parity.
I was thinking about this the other day. Who is the great team in college football? There isn't one. The only undefeated team was beaten rather easily in the quarterfinals.
Then on more of a micro level with BYU.
Who was the great team in the Big 12 this year? There wasn't one. Kansas beat 3 out of the 4 first place finishers in consecutive weeks and they didn't make a bowl game.
In years past I could have told you before the playoff started that Alabama or Georgia was going to roll over teams. That simply isn't the case anymore.
While a couple of years of NIL is too early to conclusively say anything, it sure seems like college football has become more even at the top than in previous years.
*I should note that those who are not in the right situations will falter. If you don't have any NIL money you are going to be in a lot of trouble moving forward. The Utes appear to be in that situation as they lost quite a few big time starters for them. Guys who wanted to get paid. Teams like Utah St will become full time feeder teams. But the number of teams capable of winning a title in a given year hasnt been this high in quite awhile.