6 College Football Kickstarter Ideas We Would Send Money

College football has been played in this country since 1869. The sport has a lot of traditions that add to its nationwide popularity. Just because the sport is old, though, doesn’t mean it couldn't use some new traditions.

I have proposed six ideas that would make college football better, more fun, or more interesting. These ideas, of course, would require funding to come to fruition. With each idea, I have listed the “benefits” that you can receive if you invest a certain amount of money in each idea.

In “NFL Kickstarter Campaign,” Bill Barnwell of Grantland.com discusses some ideas he would support in the NFL. Think of this as a college football version.

If you have any ideas of your own, feel free to include them in the comments below.

Big 12 Championship Game

If there was enough money raised in support of a Big 12 Championship Game, I’m sure the obstacles preventing it would get knocked down.

Per NCAA rules, a conference must have 12 teams to have a conference championship game. Therefore, the Big 12 would need the rule to change.

The Big 12 had a conference championship game from 1996 to 2010, and Berry Tramel of newsok.com says the game was very successful compared with conference championship games in other conferences.

Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby wants the NCAA to deregulate the rule, but he has no plans to bring back the Big 12 Championship Game at this time. If we threw some big money to the Big 12 and to the NCAA, then maybe we could change their minds.

This project calls for at least $2 million, split between the NCAA and the Big 12.

College Football Marching Bands Satellite Radio Station

One of college football’s greatest traditions meets new-age satellite radio. The sounds of fall Saturdays on Sirius/XM radio. How does that sound?

This station would play pieces from marching bands throughout college football, not just from FBS schools.

For $5, you can call up the station and request to hear a piece.

For $100, you can make a playlist for a “power hour.”

For $50,000, you can be the station host for a year.

Best of all: it would be commercial-free!

FBS Coaches Survivor

We know FBS coaches can lead uncomfortable lives sitting in rooms dissecting films, entering 5-star recruits’ homes selling themselves, and deciding how to spend their handsome salaries, but can they survive in the wilderness?

All FBS head coaches would venture to a stranded island and compete against each other, a la Survivor. Each team would be divided by conference affiliation (independents would join the conferences in which their schools have other sports).

The competition would occur between National Signing Day and the start of spring practices.

For $50, you can get a ticket to the reunion show.

For $10,000, you can design a challenge.

For $50,000, you can watch the entire competition live, including the parts not shown on television.

After the competition, coaches will have one more thing to argue about during the season.

FBS Mascots Game

I propose a mascot game that features the mascots of all 125 FBS programs that will play in 2013.

Each team will have 61 mascots, and the two teams will be East and West.

The mascots of Army, Navy, and Air Force will serve as the officials.

The game will be played between the end of the regular season and the start of the bowl season.

For $10, you can attend the game.

For $5,000, you or your business can be a sponsor.

For $50,000, you can be a coach for one of the teams.

For $100,000, the MVP trophy will be named after you.

For $500,000, the grand prize - the championship trophy - will be named after you.

This game will be the ultimate example of college football democracy, because each program will have equal representation and equal exposure on the field.

Long Snapper of the Year Award

If long snappers do their jobs correctly, they will never get in the sports pages. It’s about time this changes.

Seemingly every other position in college football has a player of the year award attached to it. The best long snapper in FBS should get an award, just like every other best player at his position.

Doug Williams of ESPN.com has written about the rising popularity of the long snapper position, for which some FBS programs now offer scholarships. There are camps across the country for aspiring long snappers to develop their skills and to get noticed by college football programs. The position has become the primary one for many players, and not the secondary one like it used to be.

For $300, you can attend the awards dinner.

For $10,000, you can design the trophy.

Sports Science Coordinator for Every FBS Program

Chip Kelly, the former coach of Oregon and the current coach of the NFL’s Philadelphia Eagles, hired Shaun Huls as the team’s sports science coordinator. John Breech of CBSSports.com says Huls is believed to be the first sports science coordinator in NFL history. Kelly explains the need for a sports science coordinator here, according to Chris Vannini of CoachingSearch.com:

“Obviously, we’ve evolved from a science standpoint, and I think there’s a lot of other sports that have evolved faster than football has evolved from a science standpoint, and we want to be on the cutting edge of that.”

Kelly, with I suppose no small help from Huls, has made the Eagles’ cafeteria offerings healthier, and gives each player a personalized smoothie after practice. These are some examples of how Kelly wants to maximize his team’s performance.

College football players should take advice from Kelly and take better care of their bodies. To ensure players make the right decisions for their health, I think all FBS programs should employ a sports science coordinator.

Huls previously trained U.S. Navy SEALs, and he has experience in college football strength and conditioning. A sports science coordinator with experience in college strength and conditioning should improve what the program is doing already in this area.

I think each coach would earn $75,000 per year. A $7,500 contribution, or one-tenth of the salary, would put you on the selection committee to find the inaugural sports science coordinator for the FBS program of your choice.

As always, thanks for reading, and check me out on Twitter at @MCarroll_Philly!