Pace of play needs to be addressed

[Newhouser]

Great win and great job by the fans in making it thru an ugly rock fight. Exciting ending probably didn't help the casual fan who had to be asking "how long are these games?". Reviews. TV timeouts, etc. The game needs to make pace changes. Making events longer in 2022 makes little sense.

4-0. Need two more.

 

[gmoney44]

Great win and great job by the fans in making it thru an ugly rock fight. Exciting ending probably didn't help the casual fan who had to be asking "how long are these games?". Reviews. TV timeouts, etc. The game needs to make pace changes. Making events longer in 2022 makes little sense.

4-0. Need two more.

It was bad watching on tv it must have been brutal at the Dome.

 

[upperdeck]

we have like 4-5 injuries and another 3-5 reviews. that alone added 15-20 min to the game. Just stop with the 3:30 min tv timeouts..

 

[Chris02M]

i think espn commercial breaks are longer than acc network. With all the injuries and reviews the 2nd half dragged

 

[richmondcuse03]

we have like 4-5 injuries and another 3-5 reviews. that alone added 15-20 min to the game. Just stop with the 3:30 min tv timeouts..

Yup. When did we go from 2 minute commercials to 3+?? It’s painful and ridiculous.

 

[richmondcuse03]

i think espn commercial breaks are longer than acc network

Only so many tac commercials can be made

 

[Orangeman]

Yup. When did we go from 2 minute commercials to 3+?? It’s painful and ridiculous.

When they paid Hundreds of millions and billions for the conference contracts

 

[Shrmdougluvr]

This is all correct, but if schools (and fans) like their billion dollar media rights deals, you damn well better be ready to sit though 30 minutes of commercials every game.

I keep hoping that the networks will just start scrolling adds or inserting an add box. None of this will stop until people stop tuning in. It probably most effects programs like ours though because the nut jobs in SEC and B1G country will sit their all friggin day and watch a game in the stadium, and at home you just fiddle on your phone/computer, flip the channel, etc.

 

[richard levy]

good for concessions, you can make a food/beer run every 15 minutes and barely miss any of the game

 

[pattycuse]

Agree, brought two guests last night who don’t come regularly- both enjoyed the game but said everything took far too long. Pace of play is brutal between the constant reviews and long tv timeouts…

 

[AngryOtto]

It was bad watching on tv it must have been brutal at the Dome.

It was brutal with all the timeouts at the Dome. It felt every stoppage was a 4 minute TV timeout and it was happening all the time.

 

[CA Monk]

Generally, going to games is for diehards like us Suracusefan.com nuts. Games are too long, start at inconvenient times and have music and noise that appeal to those under 35 years old. Back in the day, watching the Orangemen on TV was a rare privilege -doubly so when they were playing at home. Nowadays you can watch the game in the comfort of your home, instead of directing virtually an entire day trekking to and from the dome while watching an almost 4 hour event. I came from Nevada for this game. I usually see one or two a year in person w/my buddy because there’s no substitute for that. And I’ve attended games for almost 50 years thru thin, thick and thin again (maybe we’re getting thick again or maybe that’s just the Viagra talking. In any event, time will tell.)

The game was exciting at first, however, after Virginia started whittling away our 16 to nothing lead I felt really deflated and the lengthy and numerous TV timeouts, injuries and reviews further accelerated my torpor. I can stand it because I have a strong attachment to the Orangemen, but I can understand how the casual fan just says, “Heck no. I’m gonna stay home and watch this thing at my leisure or until a flashy star emerges.”

Hope they can rejuvenate these next 3 weeks, develop some new wrinkles and grow into a really good football team. 4-0, however they got here, is pretty gaudy.

 

[OrangeAl]

Ah, those old games in Archbold took about two and a half hours - no commercial breaks whatsoever. Not sure we want to go back to that, however.

 

[OrangeDW]

Ah, those old games in Archbold took about two and a half hours - no commercial breaks whatsoever. Not sure we want to go back to that, however.

Sounds amazing. I think I’d even sign up for just showing the game in a “picture in picture” thing while the commercials run. They talk about nonsense, cut to stupid sideline interviews, go to the booth to show highlights of other games, and miss plays while showing replays throughout the games anyway, so not that much difference if they just show their commercials and the game at the same time.

 

[Cusefan0307]

I’m in favor of CFB adopting NFL timing rules. Cut halftime down by 5 minutes and keep the clock running after first downs.

 

[MSOrange]

I’m in favor of CFB adopting NFL timing rules. Cut halftime down by 5 minutes and keep the clock running after first downs.

I was against the running clock for many years, probably because we were always behind and trying to catch up But I'm totally on board now. I love SU Football. There's very few things I'd rather do than watch our games. But even I was getting a bit anxious and tired last night with the length.

 

[pattycuse]

I was against the running clock for many years, probably because we were always behind and trying to catch up But I'm totally on board now. I love SU Football. There's very few things I'd rather do than watch our games. But even I was getting a bit anxious and tired last night with the length.

This. Both Purdue and Virginia were four hour plus games. I am a diehard and will always be there but it got a little silly last night.

 

[Oakland]

Great win and great job by the fans in making it thru an ugly rock fight. Exciting ending probably didn't help the casual fan who had to be asking "how long are these games?". Reviews. TV timeouts, etc. The game needs to make pace changes. Making events longer in 2022 makes little sense.

4-0. Need two more.

On Aug 22, the NYT published this article:

Does Watching College Football on TV Have to Be So Miserable?​

The corporations that control these broadcasts know:
It can still be hugely lucrative to provide an experience that fans come to despise.​

They also mention how this also negatively impacts the in-person experience. This is a downside to those big conference TV contracts.


I also came across a, July 1, 1965, NYT mention that there would be no TV timeouts for the upcoming season.

College Football Time-Outs For TV Ads to Be Stopped​

Apparently, the ban didn't last long because there is this one:

TV TIME-OUT CURB ALSO REQUESTED; Pause for Commercials Said to Hurt Team on Drive Tackle-Eligible Play Hit​

By Gordon S. White Jr. Special To the New York Times​

• Jan. 10, 1967​

And then there is this: "A 1984 Supreme Court ruling forbade the N.C.A.A. from single-handedly controlling its members’ TV rights".

 

[baggerbob]

Ah, those old games in Archbold took about two and a half hours - no commercial breaks whatsoever. Not sure we want to go back to that, however.

Those games could get ugly weatherwise in November. Could start out Sunny, then drizzle, turn to rain and then snow. As a teen saw them clear snow to kick a field goal at end of game.
And the wind made it worse.
You could be numb by the end of the game.

 

[rrlbees]

Ah, those old games in Archbold took about two and a half hours - no commercial breaks whatsoever. Not sure we want to go back to that, however.

Whatever happened to flasks with schnapps in them?

 

[OburgOrange]

Whatever happened to flasks with schnapps in them?

Peppermint schnapps. Yum

 

[rrlbees]

Peppermint schnapps. Yum

Always

 

[sutomcat]

This. Both Purdue and Virginia were four hour plus games. I am a diehard and will always be there but it got a little silly last night.

Baseball is going to implement a pitch clock next year at the MLB level next year. It has been tested in the minors and based on that, this change is expected to decrease the length of games around 20-25 minutes.

So there is precedent for this. Or there will be next year. The networks will work to shorten games if it helps increase interest and viewership.

How to best do this?

The obvious answer is to shorten time outs. TV is the reason games have almost doubled in length in the last few decades. Or reduce the number of time outs. TV is going to have a problem with these ideas.

Maybe change the rules for how time is kept?

I suggest not stopping the clock after a first down except in the two 2 minutes or a half.

Maybe let the clock continue to run after incompletions except in the last 2 minutes of a half?

Maybe don’t stop the clock after a player goes OB except in the last 2 minutes of a half?

With all the passing and the advent of fast offenses, games probably average 50 or 60% more plays than they did 50 years ago. Changing the rules to let the clock run more will make the games more watchable. There are too many time outs and too many plays IMHO.

Make some or all of the changes to how the clock is managed and maybe cut the length of commercials back to 2 minutes and you will make games a lot more watchable and more people will tune in. It will end up as a win for ESPN, Fox and everyone else who televises games.

The review process has to lengthen games by 5-10 minutes. I think it is great calls can be reviewed. So many calls are wrong, the refs need help. But the extra time to get things right is a tough ask. And I think the calls are still wrong after review too often. I wish college football could be like MLB, where I think there is a central authority that does the reviews and does a great job making a timely call. This might not be possible for some levels of football but it should be doable for the P5 level games. Let’s make it happen.

Do all these things and I am confident we will see 3 hour games. We need to get there. ASAP.

 

[Stern]

Great win and great job by the fans in making it thru an ugly rock fight. Exciting ending probably didn't help the casual fan who had to be asking "how long are these games?". Reviews. TV timeouts, etc. The game needs to make pace changes. Making events longer in 2022 makes little sense.

4-0. Need two more.

1) Why I never blame fans for leaving early. These games just go too damn long. CFB has become the worst sporting event to attend in person these days. No other sport holds its fans hostage by games that are never-ending.

2) CFB knows there is an issue as they just moved the start time of the national championship game up by an hour (out of primetime start window and starting before 8pm). That's putting a band-aid on a gunshot wound. They would rather start outside of primetime window (which is nuts in the eyes of TV people) than have a game go to midnight/1am.


We all know how to resolve the issues, there is no motivation by the powers that be to fix any of them.
1) Rolling clock on first downs

2) Give each coach 2 challenges, unless they use them, nothing gets reviewed (outside of your standard scoring plays, turnovers..etc)

3) Don't stop the game for each targeting. If a player gets a targeting call, review it after the game and suspended the player for the next game. If a player gets a 2nd targeting in said game, then suspend him for a longer time moving forward.

 

[Chris02M]

shortening halftime is a no brainer too