This has to give the authoritarian oligarchs of college football a real bad feeling about what's to come. But we'll get back to that in a minute.
For now, good on Leonard Fournette. Good on Christian McCaffrey. Good on them for sizing up a corrupt system, then saying no thanks. And good on them for setting an example.
SEE ALSO:The tragic tale of Marcus Lattimore's stolen futureFournette, an LSU running back, and McCaffrey, a Stanford running back, are the faces of what's suddenly become college football's newest trend. They're among the sport's biggest starts, yet they won't take the field when their respective schools play in season-ending bowl games soon.
Fournette and McCaffrey are sitting out -- voluntarily. McCaffrey announced Monday he'll skip the Sun Bowl, while Fournette announced last week that he'll skip the Citrus Bowl.
Actually, scratch that -- those are the bowls' oldnames. The respective post-season games are now called, no joke, the HyundaiSun Bowl and the Buffalo Wild WingsCitrus Bowl.
And therein lies the "why" of what Fournette and McCaffrey are doing. Both will be top picks in April's NFL Draft. They're months away from the payday for which they've spent years giving blood, sweat and tears. So, why risk injury as the unpaid star of what's essentially an elaborate marketing scheme for others to get rich? Why participate in a game that means nothing when you're months away from everything you've dreamed of and worked for? Why notsit this one out?
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Before you argue, consider this: The games Fournette and McCaffrey are missing mean absolutely nothing. College football's still relatively new playoff system -- which gives four teams a shot at the national championship -- has had an unintended consequence of underscoring just how ridiculous the post-season has become.
There are now two bowls that matter -- the two comprising the national semifinals, which then lead to the national championship game. Meanwhile, there are no less than 39 additional bowls that seem to exist for little reason other than to be a product against which to sell naming and broadcast rights.
In addition to the Hyundai Sun Bowl and Buffalo Wild Wings Citrus Bowl that McCaffrey and Fournette will miss, there's the Camping World Independence Bowl, the Motel 6 Cactus Bowl, the New Era Pinstripe Bowl, the Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl, the Popeyes Bahamas Bowl, the -- well you get the picture.
Now consider the sad tale of Jaylon Smith.
Smith played linebacker for Notre Dame last season. He was projected as a top pick in the 2016 NFL Draft. Then -- playing in the Battlefrog Fiesta Bowl, a meaningless contest named after a company that produces obstacle-course races -- Smith suffered a nasty knee injury. He was diagnosed with a torn ACL, plus extensive nerve damage.
Smith still got drafted, but uncertainty over his injury caused his stock to plummet. Football Scoopestimates he lost out on perhaps as much as $20 million. He still hasn't played an NFL down.
Jaylon Smith, injured during last season's Fiesta Bowl.Credit: Ross D. Franklin/APConsidering all of the above, it's a wonder Fournette and McCaffrey are breaking new ground here. It's a wonder college stars with high NFL value haven't been doing this for years.
But there are two more reasons why this reallymatters.
First, the dominant reaction to Fournette and McCaffrey from media and fans has been a collective shrug. With few exceptions, it's been something along the lines of, "Well, yeah, of course they are."
Second, Fournette and McCaffrey may well be the first drops in what could soon become a downpour. How long until it becomes standard for prospects of their caliber to skip a meaningless post-season bowl game? Then there's the possibility raised by ProFootballTalk: How long until college stars start skipping entire seasons?
The NFL currently mandates that players must be at least three years out of high school to be drafted. If Notre Dame's Jaylon Smith is the cautionary tale that legitimizes skipping a bowl game, Marcus Lattimore is the case study for why a star in the position of Fournette or McCaffrey might skip his third season of college football altogether.
Lattimore was dominant as a running back for South Carolina is 2011. He was a surefire top draft pick and likely a future NFL star. But he was only two years removed from high school, so he had to return to school for a third college football season. During that third season, he suffered a knee injury that effectively ended his career, changed his life forever and drastically diminished his future earning potential.
College football has long been big business built on the backs of an unpaid labor force. As they eye the pro ranks, Fournette and McCaffrey -- as well as those who will undoubtedly follow in their footsteps -- are simply making smart business decisions.
In any honest reckoning, you can't fault them for that. The only real intrigue here is seeing what comes next.
(责任编辑：知識)
