I want you all to think back to when you were 8-years-old.

It is Christmas Morning at 5 a.m. and you are the one awake downstairs shaking all the presents to see what you can find out and constantly pestering the rest of your family to wake up because it’s so exciting.

That is how I felt, like a kid on Christmas, when I got home from work late last fall to find out that not only was Florida losing late in the third quarter to unranked Auburn, but also that USC was in a dogfight with Ty Willingham's Huskies and the rest of the top 10 had already been turned upside down earlier in the day.

That's when it hit me. I am in the minority amongst my friends when it comes to liking college football more than pro football, so I will do my best to explain myself

Reason No. 1—The games are more fun

Has anyone ever heard the Patriots marching band strike up the fight song after a touchdown?

Has anyone ever seen 100,000 people in Dallas all jumping up and down like at Camp Randall before a Wisconsin football game?

The point is that professional football is a business and a career, and like any other job, the seriousness increases exponentially when you are working or playing to make a living and not because you want to live it up in college.

When Vince Young beat the Saints last Monday in resounding fashion, he most likely went back to his house or hotel to either sleep and prepare for a film session tomorrow or rest from getting his ass kicked all over the field so he can practice on Tuesday.

When South Florida beat West Virginia, I almost guarantee Matt Grothe did not go back to campus and sleep. My guess is he went out to celebrate.

The pressure is the same, the intensity is the same, and the necessity for winning is the same at both levels and that's why some college football players will complain that college football is a full-time job for them.

I bet it is, but they also haven't actually played the game as a job so they don't really know.

Reason 2—Upsets

Last fall should have served as a wake up call to people living in a dream world where the NFL is more exciting than college football.

Upsets happen in the NFL also, they just aren't as resounding as the ones in college football.

When Rob Stone interviewed Ben Moffit, how many drunken South Florida stands were standing behind him screaming at the top of their lungs and rubbing his bald head after they beat West Virginia?

There is really only one way to accurately describe and convince people that college upsets are better.

Next year Ohio State is getting beat by Purdue by seven with two minutes to go and you don't care about either team. Evaluate how excited you are to watch the next two minutes unfold.

Then the next day when the Raiders are winning by seven with two minutes to go against the Patriots and you are from Cleveland and couldn't care less who wins, tell me how excited you are.

You will clearly learn that potential upsets in college get the adrenaline pumping far more than any NFL upset.

Reason 3—Mistakes

Now you must be ready to kick my ass. Mistakes in college football make the game better?

You must be smoking some of that stuff that Ricky Williams got on his visit to the jungles of India.

But hear me out before I am stoned to death (no pun intended).

People always argue that the pro game is better because the level of talent is higher and the quality of play is better, i.e. less sloppy mistakes, less penalties, more amazing displays of athletic ability and prowess.

Au Contraire my dear Watson's because this is exactly why the pro game is worse than the college game.

For example, I show the jury exhibit A. The super bowl game between the Patriots and the Panthers, the Patriots drive down the field and end up at around the 28 yard line, but for the sake of the argument let's say the drive ends at around the 32. That means that Adam Vinateri is lining up to win the Super Bowl with a 45 yard kick.

Now I understand that this is real human drama, but being realistic is there any possibility that Vinateri misses that kick?

My answer is no. He is a professional kicker and one of the best in the world in a neutral site with only a half-hostile crowd...and it's on turf.

Now think about last year when Auburn kicker Wes Byrum is lining up for a 43 yard field goal as a red-shirt freshman, in the Swamp, one of the more hostile environments in college football.

He is young and inexperienced and not yet equipped with the nerves and focus that it takes to make that kick 10 times out of 10.

Then he not only has to make it once, but because of a timeout by Urban Meyer, he has to make it twice. That is real drama. There is no guarantee that Byrum will make this kick; I mean, he has missed already from shorter distances on the season. Now what would you rather watch?

Missed tackles and bad decisions by quarterbacks and dropped passes that should have been caught are all bad football plays, but great for adding intrigue, excitement, and of course, drama, to a football game.

How many times are punts blocked in the pros? How many times are they blocked in college?

Now, after realizing "Gee whiz Mike that is very insightful, the professionals almost never block punts," think about how exciting and monumental and important a blocked punt can be to not only the scoreboard, but also to the momentum and energy. Now tell me you don't want more.

Reason 4—Pressure, Pressure, Pressure

I pride myself on finding new angles at which to explore topics, such as why college football is better, and because of this I am very ashamed to write this fourth reason because it is of course one of the most integral reasons why college football is better, and therefore is more played out than Brett Favre.

The reasoning that has been beaten like a dead horse is that not every game in the NFL is so directly linked to your ability to succeed in the post season.

It's true that more teams from college play in "the post season," but there are also 119 teams and I am not so sure if Miami really enjoyed playing in the MPC Computer's Bowl two years ago while watching Wake Forest play Louisville in their home stadium in a BCS game.

In college football, essentially one loss in a game you weren't supposed to lose and your dreams of a national title are dashed.

For example, Oklahoma, before they beat Texas, they had an outside chance at the National title, but they didn't play good teams the rest of the way and their loss is to Colorado, who is now at .500.

That's like settling for a good looking girl because her face is really cute when there is a girl with a really cute face and a great personality who didn't get beat by Colorado who wants to go out with you.

This reasoning makes every game equally as important, where as three straight losses in the NFL doesn't mean a damn thing if you won the first ten games.

The college kids put more emotion and heart on the line week in and week out and play every down and game like it is the most important because technically, it is.

The last three weeks of the season are bad in the NFL. Starters sit because their coaches don't want them to get hurt, which makes sense, but isn't fun.

The possibility of pulling a Doc Rivers and making sure that every single player who could help your team win is sitting because you want a better draft pick is not only feasible, it's likely.

Again, excitement and nerves run rampant in college where as in the pros it's just business.

Reason 5—Rivalries, Traditions, and Characters

I start this reason with a little bit of one-on-one, I want you to choose which rivalry you think is not only better in terms of quality of games and deeply-rooted hatred, but also for pageantry and traditions.

Ready?

Ohio St. vs. Michigan or Green Bay vs. Minnesota?
Army vs. Navy or Philadelphia vs. New York?
Miami vs. Florida State or Indianapolis vs. New England?
Oregon vs. Cal or Denver vs. Oakland?

With the exception of the third choice I offered, I think it is very clear that every single college rivalry is better than the professional rivalry I offered as a foil.

I mean for god sakes, John Cooper got fired from Ohio State despite almost a .750 winning percentage because he was 2-10 versus Michigan.

Likewise, people put Lloyd Carr on the hot seat because he was 1-6 versus Jim Tressel, Cooper's successor.

They are just better; I don't remember the last time a professional football mascot got in a fight with another mascot like the numerous occasions in college football.

Emotions run higher in college football. For chrissakes Woody Hayes tackled a Clemson player for intercepting a pass, the closest professional thing I can think of that compares is when Randall Simon mugged the Sausage at Miller Park.

Emotions make rivalries; they spawn hatred for other teams when the players are probably going to be co-employees in the professional league.

There you have it, the five reasons why college football is better. Yes, it's corrupt and players don't have to go to class and most are of questionable moral integrity and their coaches are of even more questionable moral integrity. But put the blinders on and watch the game.