My Dad wasn't.
As for me, I lived outside of my native South for 33 years and finally returned 3 years ago.
I lived in Big 8 (now Big 12), Big 10 (actually 11) Big East and Ivy League.
Been to Colorado/Nebraska, Minnesota/Wisconsin, Michigan/Ohio State, Army/Navy, Yale/Harvard (Why they call it THE GAME is beyond me) games and was not impressed.
There is nothing like SEC football.
I would probably make the best SEC commissioner ever as I like every team in the SEC.
BTW - Vandy is looking for a pushover for their Homecoming game, think they can get Ohio State?
OK, I like some more than others.
But seriously, Southern and especially SEC football is a religion.
I still have my Sugar Bowl program from Alabama/Arkansas in 1961.
Catholic church doesn't do as well in the South because nobody would make Saturday Mass.
I know a girl who's Mother (make that her Mama) made her break up with her boyfriend because he did not wear a coat and tie to the 1966 Alabama/Auburn game.
I even subscribe to newspapers Saturday and Sunday editions in the Fall so I can read about SEC football.
Newspapers in the North, Midwest, West don't cover football like Southern papers. Even the liberal rags do a great job. The local rag here has a special edition Thursday before the season that has a section each for high school, College and Pro teams.
Hell's Belles, the local high school in Lakeland has a Jumbotron scoreboard.
I went to school at The Citadel and still followed SEC football since The Cid only played possum football - Played dead at home and got killed on the road.
Getting back to Tennessee, Dad hated them but some of his best stories were from those games.
Top to bottom in the SEC, how does any school manage to get through the season undefeated?
I grew up in Chareston county so I was a big Citadel fan—of course we lost a lot but the occassional win against VMI always saved the season.
Then back in 1978 I moved upstate—smack dab on the border between Clemson and Carolina country.
I like to root for the local team so I had to choose between garnet and orange.
It was hard at first but it seemed that every Clemson fan I ran into was such an obnoxious sob I had to go with the Gamecocks.
I’ve been paying for it ever since :(
But we have Spurrier so there’s still hope.
Unlike our last coach Lou Holtz,he ain’t near burned out.
My dad refers to the Southern Baptist Church as the Roman Catholic Church of the South. LOL!