NEW ORLEANS — There are hangovers and then there college football hangovers.

Thirty-eight bowl games in just over two weeks and it’s no wonder I woke up on Bourbon Street covered in beads wearing an ‘In Urban We Trust’ T-shirt. My head is swirling with fist fights, fake field goals, fades and coaching cliches.

Let’s look back at some of the top storylines from this bowl season.

———

Why so mad?

Perhaps it was the pressure surrounding the new College Football Playoff or maybe teams just needed to blow off a little steam, but whatever the reason, this bowl season seemed to be a contentious one. It started with a very ugly postgame brawl between players from Memphis and BYU in the Miami Beach Bowl, which seemed to set the tone for the whole postseason. There seemed to be a bit of chippiness among players throughout most of the games. And it wasn’t limited to just players. UCLA coach Jim Mora was angry about rough play at the end of the Alamo Bowl, so much so that he confronted Kansas State’s septuagenarian coach Bill Snyder about it during the midfield postgame handshake.

———

Attendance down, but TV viewership up

Even before the postseason began, there was a concern about the overabundance of bowl games this season — 39 to be exact — that peppered the college football landscape. Conference commissioners and bowl officials worked hand-in-hand to create better matchups in an effort to avoid any attendance letdown, but there still seemed to be a lag in attendance at many of the games. While fans may not be making their way to the stadiums, they still found time to watch the games on TV. ESPN reported record viewership numbers for most of its games, including the New Year’s Six games involved in the College Football Playoff. The two semifinal games — Rose and Sugar — averaged more than 28 million viewers.

———

The end of the road for the SEC

No storyline embodies this bowl season more than the apparent demise of the Southeastern Conference postseason dominance — much to the delight of many across the country. Here was the conference that many consider to be the cream of the crop in college football, with one of the best divisions in sports — the SEC West — struggling to a 7-5 record in the postseason. The west wound up being nothing short of a Dumpster, fire with a dismal 2-5 record, including a loss by top-ranked Alabama in the Sugar Bowl. Ironically, it was the SEC East — long considered the weaker of the two divisions — that saved the league with a 5-0 mark in bowl games.

———

Ohio State puts Big Ten jabs to rest

For much of the week leading up to the Sugar Bowl, Ohio State players and coaches were asked ad nauseam about the perception of the Big Ten and how a win over an SEC power like Alabama could change that. And time and time again, the Buckeyes said the league was just as good as the SEC. Apparently, it is. Ohio State’s win over the Crimson Tide coupled with Wisconsin and Michigan State victories should quiet critics who downplayed the strength of the conference all season.

———

About TCU being left out of the Playoff …

TCU had a legitimate beef with the College Football Playoff selection committee. But instead of dwelling on the past, the Horned Frogs decided to let their play on the field do the talking. In one of the most impressive wins this postseason, TCU rolled up 423 yards of total offense and forced four turnovers during a 42-3 win over Ole Miss in the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl. There’s no mistaking that this was a statement to the committee that it had made a huge mistake in snubbing the Horned Frogs.

———

Meyer, Saban push for change

Urban Meyer and Nick Saban want to make sure the families of the players aren’t forgotten when it comes to the College Football Playoff. Several times during the week leading up to the Sugar Bowl, both coaches addressed their concerns about the travel burden of two playoff games on the parents. Meyer acknowledged it in his postgame remarks following his team’s win over Alabama.

“Are we going to get their families to Dallas? We should,” Meyer said. “That should happen immediately, that there should be an immediate committee meeting somewhere say these families can’t — let’s get them to Dallas and watch their sons play in college football history.”

On Saturday, Ohio State athletic director Gene Smith reiterated those concerns, talking it one step further.

“I have always been in agreement with Coach Meyer. I wish we could help the families of players more than we currently can. I will initiate NCAA legislation to allow us to provide more financial assistance in the future for postseason trips,” Smith posted on his Twitter account.

According to the Columbus Dispatch, Ohio State can only provide $800 per player through the student assistance fund to help defray expenses a family may occur. Hardly enough to cover the cost of a trip to Dallas for many families, especially when you consider the amount of money being generated by college football this season.

It’s sure to be a point of discussion during the NCAA’s annual convention in Washington, D.C., next week and when the College Football Playoff management committee meets to review this season.

———

Early entry list grows

With the deadline to report their intentions to enter the 2015 NFL Draft looming, the list of underclassmen leaving schools continues to grow. Forty-one players have declared for the draft ahead of the Jan. 15 deadline, including 25 offensive players and 16 defensive players. The list is headlined by UCLA quarterback Brett Hundley, Miami running back Duke Johnson and USC receiver Nelson Agholor and there are sure to be many, many more names added in the coming days. The Big Ten leads the way so far with 12 players on the list, followed by the SEC (10) and Pac-12 (7).

———

©2015 The Orlando Sentinel (Orlando, Fla.)

Visit The Orlando Sentinel (Orlando, Fla.) at OrlandoSentinel.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC