The NCAA has passed a "three-year moratorium on new bowl games," meaning no new postseason games can be played until after the '19 regular season, according to sources cited by Brett McMurphy of ESPN.com. The move from the NCAA D-I Council comes after there were "not enough bowl-eligible teams to fill the record 41 postseason games" this past season. The ruling affects Austin and two South Carolina cities, Charleston and Myrtle Beach, that were "in the process of seeking NCAA certification to add bowls" in '16. This marks the second time in five years a ban on new games has been issued. Another three-year moratorium was given for '11-13, after which "six new bowls, not including the College Football Playoff, were added" (ESPN.com, 4/11). Tom McQueeney, who would have chaired the prospective Medal of Honor Bowl in Charleston, said of the NCAA's decision, "I anticipated this would be their conclusion. But the way they’ve done it is a little bit different. I thought they might cap the bowl games at 40 or so and let survival of the fittest determine where the games are.” In Charleston, Jeff Hartsell notes the Medal of Honor Bowl was switching from an "all-star game format, which it had for two years, to a traditional bowl game pitting schools from two different conferences." That came after the "removal of the Confederate flag from the Statehouse grounds enabled the NCAA to lift a ban on 'pre-determined events' in South Carolina." McQueeney said that it is "possible, if not likely, that the shut-down of another bowl game could open the door for a game in Charleston" before '19. He added that "returning to an all-star game format is also possible" (POSTANDCOURIER.com, 4/11).
