College Football: 5 Reasons the Champions Bowl Will Cause a Ripple Effect

As we all know, conference realignment has forever changed the way college football is for both now and in the future.

Dollars are what are driving programs to toss geography aside in favor of lucrative television deals.

With the merger with the Big 12 conference to form what will be called the Champions bowl starting in 2014, two of the most powerful leagues in college football ensure their stability moving forward.

Here are five ripple effects that will result from this move.

How Will the Champions Bowl Effect the Playoff System Change College Football?

Now that the Champions Bowl has reunited the nations strongest conferences, what does this mean for the rest of college football?

How will this affect the Playoff model that has been under construction?

The Big 12 and SEC have won every National Championship dating all the way back to 2004(technically 2003 since USC had to vacate their title), and with this bowl matchup it will likely be a game between two top-10 teams.

This move drastically changed all the business deals and backdoor conversations that have been going on behind closed doors.

This bowl will make a ton of money for the schools involved, and that will make invitations to these two conferences even more valuable moving forward.

The move by the two conferences has huge implications for the playoff model, and will basically force the powers that be to finally grant fans their wishes and revamp the bowl system.

As Dennis Dodd of CBSsports.com noted, perhaps we should have seen this on the radar shortly after Alabama won the national championship.

Dodd stated that the writing was on the wall for this move, particularly when Paul Hoolahan, the director of the Sugar Bowl, proclaimed that he and his associates “had a $40 million war chest as a part of a potential playoff system." 

This is a historic agreement that has further separated the Big 12, SEC, Pac-12 and Big 10 from the rest of college football.

The announcement of the Champions Bowl, was historic for college football and it proved that this whole time the bowls had quite the plan to shake things up in division I football.

What Is Money's Role in Conference Expansion?

As I previously stated, dollars are what drives this new sports phenomenon that is conference realignment.

It was recently announced by John Taylor of NBCSports.com that each Big 10 member will receive right around $25 million per year, starting in 2012, under their television deals, including the popular B1G Network.

In the competitive world that is college football, money is the most important thing any athletic department needs to be successful.

Teams are constantly trying to upgrade facilities to help with recruiting, and the Big Ten is clearly ahead of most programs in terms of revenue.

Since 2008, Big Ten teams have seen there payouts increase by an average of 35 percent each year.

Just one year ago, the conference earned $22.8 million per team, which outmatched the mighty SEC who earned right around $19.5 million in 2011.

SEC fans don't have to worry though, as there have been talks of a new SEC network and they are also set to begin negotiations which will certainly be record breaking in terms of payout per team.

The Big 12 and Pac-12 aren't far behind the Big 10, as their new TV deals will earn payouts of $20 million and $22 million respectively.

In short, the power conferences are separating themselves from the rest of the competition. This has to worry the Boise State's of the world, because sooner or later they won't be able to compete; at least monetarily.

Which leads me to the ACC, who is lagging behind the all three of the above mentioned conferences in terms of revenue. This has caused several teams to rethink their membership.

Will Florida State Jump to the Big 12?

Florida State is the newest program to enter the discussion as a team who is reportedly shopping their program to a new conference, and that conference is speculated to be the Big 12.

In an article from Ingram Smith of ChuckOliver.net, he describes the move of the Seminoles to the Big 12 as inevitable.

He also states that this move will occur as early as June.

If this rumor proves to be true, this is a death blow to the ACC conference in terms of its relevance in college football.

Through the years, the ACC has been horrible in BCS bowl games. They are by far the worst conference in these games with a combined 2-13 record.

One hurdle that Florida State will face is the buyout from the conference that is around $25 million.

However, Smith writes that the Seminoles will get a deal similar to what the West Virginia Mountaineers had when they left the Big East.

The Seminoles would receive monetary help from the conference's members so they would be able to pay the buyout.

If true, this move will further solidify the Big 12 as a major power in college football just one year after many people felt that the conference was on the verge of disintegrating.

Will Clemson Follow Florida State to the Big 12?

As recently as today, it has been reported that Clemson has reached out to the Big 12 to inquire about possibly joining the conference.

This is more reinforcement that the league made a very strategic move forming an alliance with the SEC.

With this move, the southern schools have basically one-upped the Big 10 and Pac-12.

The Pac-12 is very top-heavy, while the Big 10 has continuously shut down the thought of expansion. This would hinder their television appeal in the years to come.

The Big 10 will always be a great league with tremendous appeal, but the revenue gap will surely close by the time a playoff agreement is reached.

The Pac-12's worst enemy is their geography. There aren't very many western teams available that are worth adding, aside for maybe Boise State in football.

As for the expansion in the Big 12, if you're Clemson you better look very hard at membership in that conference before the elephant in the room (Notre Dame) decides they want your bid instead.

In an article by Jason Kirk of sbnation.com, he discusses how Clemson along with Florida State are reaching out to the Big 12 in hopes of an invite; the hangup is Texas who are hoping that Notre Dame will join the league.

If this occurs, the Tigers could be on the outside looking in. Anything is possible at this point, and the addition of Clemson would allow the conference to further expand its recruiting ground, while also forming a possible East division with West Virginia and other potential members.

Is the Move to Four Superconferences Inevitable?

The gap between the top and bottom of college football is getting wider by the day. With each lucrative television deal being formed the top four conferences are becoming richer and richer.

What about the Big East and ACC?

Well, they seem to be getting weaker by the day, and what were once proud conferences are seeing there best football powers bolt for dollars and greener pastures in other leagues.

In a recession, schools need all the money that they can get to stay competitive. The money that multi-billion dollar television contracts are earning schools is simply too much to overlook.

Not only is it a football move, it is a business move. That is what makes the likelihood of four super conferences  seem more feasible as each day passes.

In an article by Ben Kercheval of collegefootballtalk.com, he refers to a Big 12 source's interview with the Dallas Morning News, alluding to the possibility of further expansion this summer:

 "I really can't believe I'm saying this," one Big 12 school source said. "We might be moving to four superconferences--and the Big 12 would be one of those."

Buckle up ladies and gentleman, this will be one interesting offseason in college football, and in the years to come the college football landscape will be turned upside down.