Why Do We Even Like College Football?

A picture: they say it’s worth a thousand words. Cliché? Perhaps. I tend to subscribe to the idea that clichés are clichés for a reason, though. They’re undeniably true.

So a thousand words, huh? If you paid even a speck of attention to college football on Saturday, you probably only have a few for this beauty pictured above.

“Lol, fuck Penn State.”

“Penn State were frauds.”

“Row the boat!”

“Why is she wearing shoes on the couch?”

Trust me, I heard it all. Well-deserved, too. Being the big person I am, I can admit that. This was the first loss I’ve experienced with a substantial twitter following, and I knew the attack was always lurking around the corner. Not only do I appear to have a sizable number of Minnesotan followers, but everyone hates Penn State, so the first loss was destined to be a bludgeoning thrown my way, regardless of opponent. I get it. All future losses are certain to be as well. It’s part of the deal you make when you sell yourself to the devil that is the online sports world. If you’re going to dish it, I hope you’re ready to take it right back at hyper-speed.

(What I don’t get is that Penn State was “still overrated” after each of the eight straight wins, but now that Minnesota has beaten us, Minnesota has “played someone,” and is therefore “good.” I do think Minnesota is good, but this logic throws me for a bit of a loop. Basically, what I’ve gathered is that no matter what, Penn State can’t win. Everyone hates us. Which I already knew. So whatever. I digress. We lost. Back to my hard-hitting conversation about pictures.)

When you look at that picture, as I said, you likely don’t think it needs a thousand words to explain. On the surface, it definitely doesn’t.

The loss was brutal, I was upset, and I could feel tears starting to emerge. My phone was in my hand, scrolling through the comments telling me to go fuck myself and the school that means more than anything to me. I pulled my hat down to hide my face from my family and just breathe for a few minutes.

There, that’s sixty words to sum it up. But the weight of that moment and college football run so much deeper than just sixty words and a sad face. A few hours later, after watching an instant classic unfold between LSU and Alabama, I had regrouped, and the day’s events started to get me thinking. My morning sucked, but for Minnesota fans, it was probably one of the best days of their lives. Which I say in the least mocking way possible, for once. It should be, and I hope it was. That’s an incredible story, and gives you so much perspective from the losing side.

I don’t care where your allegiances lie. They beat my team, but if you can’t appreciate that scene, you have a giant dump in your pants. That’s awesome. That’s college football.

Sitting there in the same spot on that couch, I watched LSU defeat Bama for the first time in eight years, thinking about the amazing stories of people like Coach O and Joe Burrow. Dog or no dog in the fight, that’s what it’s all about. Before I knew it, I was crying for the third time that day. Happy tears, on this occasion.

Earlier that afternoon, tears fell for the second time when I stumbled across this photo of Penn State’s first-year starting quarterback, Sean Clifford, at his post-game press conference:

There’s no sugarcoating it — the kid had an awful game. Not every play gone awry was his fault, but when you’re the quarterback, that’s how it typically gets written. Quarterback at a big-time program or not, at the end of the day, he’s a 21-year-old kid. As a fan, I was upset, and I threw myself on the floor after each one of his mistakes, but damn — look at his face. I’m crying again looking at it. Fans were up in arms about all sorts of decisions and blunders that day, but he’s one of the few who was required to sit there and answer for the rest of his teammates and coaches.

When our teams lose, we feel like shit. We cuss out players, coaches, and opposing fans, as if we had anything to do with the game’s outcome. If you stop to think about how these kids feel, you’re still heartbroken, but for a different reason. You don’t feel sorry for yourself anymore, and all you hope is that these players can bounce back and have a better day tomorrow. Not for your sake, but for their own.

So why do we love college football so much? The upset wins, the rivalry games, the Cinderella stories, and the championship runs are the easy answers. Of course we’re having fun when our teams are prospering. I’ve attended five Penn State victories this year, and they were a blast. Who doesn’t have a joyous time getting liquored up, consuming their weight in tailgate food, and cheering as their team lines up in victory formation?

Of course, it’s cliché to say yet again, but the bad times make the good ones better. You can’t have one without the other. As many on twitter like to remind me, Penn State was nearly served the death penalty seven years ago. As many may have read in the most important blog I’ve ever penned, I’ve gone through my own personal problems that later led to the best year of my life at PSU. Who knows how much I would’ve appreciated that one graduate year in Happy Valley without the painful undergraduate ones I endured in South Carolina?

Why are college football, and all college sports, so special to us? We hear it a lot, another cliché — “This is why college football is so much better than the NFL.” So what’s your “this?”

Growing up, my first sports obsession was with the NFL. I lived, breathed, and died for the Chargers, and knew everything there was to know about the league. Over the years, however, I’ve slowly felt more and more disconnected from it. For awhile I couldn’t quite get a grasp on the reason. But as my passion for college football grew, I began to understand it — most notably after my year at Penn State. The way I explain it today is usually along the lines of the following:

“The kids battling on that field every Saturday love the school they’re representing just as much as I do. They feel the exact same way about that small town in central Pennsylvania that I do. That school changed my life, and I’ll never be the same because of it. These young men are working their asses off day in and day out, risking injury and public ridicule, trying to create something special, so that their fellow students and alumni can proudly walk around and brag about why their school is better than everyone else’s. NFL players change teams every year. Penn State is a family, and that means forever.”

There are few other things that hit you in the gut quite the same way. The emotions that college sports bring out of us are unparalleled, whether they are the good or the bad… the highs or the lows. One terrible week’s despair tried its best to wipe out the pure jubilation experienced during eight great ones. I won’t let it. After removing myself from the heat of the moment, I wasn’t “mad” at those kids or their adult coaches. Obviously, we’re allowed to be upset with a loss. I’m writing this to say that sometimes, we must take a step back for a minute or two and get a glimpse of the bigger picture.

No, I’m not cancelling my trip to Ohio State in a psychotic rage of anger, as I’m sure will be tempting to some. I want to go support the team, because that’s what it means to be a college football fan, or a member of a family. When my sister was two days old, I pushed her off the couch. As teenagers, she once whipped a baguette at my face from close range. But I’d still kill anyone else who tried to hurt her. Family means you’re in it for the long haul, giving unconditional love, whether you like it or not. If you’re not sticking around through the tough stretches, what’s the point of being a fan?

Will the Ohio State game be a blowout? I’m still not going to say yes, because I’ll keep believing no matter what, and always give the team a chance to prove itself. Is it a delusional line of thought? Maybe, but not really. That’s why you play the game.

Have I gone over 1,000 words? Yes. Did I write this to make myself feel better about a loss? Subconsciously, it’s possible. Regardless, I could go on for days, but I’ll stop here. Whether you yell “Geaux Tiguhs” or “Rock Chalk” on Saturdays, I hope we can all agree that college football is so much more than just a game. The passion, the journey, and the lessons extend far, far beyond that, and I’m going to treat it as such.