I used to love the NFL the same way I love pro basketball now. But for the last five or more years, I hate pro football, and I like college football a lot more. Basketball I prefer pro, but I do love the NCAA tourney.
Because most students can get tickets for free or cheaply with a sports package and would cheer like insane. There are still quite a bit of ppl that go to pro games that do it just because it' a nice thing to do. The end result is, College is more full of diehards while Pro have a lot of your well to do fans looking for something to do.
It's tough to describe. But here's one example of the difference. The school you went to will always be a part of you, you'll always be an alum, there will always be a connection there. If you're an Ohio State alum, your rival has always been, and will always be, Michigan. If you're a UT alum, you go to UT-A&M and you're a part of the tradition that's been going on for 100 years. In the pros, it's alot more nebulous. Rivalries are created (Pistons - Pacers) one year and diminish shortly thereafter (is Pistons - Bulls still a heated rivalry? Lakers-Celtics?) when one team isn't good anymore. You may grow up a Giants fan and then move to Chicago and root for the Bears instead, or you could grow up an Oilers fan until the team owner decides there's more money in Tennessee.
Right on. Tradition is a huge part of college sports. The fight songs, marching bands, the chants, mascots, the tailgating is all tied in to the main event. In the South, college football is a religion.
Football, definitely college. Just more exciting games, IMO. Basketball, definitely pro. I can watch college football and pro basketball regardless of who is playing. I can't say the same for college basketball and pro football.
Football - college. More interesting; team identity and loyalty and all that. The problem is that, at least for many colleges, it's getting harder to distinguish it from pro... Basketball - pro. Maybe because of the Rockets. College - there are too many teams and it's not interesting when the team isn't yours. Baseball - college, and only a select few at that. The game in general is not that interesting to me, though there are a few schools with unique atmospheres and traditions that are easy to root for.
Ah nebulous. That great word. Back to center, the college sports phenomenon in America amazes me because I believe it unique to America alone (in its passion, history and finance). I am a pro guy though but I enjoy every good college basketball and football game. My college basketball team is UK (Kentucky wilds cats). Fell in love with Rcik Pitino's style early and have alwasy loved them since the 1990s. As for colloege football, my team is OU. I fell in love with because I have man crush on Coach Stoops. I do not know much about OU football history though and I only started following college football only 5 years ago.
