On the trip to and from Kentucky I was able to read Stewart Mandel’s book “Bowls, Polls and Tattered Souls.” If you are a college football fan, it should be your bible. If not, you probably shouldn’t be reading me anyway.
While part of my joy in reading this book was that Stewart ” who writes for Sports Illustrated ” and I think a lot alike when it comes to college football, it also answers a lot of questions that rattle around in the brain of the average fan.
Why no playoff? Why are the presidents in love with the bowls? What goes through the mind of an AP voter? How much influence does ESPN wield? Is recruiting a tool of the Taliban?
Here are your answers. Read it and you’ll sound a lot more educated at your next tailgate party.
Unfortunately, you will also understand why we’ll never see a playoff in college football.
Particularly interesting is his chapter on the firings of coaches that seemed baffling at the time. They still do.
