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How College Football Playoff and bowl game system mixes socialism, capitalism

SportsPulse: USA TODAY Sports' Paul Myerberg tells you which players to have on your radar this bowl season. USA TODAY Sports

The college football bowl season starts again Saturday — a 40-game television bonanza that’s doubled in size since 1997, morphing into an industry of its own and a monster of mixed economies.

Socialism. Capitalism. Rich and poor.

It’s all brewed together to create a postseason in which 60% of all major-college football teams participate and 38 of them finish with a victory.

To shed light on how it all works, USA TODAY Sports reviewed NCAA financial records and dozens of tax forms from bowl organizations.