Hype Machine Danger Zone

Comparison:

Three weeks into the season? Get too close to the smoke billowing out of the preseason hype machine, and you might get pelted by a gear or screw spewing from the engine. Preseason predictions have been derailed in spectacular fashion and record time. . . .

Part of the beauty of college football is its unpredictability. Expecting 100 18-to-22-year-olds of varied maturity to offer consistent output from week to week is a pipe dream. One might as well leave a kindergarten class unsupervised for a week and expect to find a civil, well-governed society waiting for you upon return.

Sports journalist David Ubben found himself scratching his head three weeks into the NCAA Men's Football season. Seems that preseason predictions -- his and that of many, many other prognosticators -- went awry. His hype machine comparison and then an unsupervised kinder class may be one of the most unusual comparison combos of the week. “Pipe dream“ understandably shows up as a stealth metaphor. How often do you use kindergarteners -- supervised or not -- as a point of comparison reference? Anxious parents want to know!

Context:

Three weeks into the season? Get too close to the smoke billowing out of the preseason hype machine, and you might get pelted by a gear or screw spewing from the engine. Preseason predictions have been derailed in spectacular fashion and record time.

. . .

Part of the beauty of college football is its unpredictability. Expecting 100 18-to-22-year-olds of varied maturity to offer consistent output from week to week is a pipe dream. One might as well leave a kindergarten class unsupervised for a week and expect to find a civil, well-governed society waiting for you upon return.

Citation:

Ubben, David. “This College Football Season is Unpredictable.” The Athletic, 15 Sept. 2026. Web.

(Image courtesy of Bing, Sept. 2025.)