College Football Teams As Rock Bands

In the trend of humor articles about comparing college football teams to other groups or events, I began thinking of what some college football teams' counterparts in the rock 'n' roll world would be.

Although I used to work at many radio stations, my car does not even have a radio today, I do not have cable television (which will change when football season gets a little closer). With that caveat of not really listening to music anymore, here we go:

Vanderbilt:The Gorillaz

Smart. Really smart. Vanderbilt is the "nerd" school of the SEC, and as such an institution they do not actually have an athletic department. The Gorillaz, similarly, do not actually exist. They are a virtual band.

Deep down, you root for them. You admire their tenacity and the brains that went behind some of the decisions to bring them to where they are. Also, you cannot name a single player/fake band member of either team.

BYU: Twisted Sister

Why, you may ask, is a college football team that has consistently been among the better non-BCS teams being grouped with a former glam rock band? The answer is actually quite simple.

Both BYU and Twisted Sister had one glorious year: 1984. BYU won the national championship and Twisted Sister had their only two hits: "We're Not Gonna Take It!" and "I Wanna Rock".

Southern Methodist:Van Halen

Which is the true Van Halen: David Lee Roth or Sammy Hagar? (I believe a similar question was asked in the movie "Airheads"...not to digress, but what is up with Brendan Fraser always selecting movie roles as a backwards idiot?)

Both SMU and Van Halen had their heyday in the early 80's. SMU was given the death penalty. Van Halen was given Sammy Hagar. Both have recently taken steps to come back, one with June Jones and the other with David Lee Roth.

Georgia Tech: Tilly and the Wall

Who?I am going to admit a little bias here, as I went to high school with a couple members of this band. But why is Georgia Tech listed as Tilly and the Wall? Because they both run one heckuva unconventional offense! Georgia Tech is going to be running the triple option for the foreseeable future.

Tilly and the Wall, instead of a drummer, has a tap dancer! (If you haven't heard it, you should YouTube it.) As strange as both may sound, they both have proven to bring success in, albeit, small doses. And that is the problem; neither one is going to get huge, but it doesn't mean you can't admire their drive.

Alabama: Led Zeppelin

I was really tempted here to put down Alabama (the band) as the counterpart, but they don't really do much of anything anymore (and yes, you could make a joke and say the same of the football team). I decided not to be that mean and I went with Led Zeppelin. Ok...so that may be meaner. Bear with me.

Both Alabama and Led Zeppelin were the best at what they did for a while there, but neither has done much of anything since 1979. (I know Alabama won a national championship in 1992, but man there were some hellacious sanctions in the years following.)

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