Josh Pate believes media executives do not mean "ill will" to college football programs

The role of media executives in college football has been much discussed over the past season, with analyst Josh Pate sharing an interesting take this week. There's a consensus among many fans that executives are ruining college football due to a revenue-first perspective, with scheduling part of the issue.

Speaking on Wednesday's “Josh Pate College Football Show,” Pate cited why these decisions were unpopular. However, he also noted that media executives are not trying to ruin the landscape, they just have an 'ignorance' of the finer nuances of the sport:

“If you really asked them to tangibly describe what makes a college football rivalry, like granularly describe that like we did two shows ago, I think it was, they'd be lost,” Pate said (2:44).

“They know that. I know because I know a lot of these folks, and they admittedly get a little insecure when they are in those kinds of conversations because they don't know.

“The good news is ignorance is not always ill will. Just because some of these folks who are making big decisions that affect the sport are not necessarily as knowledgeable about the sport as you and I do not mean they have ill will toward the sport.”

College football has become increasingly lucrative over the years but many argue that has come at a cost of core values and ideals, with many fans feeling their voices are no longer heard.

Josh Pate notes that college football fans' voices really do matter

Over the years, fans have shared their opinions on what they feel is an increasingly money-first CFB landscape. While some feel their voice no longer matters, Josh Pate feels otherwise, as he explained on Wednesday:

“What I don't think the general college football fans understand is how much your voice matters. You actually think it's never mattered less, I'm telling you it's never mattered more. (1:00)

“You just don't realize why. I'm talking to our audience. Our audience is normal college football fans. I am a normal college football fan. That's why I know how much you feel about this stuff, because you feel how I feel.”

"Here's the thing about TV executives - most of them are not from our world. Most of them did not grow up immersed in college football, it's not part of their DNA. The NFL is, MLB is, the NBA is.

"They disproportionally grew up in northern cities, they disproportionally grew up pro-sports fans. College football is something they were aware of and are now in charge of, and they know the 'what' but they don't know the 'why.'"

While Josh Pate feels a lack of knowledge and understanding is the cause of the rift, it's unclear if that rift can be easily bridged. For many, trust takes a long time to build but only seconds to break.