There have been many threads posted on this site about the downward trend of college football. We've discussed everything from NIL, commercial breaks, to the transfer portal and many members here have posted very thoughtful perspectives on why the great sport of college football seems to be spiraling downward. After the CFP participants were selected last weekend, I started to think about what could rejuvenate the sport.

Sure, we have some "new blood" in the CFP as Oklahoma, Clemson and Ohio State aren't in the field this year. However, Alabama is still in the CFP. They've earned it, and they have earned their trips in previous seasons and the titles that have followed. I started to think that the one thing that is hurting college football the most is Alabama. They are always winning, and it isn't good for the sport. I rationalized that Alabama's dominance is because they have the greatest head coach in the sport's history. Surely, that is the reason why they are on this tear but when he retires Alabama will undoubtedly come back to the rest of the pack. He is an amazing recruiter as well. Then I started to think, maybe it is a combination of two things: 

1. Saban is the GOAT. 

2. Other college coaches just need to do better. 

I think that #2 is the primary reason why college football is faltering from a competition standpoint. We can discuss greed, NIL, etc. but the real reason college football is "stale" is not because Saban and Alabama keep winning, it's because they keep winning easily due to the nature of coaching. Everyone is looking for the "next big thing" and it is impossible to build a program and consistency. Whether we are talking about head coaches (Kelly leaving ND for LSU, Riley leaving OU for USC, etc.) or assistants (Herman, Ash, Halfley, etc. leaving for head coaching jobs before they were ready), the con men of college football are killing the sport. ESPN recently published this article:

https://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/32552130/schools-spent-5336-million-dead-money 

FBS schools spent over $533M in "dead money" paying coaches who were no longer coaching in their programs over the past 10 years. That's HALF A BILLION DOLLARS! Saban is great, don't get me wrong. He is a lion while the rest of the con men of college football seem to be hyenas. College coaches need to do better. Period.