5 Best States to Live in for College Football Fans

One of the many wonderful things about college football is that it is truly a nationwide affair.

Indeed, east to west and north to south, if you traverse across the diverse landscape of our great nation you’ll never be far from two things: a Wal-Mart and a college football program.

And unlike the “low-price leader,” college football offerings come in all shapes and sizes, from the FBS (formerly Division I-A) to the FCS (formerly Division I-AA) all the way through D-II, D-III and NAIA ball.

Indeed, there truly is something for everyone.

The following slideshow combs through our 50 nifty United States and selects, and then power ranks for your pleasure, five states as the best in terms of living standards for college football fans.

It’s an offering that doesn’t sacrifice quality for quantity, and it’s a presentation that doesn’t leave any region wanting for relocation options, custom designed for the lover of the collegiate gridiron.

Population data used in the per capita calculations for this presentation are via the US Census, while total area figures per state were drawn from Statemaster.com.  Combined FBS team stats were derived from data provided by the fascinating college football data warehouse.

Alabama

Total Number of College Football Teams:  18

Total Number of FBS Teams:  5

CFB Teams per Capita:  .0000038

CFB Teams per Square Mile:   .00034

Combined Conference Titles (FBS Teams):  57 

Combined National Championships (FBS Teams):  19 

Overall Combined Record (FBS Teams):  2172-1249-119

Alabama is home to five FBS teams that call three different conferences home.

Auburn and Alabama play for the BCS-sanctioned SEC, Troy and newly anointed South Alabama hail from the Sun Belt and UAB represents Conference USA.

What the state of Alabama lacks in quantity versus other territories like North Carolina, it completely makes up for in quality.

To illustrate, the great state of Alabama is tied with California for the most combined national titles among its current FBS teams (regardless of the level the title was won at) of the teams on our illustrious list.

Add in the fact that Alabama is relatively smaller from a geographic standpoint (No. 30 in total area) and the reasonable spread of the teams across the region, and you’ve got a state that offers superior accessibility to go along with winning results and unbridled passion.

The other thing you’ve got to love about Alabama is that without any pro teams to compete for the love, college football is what it is all about.

Non-FBS programs based in Alabama include Alabama A&M, Alabama State, Birmingham-Southern, Concordia, Faulkner, Jacksonville State, Huntingdon, Miles, North Alabama, Samford, Stillman, Tuskegee and West Alabama.

Ohio

Total Number of College Football Teams:  41

Total Number of FBS Teams:  8

CFB Teams per Capita:  .0000035 

CFB Teams per Square Mile:  .00091  

Combined Conference Titles (FBS Teams):  112 

Combined National Championships (FBS Teams):  9

Overall Combined Record (FBS Teams):  4494-3588-334

Ohioans are spoiled for choice when it comes to college football.

Ohio is home to traditional-stalwart Ohio State from the Big Ten, up-and-coming Cincinnati from the Big East and then touts the heart of MAC with Akron, Kent State, Toledo, Bowling Green, Miami (Ohio) and Ohio University.

The smallest state in area in our top five not only is jam packed with institutional gridiron offerings, but the geographic location of Ohio makes what is already abundant even more plentiful.

Ohio is bordered by Indiana on the west (Purdue, Notre Dame and Indiana), Michigan in the north (Michigan, Michigan State and another chunk of the MAC), Pittsburgh and West Virginia on the east and then Kentucky on the south (Louisville and Kentucky).

And with 112 shared conference titles between current FBS members within Ohio’s state lines, massive quantity doesn’t sacrifice palpable quality.

Ohio’s non-FBS college football program honor roll is impressive: Ashland, Baldwin-Wallace, Bluffton, Capital, Case Western, Central State, Dayton, Defiance, Denison, Findlay, Heidelberg, Hiram, John Carroll, Kenyon, Lake Erie, Malone, Marietta, Mount St. Joseph, Mount Union, Muskingum, Notre Dame, Oberlin, Ohio Dominican, Ohio Northern, Ohio Wesleyan, Otterbein, Tiffin, Urbana, Walsh, Wilmington, Wittenberg, Wooster and Youngstown State.

Holy...Toledo!

Florida

Total Number of College Football Teams:  13

Total Number of FBS Teams:  7

CFB Teams per Capita:  .00000068 

CFB Teams per Square Mile:   .00019

Combined Conference Titles (FBS Teams):  36 

Combined National Championships (FBS Teams):  10

Overall Combined Record (FBS Teams):  2107-1389-77

What’s intriguing about the landscape of college football in the state of Florida is the fact that more than 50 percent of its programs play at the highest level, the FBS.

From there it’s notable that of the seven FBS teams in the state, four of these play at the epitome of the college game, the BCS.

Florida is home to SEC-powerhouse the University of Florida, the ACC’s Florida State and Miami (Fla.) and the Big East’s South Florida.

Relative newcomers in the big leagues are Central Florida from Conference USA and then Florida Atlantic and Florida International from the Sun Belt.

The existence of younger programs that are on the move rapidly through the ranks of college football makes sense for a state that is arguably the top producer of talent in the sport.

No matter how you slice it, you don’t have to go far to see quality college ball in the Sunshine State.

Florida’s relatively truncated list of non-FBS college football programs includes Ave Maria, Bethune-Cookman, Edward Waters, Florida A&M, Jacksonville and Webber.

California

Total Number of College Football Teams:  22

Total Number of FBS Teams:  7

CFB Teams per Capita:  .00000058

CFB Teams per Square Mile:   .00013

Combined Conference Titles (FBS Teams):  134   

Combined National Championships (FBS Teams):  19   

Overall Combined Record (FBS Teams):  4059-2863-291

When you mix top shelf college football, weather and a splash of vermouth…you get the state of California.

In terms of the FBS, California is home to four Pac-12 teams (USC, UCLA, Cal and Stanford), touts San Diego State and Fresno State from the Mountain West and then claims San Jose State from the WAC.

What might be most impressive about California’s statistical resume as a beacon of college football are the 134 combined conference championships among its FBS programs, a number that is anchored by USC’s 38 league crowns.

Any college football fan who calls Cali home is apt to come to be giddy with a local forecast that includes a flood of institutional gridiron action.

Non-FBS teams hailing from California are as follows: Azusa Pacific, California Lutheran, Cal Poly, Chapman, Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, Humboldt, La Verne, Menlo, Occidental, Pomona-Pitzer, Redlands, Sacramento State, San Diego, U.C. Davis and Whittier.

Texas

Total Number of College Football Teams:  37

Total Number of FBS Teams:  12

CFB Teams per Capita:  .0000014 

CFB Teams per Square Mile:   .00013

Combined Conference Titles (FBS Teams):  150 

Combined National Championships (FBS Teams):  10 

Overall Combined Record (FBS Teams):  5821-5043-408

The only state on our list with more than 5000 combined FBS wins, it’s probably not a huge surprise that Texas touts more college football teams than any other entrant in our “best place to live” sweepstakes.

Texas is home to a whopping 37 total programs with 12 hailing from the FBS and five earning BCS-AQ status.

The Big 12 is represented in Texas by Baylor, TCU, Texas Tech and Texas, while the SEC has moved in by scooping up Texas A&M.

Conference USA has a foothold (for now) with Houston, SMU, Rice and UTEP, and the Sun Belt is a Texas affair due to North Texas’ membership.

New to the FBS ranks for 2012 are Texas State and University of Texas at San Antonio, both which call the WAC home until next season.

Texas is flat saturated with college football and it’s a serving that is generously spread out from east to west and north to south on a well-set table.

The great thing about Texas, as well as the other states that grace our listing, is that everywhere you go you’re bound to find people that are overzealous about the game.  These enthusiasts stand ready to talk about their team, and how their beloved squad is going to kick yours squarely in the butt.

Amen.

Non-FBS programs that call the Lone Star State home are: Abilene Christian, Angelo State, Austin, East Texas, Hardin-Simmons, Howard Payne, Incarnate Word, Lamar, Mary Hardin-Baylor, McMurry, Midwestern, Prairie View, Sam Houston, Stephen F. Austin, Sul Ross, Tarleton State, Texas A&M Commerce, Texas A&M Kingsville, Texas College, Texas Lutheran, Texas Southern, Trinity, Wayland Baptist and West Texas A&M.