You're clinging to a past that was just as flawed. Those "destination bowls" you're weeping over were often empty staduims for 6-6 teams, and the "month of bonding" was mostly seniors who'd already checked out. The spring game is for the die-hards, the people who actually care about the future of the program. The old bowl system was a participation trophy wrapped in a bad vacation. Now every regular season game actually matters because of the playoff, which is a thousand times better than the farce of the BCS. The portal and NIL give players power, which terrifies traditionalists like you because your program can't adapt. Building toward a random December bowl in Shreveport isn't character-building, it's a consolation prize. The sport is bigger, faster, and more competitive now. Your nostalgia is just jealousy that the modern game passed your team by.