College Football: 7 Teams That Are More Popular Than Their NFL Counterparts
Regardless of the fact that the NFL is arguably the best of the professional sports leagues in our country (all lockouts and lock-ins aside), there are still glorious geographic pockets where college football out-draws the local NFL franchise.
The reasons for this phenomenon are varied, but the shortlist would include the geographic location of both teams, the comparative lifespan of the pro franchise versus the college program and the long-term (and short-term term perhaps to a lesser degree) success rates of the two.
In the case where a college football team actually does garner more fan support than that of their professional neighbor, at least some of the explanation has to be accredited to the difference in atmosphere between the two.
There is absolutely no comparison between the NFL game day (which is indeed exciting, but varies based on locale) and that of college football game experience, which includes such aesthetic bonuses as a wild student body, an on-campus experience, an amped up atmosphere due to a shorter schedule (and more emphasis on needing to win every game), the band, the pageantry, the undying passion and the nature of an "amateur" (a word I use loosely) sport.
The following slideshow attempts to identify seven regions of our great nation where the college football team is more popular than their NFL counterpart.
As a side note, it is also intriguing to address the question of what exactly, in this specific case, is "popular?" Is it quantified by attendance, merchandise sales or overall enthusiasm?
It would be my assertion that a delicate balance of the three factors (plus a lot of other ones) is more than likely the correct answer, and in the end, this meshing produces an atmosphere that is truly extraordinary.
It doesn’t take a scientific formula to figure out where it is; you know it when you see it.
Tennessee Volunteers/Tennessee Titans
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Owner Bud Adams moved the Houston Oilers to Nashville in 1997, a move that delighted the fine people of the Volunteer State, but crushed a great football people in Houston.
Adams yanking the franchise away from the Space City has nothing to do with this topic, but as a native Houstonian, I would be remiss and wholly irresponsible if I didn’t bring up the fact that we’re still not over it.
Back to the issue at hand—even though the Titans have been embraced by the people of Tennessee, you simply can’t compare the passion, enthusiasm and obsession Tennesseans have for their Volunteers football team.
Neyland holds 102,500 and is filled to the brim, while Adams’ holy grail of pro football, LP Field (which was apparently worth moving the team from the bosom of its birth—not that I’m a hater or anything) holds 69,000.
I think it’s safe to say that even if the Titans won the whole enchilada, Tennessee fans would certainly push away from the table satisfied and happy. But they’d still sit back and dream of their Vols winning the SEC, then holding the crystal football aloft while Lane Kiffin looks on, minus the smirk.
Volunteer football is just too entrenched in Tennessee for anything to seriously challenge its natural place at the top.
Arizona Wildcats and Arizona State Sun Devils/Arizona Cardinals
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The state of Arizona presents a more difficult argument on the topic of who is more popular than whom. (Is this junior high school or what?)
Though it might be a stretch to define Wildcat or Sun Devil fans as among the most feverous in the nation, this is still major, big-time college football, and these are real, bona-fide fans.
Combine that with the fact that the NFL Arizona Cardinals didn’t move to the Grand Canyon state until 1988 (and played in the Sun Devils’ Stadium, which they struggled to fill to the capacity ASU did), and you certainly get the sense that college is the preferred gridiron choice in Arizona.
Now, there certainly are some big Cardinals fans out there, and you definitely saw them show their colors in 2008 when Arizona reached the Super Bowl by beating the Eagles in the NFC Championship, but when you think of the state of Arizona and football in the same sentence, it’s a toss-up to who you would think of first.
History and the ultimate hopes of a football people lie on the college gridirons of Arizona.
Michigan Wolverines/Detroit Lions
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Detroit is an old guard NFL city that has been home to the Lions (who haven’t always sucked) for 77 years, and I know some guys who live and die with Detroit football (seriously).
But how do you compete with Michigan football? 133 years of history, 42 Big Ten titles, 11 National Championships and the biggest crowds in all of college football.
So what if the Detroit Lions won the Super Bowl?
You know those people would go nuts, but like the folks in Tennessee, they would smile, digest it all and then hope like hell the Wolverines could trounce the Buckeyes next season and win it all…
It might get Wayne Fonts all choked up (again), but if you woke up a Michigan man in the middle of the night and said, "Go Blue" or "Go Lions," the dude would say "Blue" every time (unless of course he was a Spartan fan, then he’d jump on you and kick you around a bit).
Yes, the Lions against the Vikings, the Packers and the Bears is pretty good stuff, but Michigan versus Ohio State is just 1,000 times better (at least).
Ohio State Buckeyes/Cincinnati Bengals and Cleveland Browns
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The Buckeyes are the only team on the list who can legitimately claim to trump the two NFL franchises in their state in terms of popularity; and these are pro teams with plenty of fan support.
In a gridiron version of the love triangle, the Cincinnati Bengals were founded (and subsequently coached) in 1968 by the Cleveland Browns’ namesake and long-time coach Paul Brown, who was also the head coach at Ohio State from 1941-1943 (18-8-1, including the 1942 National Championship).
The Bengals are probably the easier of the two targets (based on franchise age), but both fall prey to the college football passions of a region that goes beyond crazy for their Buckeyes.
Yes, from top to bottom at every level, it’s a football state. And yes, people "Who Dey" their Bengals and "Dawg Pound" the Browns, but these people's zeal for Ohio State football borders on psychotic.
Every Saturday these enthusiasts rush out the door clad in nut necklaces, jerseys, hats, beads, skorts and any other team-themed attire they can get their hands on. And regardless of where they went to school in Ohio (Cincinnati, Ohio University, Miami University, Bowling Green, Akron or Toledo) they root for the Buckeyes.
If you are a transplant, they assure, "You’ll be Buckeye before you know it," as if the charms of the dancing, striped nut will cause you to lose your head to the point that you would take tuba lessons and tryout to dot the "i" at the next home game.
Despite how you may feel about Ohio State personally, they have among the most dedicated and enthusiastic fanbases in the nation. Nothing—not the NFL, the MLB, the NBA or the NHL—can compete well enough to knock the Buckeyes from the No. 1 spot in the hearts of Ohioans.
Georgia Bulldogs/Atlanta Falcons
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In a race that looks closer than it actually is, Bulldogs fans will root for their Falcons, especially when they're playing well, but it’s not near the life and death situation that Georgia football represents.
The Atlanta Falcons first took the field in 1966, while the Bulldogs have been suiting up for the greatest of all team sports since 1891.
If that isn’t enough, the NFL team from Georgia has four divisional titles, one NFC Championship and an overall record of 298-402-6, while their collegiate counterparts have accumulated 15 assorted conference crowns, two national titles and a record of 738-396-54 in 119 seasons.
I almost included Georgia Tech in this analysis, but even though the Ramblin’ Wreck has a zealous fanbase, it’s hard to compete with the boys between the hedges.
Florida Gators/Jacksonville Jaguars
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Gainesville and Jacksonville are only 71 miles apart, and if you asked somebody who lived in a 100-mile radius whether they wanted to watch the Gators or Jags play, I would bet that at least seven in 10 would opt for a trip to Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.
Indeed, how can the young Jaguars franchise possibly compete with a team so entrenched in the hearts of its loyal followers?
It’s a 15-year-old, teenage expansion team struggling for love and affection with a team that’s successfully been hitting the gridiron for more than 100 years.
Yet again, this is a situation where even the highest NFL success would only very temporarily take the college football fan's eye off the ball (which everyone is hoping is being thrown toward the BCS).
It doesn’t help that the Gators play the Georgia Bulldogs every year in Jacksonville for what’s lovingly referred to as "The World’s Largest Cocktail Party," a fact that has to take even more attention away from a NFL team in a state with a bunch of football distractions.
North Carolina Tar Heels and South Carolina Gamecocks/Carolina Panthers
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The Carolina Panthers play in Charlotte, N.C. in a stadium that’s located less than 30 miles from the South Carolina border.
Regardless of North Carolina being a basketball state and South Carolina not technically having a pro team, who among the football enthusiasts in either state wouldn’t rather watch their college football team win big than watch the Panthers do well?
Now I’ll admit this one might be more of a stretch than some of the others on the list, but Carolina is a young franchise. Even with the increased excitement of Cam Newton rolling into town (if this fall ever gets underway in the NFL), you have to figure that Gamecocks, Tar Heels and really, Clemson Tigers fans (who should be a part of the conversation as well) may look at their NFL representative as nothing more than a Sunday diversion.
The Panthers just aren’t entrenched to the point that other franchises are (i.e. Pittsburgh, Dallas, Denver), and it may be a long, long time (if ever) before they grow roots that large and strong.
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