College Football: The hidden gem of sport 

Convincing the British audience to watch the NFL is already very difficult. I am sure this is likely because the game being called “American football” somehow feels like a personal insult, given that it shares the same name as our own European-originated “football” – from here onwards, it will be referred to as soccer. Not only does American football have completely different rules from soccer or even rugby, but the culture of the sport is vastly different. The team rivalries seem less intense; fans appear to be more interested in merchandise and individual players than in team success. The sport overall comes across as more unserious for many.

So, if I can’t convince you to watch the professional league (NFL), how could I persuade you into watching a group of 18-22-year-old young adults playing the same sport at a lower standard?

In college football (CFB) there are 136 teams (FBS), four leading conferences (SEC, BXII, B1G, ACC), each containing at least 12 teams. Frustratingly, key players change each year, and head to the NFL through the draft system. This means watching a college football season one year does not mean you can transfer that knowledge to the following year.

By littering the previous paragraph with endless abbreviations and some jargon, I have tried to prove that the barriers to entry into this sport are relatively high. You may be wondering why I would do this. It does not seem like an effective tactic to call something a “hidden gem” while simultaneously making it seem off-putting.

For a true sports lover invested in tactics, deep-rooted tradition, rivalries, watching talent grow, team redemption arcs, and unforeseen underdog stories, this game has it all

Ultimately, I am not trying to convince everyone to watch this sport because, yes, for most people, it is impossible to keep up with. But, for a true sports lover invested in tactics, deep-rooted tradition, rivalries, watching talent grow, team redemption arcs, and unforeseen underdog stories, this game has it all—and at a level not visible in any other sport. Let me try a simple analogy. Imagine a game of soccer between the University of Warwick and Coventry University at a sold-out 90,000-seater Wembley Stadium, and the only way the losing team can redeem itself is by winning the UEFA Champions League the following year. This is the high-stakes, pressure cooker that sums up CFB. A recent example is prevalent through the Ohio State Buckeyes, who lost to their main rivals, the Michigan Wolverines. After this game, Head Coach Ryan Day’s job was seriously called into question because the team’s squad was viewed as far superior. Fans insisted after the game that the only way he could keep his job would be to win the National Championship – and luckily for him, they did.

The largest stadium in the Western Hemisphere is the University of Michigan College Football Stadium

Another example I can give is through CFB’s true popularity and scale. We often think that Europe has the largest stadiums in the world, given our passion for soccer. Still, you may be surprised that the largest stadium in the Western Hemisphere is the University of Michigan College Football Stadium, “The Big House”, home to the Michigan Wolverines. Over the last 10 years, this stadium has averaged over 110,000 fans per home game with the highest attendance at over 115,000.​ For us soccer fans, passion is shown through chanting, flag displays, and long away days; for CFB, it is traditional marching bands, cheerleading, and stadiums where all 110,000 must wear something yellow. Understanding this parallel can help us get past the initial “cringe” felt when watching American sports and help us open to this new world of competition.

So, to my fellow sports fans, I urge you to take on this new challenge and enjoy being a CFB newbie. Learn the tactics, routes, and positional names, but most importantly, remember that every player on the pitch is your age. So, if they can play in loud atmospheres where it is impossible to hear your voice, you can certainly understand the value of sport’s truly hidden gem.