Genuine question to Americans, what's the appeal of watching it?
Surely the NFL, with their 32 teams split into the national (/4) and american (/4) leagues, would satisfy most of the public interest in the sport?
Being British, this concept is baffling. I couldn't imagine playing rugby at University with tens of thousands of people watching. Is it because most of the college football players get drafted into the NFL after they finish school, so in a way get an inside track on who will be the future star players? Or is it personal pride being from that state/city and/or attending that particular College?
>>64776651
>>64776651
>Surely the NFL, with their 32 teams split into the national (/4) and american (/4) leagues, would satisfy most of the public interest in the sport?
No, some areas are hundreds of miles from the closest NFL team
> it because most of the college football players get drafted into the NFL after they finish school, so in a way get an inside track on who will be the future star players?
No
> Or is it personal pride being from that state/city and/or attending that particular College?
Yes
We like watching football. It's football.
Wider talent disparities encourage more variation in offensive and defensive schemes
America is a very large country, some people live hours away from the nearest NFL franchise, which might be 2 or 3 states over. So for these locations, the college team is their local club, their community team.
Also, NFL tickets are on average very expensive while college games are low cost or even free for students in some places.
>>64776651
The college game is more innovative and exciting due to talent disparity causing coaches to try to come up with systems that give them an advantage (Nebraska's I form option, the Spread Option, the Veer, Air Raid, triple option, etc).
But mostly it's because it truly represents your region and isn't a corporation owned by greedy owners trying to move the team to LA. Your college team is here to stay and it's typically full of kids who grew up in the state or at least region, unlike the NFL. It represents the region and school far better than an NFL team full of mecenaries that can move any time it wants to does.
>>64776724
This.
Also
1.) If you went the university, you obviously have more emotional investment since you spent (hopefully) some of the best years of your life.
2.) Culture surrounding college football is much more energetic than the NFL, especially now. Working class fans have been all but priced out of NFL Stadiums and most fanbases are made up of casual observers. For better and for worse, college fans are absolutely rabid, especially because they probably grew up around it or graduated from that university.
2a.) To go along with that, tradition means much more to college football fans than it does in the pros. There's only one team I the NFL that's more than a century old (Cardinals) and since the teams are privately owned franchises, they can up and move at the owner's discretion (with some stipulations, of course). Hell, my favorite team used to be based in Boston until the owner moved them to Washington in the 1930s.
I think there's a deeper, emotional investment in the college game than there is in the pro, from the fans and players. It's a love affair whereas with mot NFL teams, it's a business relationship. There's an inherent cynicism in professional football that isn't there as much with college ball (though college football is notorious for its underhanded practices)
>>64776929
>Hell, my favorite team used to be based in Boston until the owner moved them to Washington in the 1930s.
So in a way, College Football is kind of like Club Rugby for locals in the UK Whilst the England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland national sides are the equivalent NFL teams?
Except most the the Pro12 and premiership rugby teams have imports, so less attachment to the club.
Interesting, so is College football a better watch for the uninitiated if you're a tourist?
>>64777041
A lot of people prefer it to the NFL me included. NFL everyone plays as boring as possible, running up the middle and shit.
College has more diverse skill levels and more diverse offense types. Also College Football has more die hard fans
>>64777041
Comparing NFL teams to national teams is pretty accurate, distance-wise and the size of the fanbases.
I'd say, if you're looking to get into football, it's easier to get into the NFL then into college afterwards instead of the other way around.
>>64776651
Hi Brit-bro, great question. Part of it has to do with how culture developed in your country, and how it developed differently in our. In the early 1900s, the high society met and congregated in social clubs, where some of the oldest and most well-storied sports were practiced. Tennis, cross country running, rowing, and others were a way for social elites to bond. These social clubs gave way to the modern sports club system in place today. Here in the US, we didn't have the social club structure in place. Oligarchs networked and grew up together at colleges and universities where they practiced sports with classmates (as opposed to club mates in the UK). Sports traditions grew around the respective cultures, into what we watch today. The same ethos that drove the development of club sports in the UK has generated the development of college sports in the US.
>>64777012
>He doesn't know the Redskins were originally based in Boston
Another problem with NFL fans: anything that happened before they were born, especially anything before the Super Bowl era, means nothing to them.
>>64777041
Funny you should mention this, Britfriend. One of your countrymen came to Alabama and watched a game between Alabama and Auburn. one of the oldest, fiercest rivalries in college football. The whole thing, ridiculous as it as, moved him to tears.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7cl-f8NABMM
>>64777041
It'sprobably easier to follow the NFL as an outsider especially because there's much less history that matters, and a lot less crazy shit like the selection committee. However if you're visiting, and looking to attend a football game, go to a major college program game like Michigan, Ohio State, Notre Dame, Penn State, Tennessee or Alabama.
The NFL is made for TV. College football is made to be watched at the stadium
>>64777289
>went to alabama
>didnt go to any games
I'm such an aspie faggot
>>64777279
>>64777041
Sorry, posted before reading the thread. The club analogy works well. Also, speaking of cross country running, I was glad to see Mo Farah finally tackle some real XC running this morning!
>>64777289
>>64777309
Sounds good, I have an old school friend who went to Michigan University. When I finally get across the pond, I'll make sure to go. What dates are the college football season?
>>64777422
Late August through November
>>64777422
Make sure you tailgate too familia
>>64777535
is that a euphemism
>>64777422
As anon said (>>64777485). Also, the biggest and one of the oldest rivalries in college football is played at Michigan Stadium in odd numbered years (Michigan-Ohio State).
Michigan's stadium is huge (nickname is "The Big House" and seats more than 100,000 people). Never been there before, but stay close to your buddy. I imagine it'll be easy to get lost in the shuffle.
Apart from that, have a good time. Don't be afraid to get wrapped up in the atmosphere and emotion of the event. At its root, it's supposed to be fun.
>>64777613
Kinda, you barbecue, play drinking games and drink in the parking lot before the game.
>>64777613
Not really, man. It's a term for having a meal before the ball game in the parking lot before everyone goes into the stadium. Folks cook and put the food out near their cars (thus the term "tailgating") and it's a way to enjoy everyone's company before the ball game starts.
>>64777723
>having a meal
thats a funny way to say "get shitfaced drunk before you enter the stadium so you don't have to waste money on overpriced beer to get drunk at the game"
>>64777783
Tailgating is like college, anon - it is whatever you make of it.
Maybe it's a southern thing (I went to East Carolina University) but folks usually barbeque or bring Bojangles and have a big meal in the lot before heading in. That, also while getting shitfaced (though students will usually bring a few, small, bottles of booze with them in the stadium, too).
it's called pride for your alma mater
and for southern schools, they have nothing else
What I don't get are people who enjoy college football with no affiliations to the university. I always hated seeing the non-students and non-alumni at the games. They were always the ones being assholes to people.
>>64778028
like other people said, sometimes the Bamas or the Oregons are the closest they have to a major football team.
>>64778028
If you're catholic, you know more about Notre Dame than Brian Kelly.
One important thing you have to realize is that college football was around for years before the NFL came to be. It has so much history and tradition that people love.
>>64778070
I actually go to the University of Oregon, and it's really sad seeing the bandwagoners. Like i said they're assholes to people, but it's like the team is all they have in their lives.
>>64778070
Most people in Oregon seem to be seakawks fans
college football has great advantages over the NFL in mostly tradition, rivalries and fanbases. It's easier to pull for a college rather than a fanbase. Whether it's your states big school or your alma matter, it's easier to be passionate about a college than a franchise owned by some greedy Jew. As for tradition, most schools have awesome traditions. From the third quarter "Jump around" at Wisconsin to the singing of "Country roads take me home" at West Virginia to the running down the hill at Clemson, colleges have awesome traditions. You'll also have rivalries that have been going on since the early 20th century, like Michigan-Notre Dame or Auburn-Alabama. The fanbases are crazy too. I can personally guarantee you that if you ranked the top 25 loudest stadiums in college, that #25 would be louder than Seattle or Green Bay. Also, it's more exciting in college. The players are more human, and therefore you're more likely to see crazy shit happen.
Hope this helps
>>64778028
see
>>64778070
For some of these smaller communities, the college football team also contributes mightily to the local and state economy. ECU's football team - good or bad - represents tens of millions of dollars to Greenville, NC.
>>64778160
And for a long time, was more popular and featured a higher quality of play. Some of those national championship teams from the 1920s and 1930s could probably beat the shit out of most NFL teams of those eras.
Even when the quality of play improved in the 1940s, it still played second fiddle to college ball. Television, though, made the NFL. Pro football was made for TV, whereas college football and baseball and boxing (which were popular in the early half of the 20th century) are best enjoyed on the radio or in person.
The sad thing is some NFL fanbases is that they used to have hard core fan bases that made game day similar to college football games.
That used to be the case for the Redskins back when they were at RFK, but after the team moved to the suburbs, cost of living continued rising in the D.C. area, and the team's play continued to suck, those hardcore fans were either disillusioned with the team or were straight up priced out.
NFL games are crazy expensive and you know those wine-and-cheese folks aren't going to be nearly as passionate about the team.
>>64778712
The only two teams with rabid fans are Bears and Packers. Packers because it's truly all they have going for them in that hellish corner of the arctic circle, and Bears fans because, as a Chicagoan, Chicagoans are just massive meatballs in general who consume unhealthy amounts of Miller Lite
>>64776651
1. Scouting: it gives you an idea on who to look forward to in the draft
2. Less skilled players = more spaghetti = more unpredictable games
3. >implying any of us have anything else to do on Saturdays
>>64776651
College football is for inbred faggots who peaked way too early in life. It thrives in the gutters of America. Watching it after only watching the NFL, you realize it is an inferior product.
I always chuckle when people try to argue that the best college team could beat the worst NFL team.
I also chuckle when the 'best' college QBs look like retarded chimp babies when faced with even the most basic of NFL schemes.
>>64779878
Except most of those 'stars' in college flame out or prove they only looked really good because they were facing teams with really only one good player.
Regional pride and a more wide open game. The players are actually people instead of millionaire Playboy celebs.
>>64780283
>Implying New England didn't help create college football
>Implying New Englanders gave a damn about pro football until the early 2000s.
>>64780448
So you admit you're stuck in the past?
>>64776651
College football was where football began. You really can't appreciate its appeal compared to the NFL without understanding how they both developed
>>64776651
>32 would satisfy most of the public interest
You are underestimating the size of the USA.
Britian is around 90k sq miles.
Michigan is around 90k sq miles.
Michigan has one NFL team and 2 competitive college teams
The state I live in is around 80k sq miles and has 0 professional teams (in any sport) and 1 college football team
I live 200 miles from the nearest NFL team
>>64777962
This. I go to Mississippi State. There is always tons of food like complete meals around the junction. Most people eat before to avoid having to visit the overpriced concessions stand.
>>64776651
colleges represent smaller regions
there is no youth set up for NFL teams, so these are literally the best players who are that age
players aren't as good so you get fund shenanigans and vast array of offensive schemes
not a corporate shit fest
older rivalries/teams
lots of people went to those schools, you have a connection to them you could never have to an nfl team.
>>64780517
>i live in a shithole and so I cling to a 'sport' which disenfranchises poor athletes, robs money from legitimate academic improvement, and has help developed the current state of bloated Universities not giving a shit about what they actually teach causing an education gap compared to the rest of the world
Cool story, bro.
A huge appeal to me is that my team normally recruits players from the state or the neighboring ones. So when we play it's really like our team vs an NFL team full of basically mercenaries.
>>64780650
>he legitimately believes that the US lags behind in education
The stupid nogs lower the median, but we are fine.
>>64776651
College athletics are for flyover state garbage in this country. Rest assured that any state without an NFL franchise is not worth visiting.
>>64780687
>our
>>64780544
>obesity precursor
>>64780761
>our
>tfw I go to the school currently
>tfw it really is our team
Outmemed.
>>64780747
>>64780650
if the us is falling behind in education it is in primary education
still have the best secondary education system in the world
>>64780747
How come the Indians and Chinese dominate the stem fields here?
http monitor.icef.com/2015/09/us-universities-see-32-increase-in-indian-enrolment-in-2015/
Roll tide, I guess.
>>64780758
This. College football fans tend to live in the shittiest parts of America.
>>64780807
>because I pay the University, it's my team
>>64776651
There is zero appeal to watch it. Only inbred southerners and fat midwesterners like it.
>>64780833
you just indicated that us universities were providing that education though, which completely counters your point.
>>64777422
Go watch Michigan get completely fucking annihilated by Ohio State.
>>64780758
but ohio, michigan, georgia, pennsylvania, texas, florida and california all have major cities and NFL teams in addition to being among the most rabid college football hotbeds.
>>64780895
At this point, I'm just baiting more smug Brady out of you
>>64780923
What I indicated is that the US is lagging in education and the Universities are contributing to this. Sure, they teach good shit... to foreigners. American students get taught nothing, charged outrageously high tuition to support meaningless sports programs which in turn pay the athletes absolutely nothing.
>>64780974
It's a meme, you dip.
>>64780974
>ohio
Sucks so bad in general.
>michigan
What can I not say?
>Georgia
XD
>PA
Penn State is in the middle of nowhere and enabled a child molester to rape scores of boys.
>Texas
Give it back to Mexico
>Florida
Shithole
>California
Soon either drought or earthquakes will reclaim it.
>>64780499
That's what I thought.
What on earth are Pats fans going to do when the team begins its inevitable downward slip?
Tradition, atmosphere, and a tie to the community. The game started in college and college was far bigger for the NFL for decades, so there is an actual history. No one in the NFL cares about anything pre-super bowl era.
The US is huge. Every state aside from a handful of Canadian border states, South Dakota, and Rhode Island, have at least 1 top division team. Because of the local ties, you get fanbases that are much more natural and dedicated. The atmopshere is local.
Local/regional rivalries and pride.
>Dallas
>East
>>64781080
the causal relationship you tried to posit makes zero sense. you're just lashing out at various unrelated things and stuffing buzzwords in.
>>64781133
that's a pretty good meme. mind if i save it?
>>64781223
So you completely refuse to admit that most Patriots fans actually began to like the team in the mid 90s when Kraft took the team over to keep it in NE, drafted Bledsoe, which in turn really began the current dynasty?
You must not be from NE. It's cute you think every Pats fan started when Brady took over. I was only a kid, but I remembered thinking that Belicheck was going to be another disappointment like Pete Carroll. One of my earliest football memories was when Parcells took us to the Superb Owl... only to have him fag out and take Curtis Martin to the JEST.
>>64777339
Don't feel bad, I grew up 20 minutes from Bryant-Denny and never once went to a game.
>>64781313
>I can't dispute your point so I'll just call you stupid
I am subbing in my backup QB to deal with your weakass shit.
>>64780283
Places where college football is most popular:
>Ohio (2 NFL Teams)
>Pennsylvania (2 NFL Teams)
>Michigan (1 NFL team very close to the major university)
>Georgia (1 NFL team)
>Alabama (0 NFL teams)
>Florida (3 NFL teams)
>Texas (2 NFL teams)
1/3rd of the NFL exists in college football hotbeds
>>64776929
I am far more cynical of NCAA than NFL. I mean, we know NFL is a business. Duh. They don't pretend like it isn't.
NCAA tries to pretend like they're doing it for the students, like it's some honorable thing, like it's truly amateur...it's all BS and lies. It's just as much a business as the NFL.
>>64781436
You forgot Indiana/BOOTY BLAST
>>64781485
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4XEq6XYtMVU
Underrated commentary.
>>64780923
What are you talking about?
http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-colleges/rankings/national-universities
>Princeton - Terrible at/don't care about college athletics
>Harvard - Terrible at/don't care about college athletics
>Yale - Terrible at/don't care about college athletics
>Columbia - Terrible at/don't care about college athletics
>Stanford - Care about college athletics
>University of Chicago - Terrible at/don't care about college athletics
>MIT - Terrible at/don't care about college athletics
>Duke - Care about college athletics
>University of Pennsylvania - Terrible at/don't care about college athletics
>California Institute of Technology - Terrible at/don't care about college athletics
>John Hopkins - Terrible at/don't care about college athletics
>Dartmouth - Terrible at/don't care about college athletics
>Northwestern - Terrible at/don't care about college athletics
>Brown - Terrible at/don't care about college athletics
>Cornell - Terrible at/don't care about college athletics
>Vanderbilt - Care about college athletics
>Washington St. Louis - Terrible at/don't care about college athletics
That rounds out the top 15. The best schools are SURPRISE focused on education and the vast majority don't give a shit about college sports.
>>64781510
ND is Chicago's team, their fanbase is in Illinois, not Indiana
>>64781510
>>64781531
Yeah not bad but South Park is gay and for children.
I don't feel sorry for the athletes though. They get scholarships just for sports. Fuck them.
>arguging with Brady trip/NitW
>>64781405
>can't dispute
>college athletics are distracting resources from education, making our institutions worse
>foreigners coming here for education at said institutions is evidence of this
i know you are being an epic troll and all, but just in case anyone thought your statements weren't made in jest.
freedom
>>64781540
15 is arbitrary, and your list demonstrates that those categories aren't mutually exclusive by including multiple schools that have p5 teams. you're incorrect regarding northwester and vandy btw.
>>64777422
You're in luck. Michigan has the biggest stadium, has the most wins of any college team, and has the best rivalry in the sport (some would say Alabama vs. Auburn or Army vs. Navy, but close enough. They finally have an excellent coach after having a run of bad teams and are looking to be back near the top of the heap again.
This past season they had all of their rivalry games at home, so you've missed that, but there should be good ones. If you are willing to go on the road, the rivalry game against Michigan State is nearby and should be good.
http://www.fbschedules.com/ncaa-16/2016-michigan-wolverines-football-schedule.php
If you want to go to a home game, Wisconsin and Penn State are usually decent teams. Indiana is not that good, but they play very high-scoring, entertaining games, so that might be a fun one to go to.
Also, it's the University of Michigan, UM, not MU. Not super important, but if you got the acronym wrong you might end up with the wrong school.
>>64781540
Most of these are also small private schools. It's not a great revenue generator when your student body is like 8000 people to focus on football unless you're ND. However if you are a massive land grant university like Ohio State, then it makes sense to nurture it as a revenue stream. It's foolish to say focusing on sports is detrimental to the university when many have done it without costing the university, and indeed it has helped many other universities. It's more a matter of the size of your university that determines whether focusing energy on football makes sense or not
>>64781731
>fag bong triggered by jets
>>64781667
See >>64781540
The fags who go to those shit NCAA schools have shit-tier useless degrees. OH! I have a MBA from Ohio State! Guess you get to push TPS reports all day then lol.
Meanwhile, Su Cheng has an engineering degree and will go off to contribute. It's ok tho, Ohio State made 100k off your dumbass using adjunct 'slave' faculty.
>>64781845
you're too transparent at this point lad
>>64781758
>#75 college
Christ, there's literally 50 states.
>>64782046
What 'top-tier' school did you go to, then?>>64781771
>>64781731
why is he covering his ears? is he in panic because all that noise is not in arabic ?
>>64782191
its bounced around from the 20-30 range nationally. i don't see how that's relevant though.
>>64782259
Because he's freaking out theres no gay boys for him there
>>64780650
>robs money from legitimate academic improvement
having a good college football program does the opposite
>>64780833
>Roll tide, I guess.
I love how you included this as insult but Alabama's success has helped in a raise in the academic standards due to a rise in better applicants.
>>64780650
>reading comprehension
I don't watch college football and think the NCAA is a antiquated system that profits from free labor. I answered the britbongs question in relevance to scale, demographic and population density.
I don't blame you for being uneducated and missing out on the college experience but am sure your drunken dad can get ya a janitor job somewhere in Boston.
>>64782263
because he wants to see how the community college he went to stacks up against it
>>64776651
It's because football was invented at universities. People were watching college football 40 years before the NFL even existed. There's a lot more tradition and prestige involved with it too. Players aren't c0nstantly being traded around to other teams, the teams aren't being forced to move to other states when taxpayers don't want to shell out millions for new stadiums etc. The NFL obviously has the most highly skilled players, but as someone who's grown up watching both, it just feels like college football games matter more.
>>64781080
Any problems with the US education system have fuck all to do with college sports. It has a lot more to do with most people deciding to major in something useless. Christ you're an absolute idiot.
>>64781731
>americans think they're special because they make a fuss about college football
>yuros have ultra groups making a show on women's waterpolo and 5th-tier league football
>>64783455
you're letting the memes get to you m8, you've inserted a whole narrative that's not there.
