betarhoalphadeltaI try to attend one college football game each year. In 2023 I went to a game with a buddy I went to law school with, his daughter who was in a graduate program in Pittsburgh, my wife, and me, went to FSU @ Pitt. I understand some of what you speak to in this thread. I am so distant from FSU geographically and media-wise, I have difficulty keeping up with the players. I can understand the distance you have with Purdue football.
In November 2024, a different law school buddy with a thin Iowa connection (his mother grew up in Iowa until age 7, and she received a masters degree in the 1940s from State University of Iowa), and I went to the Wisconsin game, and we tailgated with several others. We had such a great time. It cemented my bond back to Iowa football, as you can imagine, because it was a social thing.
Unlike your late connection to Purdue football, my dad started taking me to Iowa games when i was about 8 or 9. You can imagine how college football became ingrained in my mindset.
I have difficulties with the changes, especially the transfer portal, and I question whether NIL will cut out teams like Iowa and Purdue from title hopes. That said, Arizona State did well this season, as did Indiana. Of course, I have to say that while the Big 12 is a P-4 conference, it has no helmet schools, and someone has to rise to the top. Indiana is the only real outlier in the playoffs. Not all the evidence is in, so we'll see.
