What's happened to defense in college football?

Three times in the past two weeks, we've seen a team score fifty points---and lose. Two by double digits.

Used to be you score 30 and pretty much chalked up a W. Now, you score 30 and have a good chance of being beat by two touchdowns or more.

Just wondering what the board denizens and experts think are the reasons defensive football appears to be a lost art at the college level and why scoreboards at college football games resemble a pinball machine now. And is it good for the game?

 

Just like in the NFL, all the rules changes that have been made recently benefit the offense.

Scholarship limitations play a part as well. Most teams put their best athletes on offense.

And then there's the spread offense. Defenses just haven't caught up yet. I hope they will, but I don't know.

Also, the no-huddle offense. More plays = more points, especially with the clock-stoppage rules in college football.

 

I think the spread and no-huddle mostly. Now if one guy gets "worn down" there isn't another guy nearby to make a play like you would see in a traditional pro-style that runs off-tackle. Like Oregon, when things start rolling downhill, they roll quite fast.

 

I don't mind 68-55 or 52-51 or whatever outrage score keeps popping up lately.

In those games it's usually the one really good defensive stop that makes a difference.

As long as we don't have any more 9-6 Bama-LSU games. Those are boring, and I love a good defensive scrum.

 

College needs to adopt the NFL rule that no OL can be downfield on ANY forward pass play, even ones where the ball is caught behind the LOS. In college the OL are 10 yards down the field, blocking defenders while the ball is in the air. Needs to apply on those quick passes to the outside, where one receiver is blocking a defender as the other catches the ball.



And, it should be like hockey on line changes in that if a defender is running off the field and clearly not participating in the play, he's not counted as a 12th man. These 12 men on the field penalties when a guy is two feet from the sideline, running full speed to get off, are ridiculous.

 

I'd also like to see them get rid of the clock stopping on first downs. With no huddle offenses, it's no longer needed.

 

Along that vein, I'd just like to see college adopt the entire NFL rulebook. Receivers are skilled enough to get two feet down. The clock doesn't need to stop on first downs. A pass interference occuring 50 yards down field only yielding 15 penalty yards is ridiculous. And the NFL's overtime now with the recent changes is the most fair system.

 

While you're at, please get rid of the fair catches and touchbacks.

 

If I wanted to watch a game with NFL rules, I can tune in any Sunday. Everyone always wants to fix what isn't broken.

 

I honestly don't care about the point totals. I do care about 4-hour night games, though, and not just for deadline reasons.

 

One cure for that is to stop the review booth from butting in every third play.