Games like this are HOPEFULLY going to be the death knell of these stupid bowl games. Eventually sponsors are going to see that it doesn't make sense for Duke's Mayo or Bad Boy Mowers or Gasparilla to pay millions in sponsorship cash when the stands are 1/3 full of geriatric boomers complaining about not enough bathrooms in stadiums and coffee that's too expensive.
Can't come fast enough for me.
The dozen prestigious bowls from the golden age is all we need. You know, where you actually had to be a good team to get in instead of just .500.
I think other changes to CFB need to go along with that. They need to rethink restrictions on Coach/Athlete contact. If they are now pro athletes, let's create a system that allows them to get pro-level training year round. This idea of qualifying for a bowl and earning extra practices is pretty silly.
But along with that, there need to be restrictions on what can be done during these contact periods to protect the young athletes from "old school" coaches applying outdated, draconian practices. Something like that is collectively bargained in the NFL...not sure how you accomplish it here, but it needs to be done.
Ultimately, the newly available ability for student-athletes to vote with their feet is going to encourage programs to find the balance between treating their athletes right and optimizing performance. The only major drawback is going to be the fact that the voting is going to be done by 18-20 year olds with minimal knowledge of what it takes to perform at the highest levels and who are easily distracted by shiny objects. That will be a tricky tightrope, and one that will need to be managed with lots of transparency, education, and empowerment.