For twelve weeks every fall the dawn of a Saturday is marked by rampant collegiate school spirit. Frenzied lifetime fans re-unite with the painted faces of the student body. A palatable tension heightens at pregame rituals with wafts of barbecue and distant echoes of the marching band. To intimidate their rivals, tribes assemble creating dizzying seas of school colors and swelling chants in unison to the band’s cadence. Driven to overcome the highest ranked, teams storm the field in tradition escorted by the pageantry of highflying school banners triumphantly carried by the school’s cheerleaders; while mascots embolden their fans to roar over their school’s fight song. With each play, comes a heart pounding battle composed of high-risk play calls, player self-sacrifice, and billowing fan roars over marching band acts. Inevitably, each rivalry meeting comes down to the final tics of the clock. With clenched hands and shallow breaths, embraced fans ready themselves to rush the field of the victorious while the defeated are left to languish.

All done for the hopes of a season-long perfect journey.

This is College Football.