are folks in the SW just not that into college football? i mean, the ones that are really are, but... the general populace?
It's the West as a whole - Bay area, state of Washington, etc - but, short answer, yes.
And the list of reasons can go on and on:
- For one, most of the Pac 12 markets are in large cities where pro-sports vastly overshadow the college game. In PHX all of the coverage goes toward the Cardinals. Turn on the radio in Seattle and the Huskies, even in strong years, are fighting with the Mariners for a single radio segment on a morning show that's 95% Seahawks coverage. In the Bay area it's all 49ers, SF Giants, and Raiders talk. Think out east where BC and the University of Maryland receive almost no coverage in their large local markets.
- I also think the college football attention in the West is more nationally focused which thins out some of the regional coverage. This is due to the highly transient nature of the West. In my Dad's Tucson neighborhood I can't tell you how many license plates were from Wisconsin, Minnesota, Michigan, Iowa, etc. And they all have Big Ten network and attend local Big Ten alumni groups to watch their games. It's a lot easier to find a large Iowa football watch party in Phoenix whereas it's hard to imagine much of a UCLA viewing in Detroit. FWIW, the PHX/Tucson sports bars love the Big Ten fans because they can make a killing off group brunch specials during the earlier Sat morning hours where business is typically nill.
- To a lesser degree I think the weather/geography of the West takes away from sports attention as a whole. While Boston locals are cramming their sports bars in January to watch the Celtics, Westerners can hit the beaches and hiking trails. They aren't by force of nature, tied to their TV sets in bitter winter.
