has just gained recruiting advantages in Texas and elsewhere. Stanford has been for many decades a national brand. (Boutique, sure, but still.) It will be fun to see if there is more than the pedestrian rivalries of old.