I Hate You, John Crist: Let's make bowl season great again

I was a guest this week on the Paul Finebaum Show. Substitute host Peter Burns wanted suggestions on how to build the perfect bowl game.

While it wasn’t necessarily my idea, as I originally saw it flash through my Twitter feed, but why not let redshirting freshmen suit up and play? They could participate in a bowl yet still have four full years of eligibility remaining.

The horse is out of the barn, ladies and gentlemen. More and more NFL-bound players are going to start skipping these bowl games in order to prepare — i.e., stay healthy — for the draft. Unless there’s a national title on the line, there’s little incentive for stars to put themselves at risk. The swag bags aren’t that great.

So if bowl season is now “out with the old,” let’s make it “in with the new.” Allowing redshirts to play gives coaches a prime opportunity to evaluate more returning talent, not to mention adds a new wrinkle for fans tuning in to watch.

If the bowls are nothing more than exhibition games, then treat them as such. They don’t need to be governed exactly like regular-season games.

Here are some of my favorite comments from this past week. Sorry, folks. The video columns aren’t going anywhere. Boss’s orders.

I wrote a column Monday breaking down how each of the Power 5 conferences has fared against teams currently in the Top 25.

Despite the fact that fans seem to be suggesting — particularly in other parts of the country — that the SEC is down in 2016, it sports the best winning percentage (.309) when facing programs presently in the AP Poll.

Is this a perfect measure for determining what the “best” league is? Of course not. Since so many of those Top 25 affairs were of the intra-conference variety, meaning SEC vs. SEC, those games are tough to evaluate when compared to, say, Big Ten vs. Big Ten. There simply aren’t enough SEC vs. Big Ten contests to get an adequate sample size.

Still, I go back to the fact that 13 of the 14 teams in the SEC have a win over a squad in the most recent AP Poll. In the aforementioned Big Ten, it’s only five of 14. The ACC? Six of 14. The Pac-12? Seven of 12. The Big 12? Three of 10.

To your point, the SEC may not be as strong at the top as the Big Ten this season. But from 1-14, it remains the best conference in America.

Few things in SEC history were more beautiful than Herschel Walker running the toss sweep, getting a full head of steam and then turning the corner.

Nevertheless, I think you’re romanticizing a part of the game that’s come and gone to some degree. Just like passing plays are so much more complicated than they used to be, so are the vast majority of running plays.

Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

Remember that back in Walker’s day, man-to-man blocking was the norm. A toss sweep was specifically designed to be run to the 8- or 9-hole, meaning wide of any tackles or tight ends. The modern game is all about zone blocking, though. Backs are instructed to cut and run when they see daylight, not through a predetermined hole.

Also, it’s simply a fact that front-seven defenders are faster now than they were when Walker was between the hedges. Running around tacklers isn’t much of an option anymore. Oftentimes, running right at them is a better plan of attack.

Could Jim Chaney be more imaginative? I think so. However, even LSU’s trademark power pitch bears little resemblance to a Walker-esque toss sweep.

This is a pretty good characterization of LSU at quarterback. Danny Etling has the higher floor, but Brandon Harris has the higher ceiling.

Jacoby Brissett was cast aside from Florida and ended up at N.C. State. Nathan Peterman was the odd man out at Tennnessee and went to Pittsburgh. Matt Canada essentially saved their careers and made both of them very good college players.

People forget just how good Harris was in high school — he was the No. 6 QB in America — and the rare skill set he brings to the table. To this point, he hasn’t been developed very well. Perhaps better coaching is all it takes to get more out of him as a passer. A more 21st-century scheme can only help his cause, too.

But I believe this is less about physical ability. This is about what’s between his ears. Is Harris shot from a confidence perspective? If not, then maybe he can indeed win his job back from Etling and come full circle as a senior.

One way or another, I love the fact that Harris isn’t tucking his tail and transferring in the name of playing time. He’s got some fight left.

I agree with almost all of your thoughts, although I’m not going to let you get away with the recycled excuse of blaming the media.

Reporters don’t invent stories. They chase stories. There’s no Wizard of Media conjuring up hot takes to be disseminated en masse via print, radio and television. When a columnist shares his opinion, it’s just that: his opinion.

Check out any one of the countless LSU message boards out there. They’re filled with so-called fans saying Fournette is a selfish quitter for choosing his NFL future over the outcome of a meaningless bowl game. But they’re also chock full — hopefully more so — of Tiger supporters applauding him for doing what’s best for him and his family.

Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports

I watched the same team you did. Clearly, Fournette wasn’t healthy all year long, even when he set a then-Bayou Bengals record with 283 yards rushing against Ole Miss. He gains nothing by wearing No. 7 one last time in the Citrus Bowl.

Fournette is one of the biggest stars the game has produced in recent years. His every move will be praised or criticized. That’s not the same as having an agenda.

I find that hitting the back button on my browser works quite well and is a relatively easy fix. So is turning down the volume. Or perhaps throwing your computer through the nearest window. There are seemingly limitless choices at your disposal.

If you opt for the latter and smash your device on the sidewalk, you’re in luck. Santa Claus is coming to town. My gut tells me you’ve been naughty, though.

John Crist is the senior writer for Saturday Down South, a member of the FWAA and a voter for the Heisman Trophy. Send him an e-mail, like him on Facebook or follow him on Twitter.