(10-23-2016 10:20 PM)toledobigmike Wrote: I want some of what you're smoking because it'll at least numb the disappointment of Toledo being stuck with a bowl versus the Sun Belt. All things being equal BSU will under nearly all circumstances get preferential treatment over WMU. Toledo fans should pray for an at large bid from a bowl who values our explosive offense.
well, I'm still rooting for us to keep winning, beat western, win the MACC and go to the New Years Day bowl. If that doesn't happen there's a good chance we still finish w 10 wins and will be one of the most desirable and name G5 bowl teams. That will give the athletic dept leverage and should land us in a nice bowl. There's a lot of considerations for a bowl (is it well run? does the local community support it? who is the opponent? is the date, travel cossts and location good for fans to attend? how much does it pay?)
the Camella Bowl has the lowest per team payout, and is on the first day of bowl games -so hard to plan ahead for travel. I don't see why ESPN has the MAC's 2nd best and (arguably) biggest name team projected for the worst possible bowl game (based on payout, date and perception).
The Potato Bowl is well run and well supported but it is harder to attend, in cold weather and has a low payout.
The Bahamas Bowl is similar although the weather is great.
The St Pete and Hawaii Bowls aren't contracted to take a MAC team but have some benefits (nice locations, a little bigger payout, maybe a little higher profile opponent, good TV ratings for HI Bowl). Either of those might trade a team for Toledo with another bowl or offer us if they are having trouble filling a slot.
The Go Daddy Whatever Mobile Bowl is a well run bowl with good local support and typically takes one of the best MAC teams. It is a probability for the 2nd or 3rd best MAC team.
The Miami Beach Bowl is the most likely destination for the loser (or maybe the winner) of the UT-WMU showdown. It pays out enough for the schools to actually make a little money, has a great location and should feature one of the bigger name AAC teams (Houston, Memphis or South Florida).
the Quick Lane (Detroit) and Independence Bowl and sometimes one or two others often are short a P5 team and use the MAC as a backup (The ACC will likely be short a bowl team or two for their contracted slots). They all payout more than any of the above bowls and usually mean a matchup with a 6-6 or 7-5 P5 team which is comparable to that 10-3 or 8-4 G5 opponent but higher profile and more exciting for players and fans. You can expect teams like the Toledo-WMU loser, the Boise-SDSU loser, Houston, and Memphis to try and snag a game like this if they aren't in line for a good bowl matchup.
Basically, Toledo is in good position. If we keep winning we have a good shot of making the top 25 of the CF Playoff rankings which start after next week. Making that list for the second consecutive year-even if we don't beat WMU and stay ranked- will have us on the short list of G5 bowl teams to get. Folks know Toledo. We may not get all our due respect but there is a lot out there. We are a regular tv team and have earned respect over the years with our play and wins. Should be an exciting conclusion to the season. Keep cheering.