Recently, the NCAA has realigned conferences, causing the downfall of the game we know and love.

The new wave of realignment began with Texas and Oklahoma declaring their move into the SEC in 2021. But recently, it has gone so far that the PAC-12 has lost all but four of their teams.

Realignment is not an issue that originated in recent years; it has been going on since the early 1920s. For example, the Missouri Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MVIAA) and the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association (SIAA) were two of the first conferences to be disbanded in NCAA history.

The first major conference to be removed was the Southwest Conference in 1996, which consisted of many prominent SEC and BIG 12 schools like the University of Arkansas and the University of Oklahoma.

While combining big powerhouse schools like Oklahoma, Alabama, and Texas into one conference may seem like a good idea, it is not. Of course, there are many reasons why these changes shouldn’t be made, but here are some that truly stand out.

First, conferences are all getting teams from all across the country rather than all being from one specific region. For instance, with most PAC-12 teams on the move, we have seen the Universities of California and Stanford head to the ACC. This poses a problem because the current ACC teams are located on the East Coast and the other side of the country from the two schools moving over.

The BIG 10 is also adding new teams from way across the country. More PAC-12 teams like Washington, Oregon, USC, and UCLA are joining a conference with Maryland, Penn State, and Michigan. Once again, this will be a problem for traveling once conference play begins.

When asked about the BIG 10 poaching teams from the PAC-12, commissioner George Kliavkoff stated the realignment period is over. “I think the realignment that’s going on in college athletics will come to an end for this cycle.”

Traveling will affect these players in many ways on the field due to jet lag and other factors. But, they are also missing essential time in the classroom.

According to Kern Campbell of “Gameday Culture,” only 1.6 percent of college football players go pro. This is only 853 out of 71,060 athletes. Because of these stats, most players will need this time learning rather than traveling almost every week.

Another reason realignment should be nonexistent in college football is that conference rivalries will dwindle. Games like Oregon vs. Oregon State, Oklahoma vs. Oklahoma State, and UCF vs. USF will all become non-conference games in the next few years.

Some may think this doesn’t matter much, but it does. These games will no longer have the seeding implications they do now. As a result, some of these games will be less intense than they used to be because they aren’t playing for playoff chances. This is not to mention that a major part of college football is the rivalries.

Former Oklahoma State Running Back Barry Sanders expressed his feelings on the Bedlam (Oklahoma State vs. Oklahoma) rivalry. “In the Bedlam Series, there’s no such thing as a meaningless game. Every year, it’s chaos.” Unfortunately, this game will no longer give the winning team a chance to beat the other to win the conference. But now it will only be a regular non-conference game.

Furthermore, the new conference realignment is making conferences way too big. For example, in the 2022 season, the BIG 12 had ten teams; this year, they have 14, and next year, they expect to have 16. Also, with the addition of four PAC-12 teams, the BIG 10 will have 18 teams by 2024.

Accordingly, the BIG 10 and BIG 12 are going to have to change its names to the BIG 16 and BIG 18.

These do not sound like conferences; they sound like entire leagues.

These massive conferences will eventually lead to teams replaying each other in playoff games. Ultimately, that will happen when the NCAA combines teams like Georgia, Texas, Alabama, and LSU.

Furthermore, bigger conferences will result in many blowouts in conferences like the BIG 12 and the AAC. Games like Texas vs. BYU, Tulane vs. North Texas, and Houston vs. Kansas State, will all be games that aren’t close and not fun to watch.

Combining lower-level FBS schools with top-tier schools is a recipe for disaster.

However, Saint Paul’s junior Vincent Montalbano thinks differently. “I think that it was actually a good realignment for both conferences [BIG 12, AAC] because it allows competitive teams like Cincinnati, Houston, North Texas, and UCF to play against tougher teams.”

Although Montalbano makes a good point, college football is all about entertainment and exciting games. Unfortunately, the teams he mentioned will not bode well against the historically dominant teams in those conferences.

As with anything, some good will come with this realignment system, like new intriguing conference games and phenomenal championship games. But, in this situation, the cons definitely outweigh the pros.

In short, NCAA conference realignment poses problems to travel, rivalry games, and overcrowded conferences.

All of these factors will eventually lead to the downfall of college football, which is a league that is already going through turmoil with NIL deals and the transfer portal.