To me, it means that my personal investment ($$, emotional, time, etc) has seen a significant drop.
For example, 10 years ago I would plan every Saturday during the season around Utah football. It was simply unthinkable to miss a game - home games or watching away games on TV - because of another event. Rain, shine, heat, sleet, or snow, I was always in my seat. I could tell you every player on the two-deep. I was absolutely, 100% invested in Utah football.
These days, I’m perfectly fine to miss a home game to attend a kid’s activity. Or watch the game on DVR the next morning so I can go see a movie with the wife instead. Or to spend an extra hour working in the yard instead of getting to the game early. Hell, there were several games last year that I spent playing a video game or book that I was into and simply checking the ESPN ticker for score updates instead of actually watching the game. I have thought to myself many times that I would rather just sit at home and watch from the couch instead of spending an entire day up at RES. During several games last year, I found myself saying “Who?” when watching the broadcast.
Part of that is simply me (and the kids) getting older and having my priorities shift. But the bottom line is that while I’ll always support Utah, I’m not anywhere near as interested or passionate about college football in general as I once was.
I won’t give up my season tickets until they no longer are profitable to me. And I do mean in a financial sense. I participate here because I’ve made a lot of friends through Utah athletics and this site in particular. But last season, I quite literally went through several fall Saturdays without even thinking about there being a game. That won’t change - there’s just more important things in my life even if that’s just messing around in the yard or taking a load of recycling to the transfer station. The passion (and some of you probably are familiar with certain bears) has evaporated rapidly and completely - and it wasn’t just due to changing priorities as I’ve gotten older.
What if more teams join the Big 12? Here’s an idea: the ACC looks likely to break up. Neither of Florida State nor Clemson are AAU members, which likely makes them a no-go for the Big Ten. The SEC already has members in BOTH states those schools reside in (South Carolina and Florida). What if BOTH the SEC AND the Big Ten pass on adding those two schools? That means the Big 12 is their only realistic option. What if the Big 12 adds Florida State and Clemson? Is it STILL not exciting? The Big 12 could then go to 20 with 2 of Georgia Tech, Pitt, and/or Louisville
It is unlikely the BIG 12 would be a landing spot for FSU or Clemson. Their case of “U$C Syndrome” simply wouldn’t allow it. The $EC likely takes them both, but both will likely land in the “also played” category like U$C and UCLA will in the B1G.
That said, given the exodus of faculty happening at FSU due to political shenanigans, it might not be too long until they lose their accreditation.
