I've thought and written often on this paradox, wrestled with the simplicity of the transitive properties and concluded that the "Big Boys" find little value in winning crystal balls, but GREAT VALUE in a perpetual state of almost getting there! Think about it...Better yet, look at the SEC teams that have won the NC in the last decade. With the exception of Bama, every other team has suffered tremulous periods after winning the NC, UGA included! Hell, just look across the CFB landscape to see one example after another where great fortune is often followed by great failure.....WHY????.....Expectation!
We, as fans, feel the sting of expectations not met when CMB/CMR deploys the annual bed wetting, cranial flatulence game. Imagine, if you will, the expectations that WILL come to repeat an NC. It's not just the fan base, suddenly it's the corporate sponsors, the endorsers, the big money contributors, all wanting, perhaps demanding another slice of that money pie!...This acrimonious example is played out daily inside the Beltway and has paralyzed the government of this once great republic!
Now, throttle that back, just a bit, to where the expectation falls predominately on just the fan base. I doubt that anyone, herein, didn't at one point in this season, buy into the possibility that "this was the year!"....We do this EVERY FREAKIN' year! Some more so than others, but it does occur and will again next year. Same can be said for the pundents and sportscasting bobbleheads...They may not want to buy in, but they do,...then they help cement the anxiety of expectations lost by bashing us relentless!....Then the "Big Boys" trot out Mr. Nice Guy and he "Awwww, Shucks!!!" the doe eyed masses into understanding that its a tough "arena", but we "tell the truth", play clean, hope and above all, we PRAY, that one day, one season, that crystal ball will come back home!
It's a mindset, a culture, a profitable business model that rakes in BIG $$$$, keeps the fan base energized, sets the expectations where the ultimate goal can been seen, but remains just out of reach. CMR doesn't need to go the West Africa, or India, or wherever for mission work,.....his missionary is right here in Athens! He makes no bones about his desire to foster, develop and guide young men,...and the above noted list of current NFL players is a testament to his work. It's a perfectly matched, symbiotic relationship.
If you noticed, I excluded Bama from the fortune/failure roller coaster, largely due to their historical and continued annual prominence in the hunt for the crystal. Seven million, plus endorsements is a hefty price to pay! One that we'll likely NEVER see in Athens!....But consistent dividends,.....ahhhh THAT's an investment strategy that works!
Washington should pay more attention to CFB and the exceedingly successful business models at play....
OH YAH,......
TO HELL WITH TECH !!!
GO DAWGS........
"My advice to you is to start drinking heavily." - Bluto