The Sports Thinker

The Farm Bureau Meet in The Middle Bowl stadium, undisclosed location Last  year's B25 poll saw slightly more than half of its membership, 13 teams, rise out of the poll for 2025, although perhaps not with as much verve as 2023's class had in transitioning out in 2024. That 2023 final poll had two teams, Indiana and Arizona State , that made the twelve-team college football playoff in 2024. The 2024 entrants that missed out this year are a more mixed bag, with eight of the 13 teams only amassing a 5-7 or 4-8 record in 2025. However, the other 5 schools, Southern Mississippi , Kennesaw State , San Diego State , Wake Forest and Florida International are all playing in actual bowls this season! And, as always, enjoy the games, even when they aren't real! THE (FICTIONAL) BOWLS 2025’s Lower Alabama Pest Control Association Palmetto Bug Bowl features the #9  Oregon State  Greavers of the PAC2 taking on the #23  Wyoming Cowtoys.  The winner of this contest get...

Jerry Richardson Stadium, home of the Charlotte 49ers football team      The 2025 season is over for all of the 25ers, with Massachusetts capping an unchampionship with an 0-12 record. In addition, all 3 teams finishing directly behind them each only had a win over an FCS opponent to the positive in their records. California leads the way with three B25 finalists in the poll ( UCLA , Stanford and San Jose State ), with Massachusetts, Colorado, Oklahoma and Texas each adding two entrants, including both sides of a state rivalry, Colorado State and Colorado, who did NOT play each other this year. I see a fictional bowl in the future between them! As for the conferences, the twelve team Mountain West and the seventeen member ACC both had four entrants in the 25. Surprisingly, the Sun Belt only had 2, tied with the Big 12, Big1G (12, 18, whatever) and the AAC. Conference USA and the MAC have three teams in, but worst of all, fully 50% of the PAC 2 are in the final poll! St...