Kirk Herbstreit, Desmond Howard sound off on 'meaningless' bowl games

Bowl game opt-outs have become a topic of discussion across college football. On Saturday’s edition of College GameDay, Kirk Herbstreit and Desmond Howard had some harsh comments about that idea.

Plenty of big names opted out of bowl games this year to get ready for the NFL Draft. However, players — obviously — stayed with their team for College Football Playoff games to compete for a national championship. Fans have also called bowl games “meaningless” unless they’re part of the College Football Playoff.

For his part, Herbstreit didn’t hold back with his thoughts about bowl games not mattering.

“What’s the difference as a player in saying these games are ‘meaningless’ when, Des, we played in quote-unquote ‘meaningless games,'” Herbstreit said. “I just don’t understand if you don’t make it to the playoff, how is it ‘meaningless’ to play football and compete? Isn’t that what we do as football players? We compete?

“So I don’t know if changing or expanding it is going to change anything. I really don’t. I think this era of players doesn’t love football.”

Howard voiced a similar sentiment in response.

“We’re dealing with a totally different mentality when we’re dealing with these student-athletes nowadays, especially football players,” Howard said. “I mean, their whole mentality right now is about the championship, the Playoff … because of that, they don’t value the bowl games. Now, when we were coming up, Herbstreit and myself, to go to a bowl game was a huge reward for a fantastic season. That’s what it meant. It was like, ‘OK, your team played this well, so you’re going to be rewarded by going to a bowl game, you’re going to get a ring, you’re going to get swag.’

“Now, kids don’t really care about that. They have a sense of entitlement, and it’s like if [they’re] not going to the one that matters, it just doesn’t have as much value to them as it did us growing up.”

Herbstreit later tried to walk back some of his comments, but the hot take had long since taken off by then.

Just wanted to clarify some of my comments from earlier today. Of course some players love the game the same today as ever. But some don’t. I’ll always love the players of this game and sorry if people thought I generalized or lumped them all into one category. pic.twitter.com/PS9Pu5rcoo

— Kirk Herbstreit (@KirkHerbstreit) January 1, 2022

Kirk Herbstreit on how opting out of bowl games could snowball

Davis gave Herbstreit a chance to clarify his thought that “players don’t love football,” and pointed to comments he hears from coaches. Herbstreit said he hears coaches talk about certain players “loving ball,” and it means they’re in the gym all the time working to get better. He added that’s becoming more rare because players have “distractions” such as phones and video games.

But when it comes to opting out of bowl games, Herbstreit’s worried it could lead to more than just not playing one game.

“My point is, on ‘meaningless’ bowl games: What’s this going to lead to?” Herbstreit said. “Once you establish yourself, like a Brock Bowers. Every game he plays, if that’s the lens you’re choosing to look in, the end goal is the NFL. Brock Bowers, the rest of his career, the games are meaningless. He’s an NFL tight end right now. His next two years … he shouldn’t play.

“If his goal is to go to the NFL, sit out the next two years. Don’t play. Go work out, go to Phoenix, lift, get ready. Once you’ve established yourself as an NFL player, games are ‘meaningless,’ I guess, through the lens of the way some of these guys look. That’s what it’s going to lead to next. Skip bowl games, skip regular season, why play? I think [that’s] where it might go. … What’s the difference between a bowl game not mattering and the Akron game? Why does the Akron game matter?”