I'm a sports fan and have been for a very long time. And yet for many years I haven't been able to match others' enthusiasm for college football. I have co-workers who keep up on not only what is happening with their favorite college teams but teams across the country. I'm the reverse. Not only do I have no idea what is going on with teams across the country but also I have no idea on how "my teams" are doing. It would be great if I did know, because it can be a useful conversation piece in business or social settings, but I just don't have the time or interest level.
I get it. College fans are passionate about their teams and that can add some spice that you don't get at an NFL game. And I don't begrudge Michigan fans for packing the big house or Auburn-Alabama their rivalry or Notre Dame their tradition. There's just nothing out there in the college football landscape that has a hold on me.
As a kid, I was primarily interested in college football because...more sports! Even the Poulan Weed Eater Independence Bowl brought to you by Raycom Sports seemed intriguing. New Year's Day was truly a holiday with games that seemed important stacked from morning to night. Of all the national powerhouses, the U of Miami Hurricanes were probably my favorite.
My apex of college fandom was probably 1989 to 1991, when my home state Colorado Buffaloes were contending for national championships and Heisman-winner Ty Detmer was quarterbacking the BYU Cougars. It seemed like a Christmas tradition to spend an evening watching the Cougars play in the SeaWorld Holiday Bowl. And the main event was New Year's night when CU took on Notre Dame in the Orange Bowl. I loved CU running the wishbone and BYU throwing the ball all over the field. And Bill McCartney and LaVell Edwards. And both were underdogs situated in the Rocky Mountain West.
I maintained a fairly healthy interest throughout the rest of the 1990s. I attended BYU from 1999 to 2001, which coincided with their transition to the new Mountain West conference. During my last year at BYU, they made a run at an undefeated season, starting 12-0 before getting hammered out in Hawaii and in their bowl game...which was similar to their 1990 campaign. It was kind of fun, hearing the roar of the crowd in our apartment on a Saturday fall evening and the excited anticipation for each game around campus.
In later years, their primary rival got an offer to jump to the Pac-10 and left them behind, so BYU ditched the Mountain West to be an Independent. Nowadays they spend their time playing Central Massachusetts Tech and Nevada State before losing the Holy War and playing in some low-level bowl game, and it just seems kind of pointless. What's the reason for me to care about BYU football, especially when they ditched all the former WAC and Mountain West rivals (Wyoming, CSU, Air Force) that are within two hours of my house? I'm not going to go see them play anywhere else.
CU also got all pretentious and went to the Pac-10 because they were too awesome for us poor rubes here in flyover country. Honestly, I hate CU now and delight whenever their football program is a disaster. I have no affiliation with them other than I was once a kid who thought it was cool that a team from his home state rose to national prominence. I can't quite reconcile the two.
I never much cared about CSU, and so I'm not going to start liking them now. So what other teams are out there for me to care about? I guess it could be NC State since I went to graduate school there, but it's much too far away for me to get caught up in very much.
And so that's my little rant about college football. I wish I cared. But I don't.
