By Staff
EAST LANSING – Sitting high above the floor of Spartan stadium on the campus of Michigan State University Saturday afternoon, I had a pretty good view of the surrounding area.
The leaves on the trees were already changing and there was a crispness in the air.
Along the banks of the Red Cedar River, it is cold and gray, much like the day Grantland Rice wrote about the infamous Four Horseman of Notre Dame.
Is there a better way to spend a Saturday afternoon than at a college football game?
Prior to the game, a steady mist coated the streets turning them shiny and giving them the ability to reflect the colors of trees and the buildings that have grown up around the stadium.
There is a certain pageantry to a Saturday afternoon in college towns around the country. There is an emotion you cannot find anywhere else in the world.
From the sounds of the band playing the school fight song to the constant cheers of the fans in the stands, nothing gives me more chills than a day on campus.
It really doesn't matter whether or not the game is close, although it enhances the experience. It doesn't matter, at least to me, if the two teams slugging it out on the field below are good or not.
The thrill I get is walking across campus, taking in all of the sights, sounds and smells.
I stroll past hundreds of fans, some painted up with their favorite school's colors. I pass by hundreds of tailgaters getting fired up for the game. I smell tons of food cooking on the grill.
I look at the faces of those fans and see pure joy.
Yes, Saturday afternoon on campus is a fantasyland. It's a place you go to escape the every day grind.
College football provides a release for thousands of fans each weekend.
Campuses turn into huge gathering places for friends and foes. It brings together people of all ages. Race, religion or political affiliation is put aside for a few hours.
Only one thing matters on game day and that is the game itself.
Everyone wants to see his or her team win. But in the end, some days it just doesn't matter.
What matters most is that you were a part of it all.
As if the game itself wasn't enough, there are the halftime festivities.
I love watching and listening to the bands perform. I can tell you from my experiences, seeing the USC marching band, Michigan's, Michigan State's or Notre Dames, is worth the price of admission.
Watching the Ohio State tuba player dot the "I" of script Ohio is something I will never forget.
I would encourage anyone who has never been to a college football game to do so.
Pick up a ticket and head on out to the campus of your choice. You don't have to come to a Big Ten Conference football game or head down to South Bend to see the Fighting Irish play. You can take the short trip over to Kalamazoo and check out the Western Michigan Broncos. You can head up to Grand Rapids and watch Grand Valley State play a game.
Just go. Pack up you car, van or track and take the family to a game.
You won't regret it.