If you're my age, you remember once upon a time when a Bowl game actually MEANT something. If you played in a Bowl game, it meant your team was one of the elite and was rewarded with a Bowl bid and depending on the team's ranking, a chance at being crowned National Champion.

Today, we have the Bowl Championship Series, a debacle designed to math up the number 1 and 2 ranked teams in the actual national championship game, making all other Bowl games relatively insignificant. The number 3 through whatever ranked teams will never be afforded the opportunity to earn that illustrious title and as such, the flood gate of STUPID Bowl games has ensued.

As a kid growing up, THE Bowl games were the Rose, Sugar, Cotton and Orange Bowls. The behind them were the relatively lesser Bowl games of the Gator, Sun, Independence and Fiesta Bowls. Oh and as a note? Each of these Bowl games had sponsors, but they were known by their actual name not the "Nokia Sugar Bowl" or the "FedEx Orange Bowl". In this day and age of Bowl stupidity, I at least tip my hat to the Rose Bowl. This year's game is the "Rose Bowl, presented by Vizio" and not the sponsor name first.

Bowl games now have gotten SO out of hand is stupidity is beyond measure. At last count, I counted 35 Bowl games this year; 35 games in which 70 college teams will or have gone head to head in such illustrious games as the...

-GoDaddy.com Bowl
-Heart of Dallas Bowl
-Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl
-Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl
-Maaco Bowl
-Belk Bowl
-Bell Helicopter Bowl
-Pinstripe Bowl
-Alamo Bowl
-Chick-fil-a Bowl

Really? Because of this stupidity, I hardly ever watch college football anymore, especially the Bowl season. And if the ridiculous invented Bowl games weren't enough, the match-ups are even MORE ridiculous!

Take for instance the Rose Bowl, considered by legendary Keith Jackson as "The Grand Daddy of them all"...where national championships have been decided and every year there is a prestigious New Years Day parade named after the game. This year's prestigious game featured #6 ranked Stanford versus unranked Wisconsin. One of the more historical Bowl games that should be considered a reward for well played football featured one top 10 team and another unranked. And because of Stanford's win at this game against an undeserving team, some sports writers are claiming that due to Stanford's win, they should be considered one of the elite teams in the nation. Really? They beat a team they were predetermined to beat, by matching them against a nobody and they should be considered elite? This would the NFL equivalent of matching the Washington Redskins against the Kansas City Chiefs, the Redskins win and they should be considered one of the league's elite. Again, STUPID!

I pray to God that when the NCAA does institute its playoff system, these stupid Bowl game go to the wayside!