In America, the winner takes all.

Chapter 163 The land of college football madness; “You’re worth it”

In the lobby of a hotel in Sacramento, California, Grace was holding flowers and receiving applause and congratulations from attendees.

As a private high school, BHHS submitted a perfect answer this school year. The school's influence in sports has further expanded, and Grace, the sports director of BHHS, naturally takes the most credit, which makes John sitting in the audience feel quite moved. He was relieved, and his eyes were even a little red.

"Here, I want to thank one person..." Grace suddenly said while standing on the stage and talking to the microphone.

Off the stage, John adjusted the tie of his suit and prepared to stand up.

There is no doubt that the person my daughter should thank the most is herself.

"But he is not here today, but at home in Los Angeles..." Grace mentioned the information about that person.

"What are you doing?" John muttered. Half of his body had already stood up, but he had to sit down again.

·
At this time, at home in the San Fernando Valley, Ethan was on the phone with the president of UCLA.

"...I have made the biggest concession. In fact, this is the bottom line of each school. I am very sure of this." Charles Young mentioned repeatedly.

"Dear Mr. Principal, I can feel how much you value me and how sincere your school is. I will consider it carefully." Ethan looked at the list on the table. UCLA checked that box.

"For the sake of me personally calling you tonight, even if you don't choose UCLA in the end, you must not choose SCU." Charles finally said.

"To be honest, the athletic director of USC told me the same thing." Ethan mentioned the previous phone call.

"This is for your personal safety, both of us." Charles laughed and finally hung up the phone.

Even if you don't choose us, don't choose a mortal enemy. This is probably the best explanation of "college enemy".

When talking about the battle of old rivals, you can't avoid the "Buckeye-Wolverine Derby" between Ohio and Michigan.

Historically speaking, the two states even broke out the "Toledo War" over the territory. To this day, residents of the two states still dislike each other.And college football has become an outlet for this hostility.

In the ten years from 1969 to 1978, the "Ten Years War" centered on these two teams and the two coaches who were both teachers and friends has become a classic in the history of rugby.Over the past decade, 42 players from both teams have been selected to the All-Star team, including four Heisman Trophy winners.

The war also came to an abrupt end when one of the parties involved, Ohio Buckeyes head coach Hayes, assaulted a Clemson player after the game. As a result, he was expelled from the school. end.Hayes himself died in depression a few years later.

As for USC and UCLA, that's another story.In short, at USC, there is the so-called "perfect day". This day must meet two conditions: USC personally defeats UCLA, and Notre Dame loses on this day.Since 1921, such a perfect day has appeared 64 times in history, and each time the whole school will celebrate.

And if there's one place that's most passionate about college football, it must be the University of Alabama.

Compared with the rich and fertile California, Alabama is undoubtedly a poor place.The economy, public security, education, and medical care are in decline. I heard that many people there are still nostalgic for the era of slavery.

But it is a place like this that gave birth to a fanatical college football culture.

Here, rugby is not only a sport, but also a way of life, a belief and a status symbol.

Locals would put team logos on their cars or hang team flags outside their houses.They often talk about football in their work or life, and even give their children’s middle names “Bo” or “Bear” to commemorate the legendary head coach of the University of Alabama, Bear Bryant. ), and Auburn University legendary running back Bo Jackson.

Perhaps, the local economic conditions are not enough to support owning a professional football team.

But if you catch a local fan and ask, they'll say: We already have the Crimson Tide and don't need any other team.

There is no local NFL professional football team, so the enthusiasm for this sport is all invested in the two universities in Alabama. In the 2023 national championship game at the University of Alabama, the local ratings in Alabama reached 57.6%.

This kind of fanatical atmosphere has also allowed the University of Alabama to remain a top football team and the college team that has participated in the most bowl games in history.

Ethan looked through the list in his hand. Many well-known schools on it had already checked, including UCLA, which he just hung up the phone with, and UCLA's old enemy SCU.As well as the University of Michigan, Ohio State, the University of Notre Dame, the University of Colorado, the University of Florida, Texas A&M University (Texas Tech is not a hit), Pennsylvania State University, University of Nebraska-Lincoln...

Although Ethan's grades declined to a certain extent due to his full commitment to football, he still received more than 65 college invitations, and he only retained top-tier colleges in football.

The list in front of you can be called a "dream" for any young rugby player, all coming from D1-A level competitions.

The NCAA's D1, D2, and D3 event classifications started with football events. In 1978, they were subdivided into D1-A and D1-AA. D1-A was further divided into five major leagues and five leagues. (This statement only came about after the emergence of FBS. Historically, the divisions of NCAA college football were very confusing and changed day by day. I only touch on the current popular statement)

"Level" is not only reflected in the players, but also in the investment of the school.Universities participating in the D1-A competition must provide at least 85 full football scholarships for the highest level every year, and college football coaches in the five major leagues are also sky-high.Here’s an interesting piece of evidence for this: In many states, the highest-paid GOV personnel are college football coaches.The salaries of top coaches are not much different than those of NFL coaches.The relevant coaching team is also equipped with trainers, analysts, and nutritionists.

In terms of infrastructure construction, it compares favorably with many professional clubs.The top ten largest professional stadiums in the world are all home to the five major leagues.

In 2017, Clemson even built a US$5500 training center specifically for football players, which is equipped with a mini golf course, a bowling alley, and a movie theater...

The reason why universities are so invested in it is naturally because the college football game itself is a sports gold mine.

In December 2022, the game between Ohio State University and Clemson University in the NCAA College Football Playoff semifinals attracted 12 million viewers. A few days later, the NBA Christmas Day game between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Brooklyn Nets only had 1900 million viewers. 530 million viewers.

The University of Alabama's football revenue accounts for 77% of all sports revenue.

All this is based on the fact that player costs account for a relatively small proportion.

As for the conditions that Ethan proposed to several coaches at the beginning, they were actually similar to what he did in high school, and they were considered as compensation for the remuneration.

Charles Young's answer was similar to that of the heads of sports departments in other schools. He could make certain concessions and give Ethan a higher salary than ordinary players, but rejected his request.

There is no doubt that this is the bottom line of the school.

The reason is naturally because the school has always adhered to the position of "amateur players". Today it opened this opening for Ethan, and it will be open to others tomorrow.

Anyway, these people have made up their minds, and Ethan will compromise sooner or later. After all, the NFL requires that he must graduate from high school for three years before he can participate in the draft, and he must enter college.

It depends on whether this last one... can bring a surprise to himself.

Ethan looked at the University of Alabama in the last column, the only university that he hadn't yet individually contacted.The university's athletic director called yesterday and requested an interview in person.

Ethan looked at the time, it was now 09:30 pm.

Maybe we have to wait until tomorrow... He got up and prepared to leave the empty house and return to Lisa's residence.

Mia went to New Haven, studying with Catherine, taking care of the baby, and of course a nanny. As for Lisa, the house was almost transformed into a nursery, and there were toys everywhere. The nanny and a relative she called took care of the baby 7/24.

As for Charlize, her work began to get busier and the house began to spend more and more time empty.When Ethan came back this time, he simply moved into Lisa's mansion.

And when he went out and was about to walk around to the garage, a bright light made him squint his eyes.

A Ford Crown Victoria made a chirping sound as if it was about to stall at any moment, and parked in front of Ethan.

Then a few men got out of the car, and as the car door opened, there was a strong smell of ink.

"Ethan, O'Connor! I finally found you!" A man rushed out of the car and immediately ran towards Ethan. He seemed to want to hug Ethan, but he tripped over a protruding brick on the ground. The moment he fell, he was supported by Ethan.

Ethan recognized the voice. It was Bob Bockrath, the athletic director of the University of Alabama who had contacted him before.

He was a somewhat bloated man with a broad face, but his facial features were squeezed together, and his short hair exposed his forehead, making him look a little funny.

"We encountered some things, including getting lost, and the vehicle was damaged, but no matter what, we still managed to get here." Bob straightened his tie and did not notice that his hands left large stains on the tie.

"Oops, I was repairing the engine just now." He rubbed his hands on his pants a few times in embarrassment.

Ethan looked at the other two Alabama school staff who got out of the car. There were large oil stains on their clothes and pants, and they looked quite embarrassed.

"You can clean up first." Ethan invited them in.

During the cleaning process, Ethan asked clearly why.

The valley where Ethan lives now is not easy to find. Several people misunderstood the passers-by's explanations and were about to run out of Los Angeles before they realized they were going in the wrong direction. They had to turn around and go back, but the rental car appeared again. The problem has been delayed until now.

"Fortunately, I studied auto repair when I was young, otherwise we would have to push the cart here." Recruitment coordinator Ron Middleton (Ron Middleton) said with a smile. This is a young man who has begun to put on weight and is three years old. The tallest among men.

"But you got the car parts wrong. Bob, when will we have enough recruitment budget to at least rent a better car." The only woman among the three walked out of the bathroom, complaining and looking at Yi Sen said hello.

"Stop, Mary, this is not the time to talk. I don't want others to laugh. We are now representing the University of Alabama." Bob, who was sitting on the sofa, made a cross with his hands.

"But Alabama is already a joke, especially when it comes to football." The woman leaned on the corner and fiddled with her hair. "My name is Mary, Mary Spaulding, an employee of the Admissions Office of the University of Alabama. , responsible for coordinating the recruitment of athletic athletes, nice to meet you.”

"I believe you have already met us. We have only one purpose for coming here this time, and that is..." Bob faced Ethan and clenched his fists.

"Tie me to Alabama?" Ethan laughed.

The other two chuckled.

"That's pretty much what it means. In short, we will take you back at all costs!" Bob seemed determined to win.

"So the school decided to agree to my conditions?" Ethan became interested.

"You mean...as a staff member of the football team's office? Impossible, the NCAA will lift the roof off the school." Bob immediately shook his head.

"The NCAA issued the most severe fine in history to the Alabama Crimson Tide just last year. To be precise, it was issued to the school's athletic director, Mr. Bob, who is sitting across from you." Mary crossed her arms.

"Hey, I told you not to expose me," Bob complained.

"If you want to recruit him, he has to know about this..."

"Let's not talk about it yet." Bob interrupted her immediately.

"Although you cannot be an employee of the school, you can be a volunteer, such as a football team ambassador. We can meet all the conditions you put forward. As long as you want it, as long as it is something we can do, Alabama is willing to do whatever it takes to meet it. Your needs!" Bob's face turned red and he spoke very forcefully.

"Bob, I have to remind you that you have once again violated the NCAA's recruitment regulations!" Recruitment Coordinator Ron reminded again.

"Go to the damn NCAA, I am willing to give Ethan the best!" Bob patted his thigh, looking particularly excited.

"Alabama needs you more than any college, and you need Alabama, the mecca of college football!"

"Because, you're Ethan O'Connor, and I've seen every one of your games." Bob gasped.

"You deserve it all!"

Other schools would often spend more time discussing with Ethan, but they bargained with Ethan over and over again, mentioned the NCAA recruiting regulations more than once, and refused more than once.

The University of Alabama sent three people to interview Ethan in person before they started visiting the school. After going through twists and turns and finally meeting Ethan, they agreed to Ethan's request without any hesitation and did not take the initiative. Mentioning any strings attached, even if it makes other schools hate the University of Alabama, is breaking the rules.

In the eyes of athletic directors at other schools, this is stupid behavior.

And the reason for all this may be this sentence from Bob's mouth: "You are worth it."

Also, he doesn't seem to be getting along well with the NCAA.

Ethan did not discuss this issue further, but asked: "What kind of punishment did the NCAA impose on Alabama last year?"

(End of this chapter)