I am a big fan of college football. I don’t want to go to a game and endure the elements or the crowds, but I truly enjoy watching a good game on television. In fact, on many Saturday afternoons and evenings I can switch back and forth between channels and watch several games, without having to watch the commercials. I love the fans, the bands, the cheerleaders, the mascots, and especially the referees (theirs is a thankless job).

For some reason, I tend to root for the “underdog” team. I guess it’s just a part of my “I-need-to-save-the-world” attitude. My team is Texas Tech, where I graduated many years ago. It seems that we are very often the underdog team, but I still yell “GIVE ‘EM HELL RAIDERS!” Or sometimes the new admonition, “GUNS UP!”

This past Saturday was very pleasing for me, since the three teams I always want to see lose, actually lost. (Unfortunately, my team lost also) Plus, three of the four top ranked teams were upset by the underdog team. The only top ranked team to win was Florida State, they beat Wake Forest 43 – 3. REALLY!? That must have been a very rewarding victory. My question is, how can they be ranked number one, when they are playing teams like Wake Forest, Citadel, and North Carolina State?

Which brings me to another burning question. Why do these small school teams choose to play the big time teams at the beginning of the season. I know the answer, but I don’t understand the justification. The answer is money. Teams who play nationally televised games rake in millions of dollars for their school (win or lose). College football has become a billion dollar business. However, I feel sorry for the players on the losing teams that get beat by 50 to 70 points, and in some cases never score a single point in the 60 minute game. They must feel really good about all the money their school received while they were getting their butts kicked all over the field. These are not fun games to watch.

TEXAS A&M 73 –  LAMAR 3           FLORIDA 65 – Eastern Michigan 0  

I also have a problem regarding the seeming lack of school loyalty shown by some of the players. It seems that a lot of players these days are not playing for their school, but rather for a good opportunity to get drafted into the NFL, so they can continue getting their head bashed professionally. An education form a certain school is not what they are after, and if the opportunity is not there, they are more than willing to transfer to another school and play for another team. And don’t even get me started on the salaries paid to some of the coaches.

So why, you may ask, do I impatiently await the beginning of the football season every August? Because, I just love the excitement and competition. I do enjoy seeing the incredible athleticism of the players. To me, college football is much more exciting than the NFL. I am willing to overlook the problems, and when a game comes down to the last few seconds, and the team for which I am rooting pulls out a win, I’m a happy camper.

RAH, RAH, SIS BOOM BAH! Whatever that means.