Which do you like more?

[pitt_134]

I know this is a college msg board but I am wondering which most prefer...

College football vs. NFL?

Obviously I am a fan of both...but I like college football more...When friends of mine are talking football, I am the guy that knows just about where any player in the conversation played their college ball...Now IMO the nfl is great...but come football season I am definitely more interested in what is happening in college...Not just PITT, or even the ACC, every power 5 conference and every game that is worth watching...

What is everyone's opinion here?? Anyone else like me out there when it comes to college vs the NFL??

 

[GT74]

I know this is a college msg board but I am wondering which most prefer...

College football vs. NFL?

Obviously I am a fan of both...but I like college football more...When friends of mine are talking football, I am the guy that knows just about where any player in the conversation played their college ball...Now IMO the nfl is great...but come football season I am definitely more interested in what is happening in college...Not just PITT, or even the ACC, every power 5 conference and every game that is worth watching...

What is everyone's opinion here?? Anyone else like me out there when it comes to college vs the NFL??

I'm with you. I love college football. Like and follow NFL, too, but my passion is with cfb. As an alumnus of Pitt, I would rather have them win a championship than the Steelers, Pirates or Pens. Same for hoops, like college over NBA.

 

[Dr. von Yinzer]

For me it is definitely close and very much a mixed bag. To be honest, I go back-and-forth all the time.

There are definitely some things about the NFL that I prefer over college football. Similarly, there are things about college football that I prefer to the NFL.

I love the pageantry and the traditions of college football. The corporatized NFL can't quite replicate that.

Also, I love all of the historic rivalries in college football. It's just different from pro rivalries. It feels like as much you're rooting for cause as much as a team.

There's nothing like the last Saturday in November when all of those college rivalry games are being played. The NFL can't touch that.

Also, I enjoy the schematic diversity of offensive and defensive approaches you see in the college game. That makes it very interesting to watch.

Unfortunately, that's changing to some degree but I've always enjoyed how different and creative the college coaches can be.

I like the NFL game because it is less hypocritical and more transparent. Just like the college coaches, they are all about winning. Unlike the college coaches, they will openly admit it.

Also, the game is just much better played at the professional level. It is just much smoother and faster and better football. I really appreciate that. The quarterback play in particular is incredibly better.

Also, the coaching in the NFL is light years ahead of its collegiate counterparts and it's not even close.

The types of stuff you see on a week to week basis in the NFL is remarkable. Now, a big part of that is because those are professionals and they can implement exotic and wildly different approaches on a week to week basis whereas college players are less skilled, generally less football savvy and they only have 20 hours per week.

I sincerely enjoy watching both levels of the sport and I can't pick a favorite.

 

[ricflair4LIFE]

Mostly what the good Doctor said. But with a slight edge to college fb.

 

[oldpanther]

I know this is a college msg board but I am wondering which most prefer...

College football vs. NFL?

Obviously I am a fan of both...but I like college football more...When friends of mine are talking football, I am the guy that knows just about where any player in the conversation played their college ball...Now IMO the nfl is great...but come football season I am definitely more interested in what is happening in college...Not just PITT, or even the ACC, every power 5 conference and every game that is worth watching...

What is everyone's opinion here?? Anyone else like me out there when it comes to college vs the NFL??

College football and basketball, no longer have an interest in pro sports,exception MLB.

 

[Jpripper88]

Gameday and stadium atmospheres in the SEC and big schools (unfortunately that doesn't apply for us at all) are just far and away better than NFL. Players really care in college, too. NFL is much, much better football though.

 

[88Pitt88]

I know this is a college msg board but I am wondering which most prefer...

College football vs. NFL?

Obviously I am a fan of both...but I like college football more...When friends of mine are talking football, I am the guy that knows just about where any player in the conversation played their college ball...Now IMO the nfl is great...but come football season I am definitely more interested in what is happening in college...Not just PITT, or even the ACC, every power 5 conference and every game that is worth watching...

What is everyone's opinion here?? Anyone else like me out there when it comes to college vs the NFL??

I just plain love football. I also enjoy high school football as well . My father was a line coach for the better part of 40 years for a wpial team and I started out watching the high school game when I was really young. Every level has some marquee players that everyone wants to see. It is just a great game with so many different strategies both on offense and defense. I couldn't possibly say I prefer any level. I have been known to attend a high school game Friday, a Pitt game Saturday, and watch football all day on Sunday as I just can't get my hands on Steeler tix that often.

 

[wicker]

College ball has personality compared to NFL games that all look alike. And I like college games for their flaws. The pros are sometimes too good. You need a few mistakes now and then

 

[Zeldas Greenhouse]

I could watch college football from noon to midnight. After watching a Steeler game; I usually had enough with the NFL for the week. I never liked how the NFL is presented. Watch 3 commercials of crappy sitcoms, then a punt, then 3 more dumb commercials for cars and more crappy sitcoms.

 

[ncpittfan]

I have been a college football fan since growing up. I take vacation and adjust my schedule around PITT. I could start watching at noon and watch until west coast game ends (2-3 am). I'll watch pros if they are on, but if I miss them it's no big deal!

 

[OriginalEther]

Pro, largely for reasons that dvy stated.

I may have watched about 45 minutes total of college fb games not featuring Pitt. All the teams in the cesspool that's college sports are uncheerable and thus unwatchable.

 

[recruitsreadtheseboards]

Off the field, give me the NFL for its corporate honesty. It is what is, a business of winning. College football isn't the same. It is about profit in a non profit, non taxable business entity.

As for the game itself. I love my Stillers n' at. But....I can sit down at noon on a Saturday and still be watching college football at midnight of the same day. I could never do that in the NFL.

So I like college football much better. Though I have to admit, the changes are eroding the traditions and the big business aspect of it is really starting to eat away the enjoyment of the sport.

 

[Panther Parrothead]

I like both. For those of us in the Pittsburgh area, the success of the Steelers has been a godsend - especially during the years when Pitt has been in the doldrums of mediocrity.

Let's be honest: it's easier, and a lot more fun, to support a team that's dedicated itself to winning.

 

[pittdan77]

College is okay. I think the real fandom interest in college is the soap-opera crap that gets talked about for nine months. What this school did or how that kid got into trouble. Trolling HS kids on Twitter. It gets a little weird.

Pro football is probably the only league where a teenager would never stand a chance of walking into a pro locker room and being of much use besides cleaning up dirty towels. Talent wise the gap is gigantic but there would also be a real fear for the kid's safety. The size and speed is dramatically different.

A lot of us could have or did play college ball at some level. If you were lucky to have played D-1, you know that everyone is big and pretty darn fast. Pro football is just another level completely.

 

[Swervin27]

The older I get, the more I dislike nfl football and like college football more. When I was younger and even in high school, I was a big pitt fan but loved the NFL.. College was same way. Now, I love steelers, watch them every sunday but find it impossible to watch a typical nfl game while I can easily watch a P5 college football game.. The thought of watching the buccaneers - giants game sounds almost painful, a bears - saints game? dear Lord, no chance. But you give me two middle of the road P5 teams, I would easily be entertained..

Not exactly sure why. I could care less about the money.. Some guy I don't know makes 100 million or 2 million, neither effect me so that's not it.. Some of these guys are nuts, again, what they do in their spare time I could care less about. THey beat the hell out of their wife, sad but it's not gonna change my tv watching habits. The actual "On field" product of college football is just so much more appealing to me..

I think, or should I say I HOPE, the nfl career longevity really shortens, guys CONSISTENTLY retire after a handful of years and the attrition or turnover rate is greater. I really think that would make the nfl more entertaining to the casual fan. Watching some of these guys play 10+ years gets quite stale.. I know your average nfl career is short but that takes into account players we don't care or even know about. Maybe that's what is so great about college, the constant turnover.. Every year, you need new people to perform.. NFL, you have that same "core" of players and it just gets so "been there, done that."

 

[Pitt79]

Pro Football, slam dunk, Even at that I am team specific. Every week I watch the Steelers and Pitt for sure every week
and generally no other games in their entirety. Even though I prefer pro football, if Pitt was playing a game at the same time that the two best NFL teams where meeting, I'd watch the Pitt game, If the Steelers weren't in that NFL game.

 

[Pitt79]

Every year, you need new people to perform.. NFL, you have that same "core" of players and it just gets so "been there, done that."

Not if the Steelers are on a run and make a few Super Bowls over 10 years, they could have the same guys forever and who cares, I'm rooting for the colors and logo, doesn't matter who the people are.

 

[Swervin27]

Not if the Steelers are on a run and make a few Super Bowls over 10 years, they could have the same guys forever and who cares, I'm rooting for the colors and logo, doesn't matter who the people are.

it's great for the home team no doubt but stale for the other 99% of the fan base.. Im sure new Orleans loves watching drew brees since the turn of the new century, the rest of us have seen enough.. Im sure others feel the same way about Ben. I loved years and years of Smith, Troy, Hampton and crew but it probably got quite old for the rest of the league. Watching years and years of bettis well awesome for steelers fans, stale for everyone else. Fans want new, not same old..

Dynasties don't sell. Parity turns on tvs.. The "underdog" story sells.. "worst to first" in a year's time, that gets viewers.. Watching Steelers defense win games for 7 years by the scores of 13-7 gets old, watching Tom Brady complete 35 passes of 6 yards and under for a decade, again, gets stale.. New sells, Cam newton sells,

 

[lilspainishflea]

They're both great. I think that, for me, the biggest problem with NCAA football is that only a small margin of the teams can actually compete for a championship and the rest stick around but are not really relevant to the larger picture. This is also true in the NFL with the teams who have elite quarterbacks vs. the teams who don't BUT both of those can change through retirement/the draft, etc.

Teams like Alabama and LSU, for example, are just always going to be better than teams like Georgia Tech and NC State because they can put so many more resources into winning. Once you learn that the man behind the current has been tricking you about the nature of the sport, it's hard to really invest in college football (unless you're an Alabama or LSU fan). Being a lifelong Pitt fan and knowing that Alabama can pay 4-5 times what we pay for our staff and players, it's hard to really invest a lot of time with it because you know at some point your investment is kind of silly. At least with the Steelers, I know there are salary floors and ceilings, set numbers of draft picks, set number of home games, etc. and even if they're terrible, it probably won't be more than a few years before they're in the playoffs again. Ohio State has been to as many BCS games as (1) Pitt; (2) Maryland; (3) Oklahoma State; (4) Kansas; (5) Oregon State; (6) Washington; (7) Arkansas; (8) Purdue; (9) Texas A&M; and (10) Michigan State have, combined. Why even bother getting heavily invested in college football unless you're a fan of one of the top 10-15 teams?

 

[recruitsreadtheseboards]

The older I get, the more I dislike nfl football and like college football more. When I was younger and even in high school, I was a big pitt fan but loved the NFL.. College was same way. Now, I love steelers, watch them every sunday but find it impossible to watch a typical nfl game while I can easily watch a P5 college football game.. The thought of watching the buccaneers - giants game sounds almost painful, a bears - saints game? dear Lord, no chance. But you give me two middle of the road P5 teams, I would easily be entertained..

Not exactly sure why. I could care less about the money.. Some guy I don't know makes 100 million or 2 million, neither effect me so that's not it.. Some of these guys are nuts, again, what they do in their spare time I could care less about. THey beat the hell out of their wife, sad but it's not gonna change my tv watching habits. The actual "On field" product of college football is just so much more appealing to me..

I think, or should I say I HOPE, the nfl career longevity really shortens, guys CONSISTENTLY retire after a handful of years and the attrition or turnover rate is greater. I really think that would make the nfl more entertaining to the casual fan. Watching some of these guys play 10+ years gets quite stale.. I know your average nfl career is short but that takes into account players we don't care or even know about. Maybe that's what is so great about college, the constant turnover.. Every year, you need new people to perform.. NFL, you have that same "core" of players and it just gets so "been there, done that."

Agree. I can sit down and watch Northwestern play Duke. The thought of saying watching the Bears play the Panthers? Not so much. And it is not "about the money". I think college football fans are naive when they dismiss pro football as being "about the money". Sure, while you are watching your $4million a year college coach where a kid can't legally sell an autographed jersey.

 

[Pitt79]

... I think that, for me, the biggest problem with NCAA football is that only a small margin of the teams can actually compete for a championship and the rest stick around but are not really relevant to the larger picture.

That's what sucks about it, even if an underdog team jumps up and goes 12-1, everyone is trying to find an excuse to kick them out in favor of 11-2 'Bama. At least in the NFL, it's all PRESCRIBED and OBJECTIVE, win these games, this division, you're in, no voting or subjectiveness, I'd like college football better if it decided playoff participation OBJECTIVELY, rather than SUBJECTIVELY try to decide who is "best team".

 

[Swervin27]

Id be curious to see how much fantasy football helps with nfl viewership... Every man, woman and child in America is playing FF, helps viewership tremendously.

 

[Swervin27]

That's what sucks about it, even if an underdog team jumps up and goes 12-1, everyone is trying to find an excuse to kick them out in favor of 11-2 'Bama. At least in the NFL, it's all PRESCRIBED and OBJECTIVE, win these games, this division, you're in, no voting or subjectiveness, I'd like college football better if it decided playoff participation OBJECTIVELY, rather than SUBJECTIVELY try to decide who is "best team".

Serious question, doesn't the new playoff system do this?

 

[recruitsreadtheseboards]

it's great for the home team no doubt but stale for the other 99% of the fan base.. Im sure new Orleans loves watching drew brees since the turn of the new century, the rest of us have seen enough.. Im sure others feel the same way about Ben. I loved years and years of Smith, Troy, Hampton and crew but it probably got quite old for the rest of the league. Watching years and years of bettis well awesome for steelers fans, stale for everyone else. Fans want new, not same old..

Dynasties don't sell. Parity turns on tvs.. The "underdog" story sells.. "worst to first" in a year's time, that gets viewers.. Watching Steelers defense win games for 7 years by the scores of 13-7 gets old, watching Tom Brady complete 35 passes of 6 yards and under for a decade, again, gets stale.. New sells, Cam newton sells,

Disagree. Dynasties sell. Name brands sell. Nothing more the NCAA would want than Alabama, Notre Dame, Ohio State and USC in the playoffs over say Pitt or Oklahoma State. The NCAA tourney loves its 1st rd upsets, but trust me, Duke, Kentucky, Carolina and UCLA would be their dream Final 4. The NFL would like nothing more than a Pittsburgh or New England vs a Green Bay or Dallas Super Bowl. Tampa? Not so much.

Why does ESPN televise every Red Sox/Yankees game? Fans dont want new, they want familiar. We (avid sports fans) forget most people are casual fans. They want name brands. It is why Taylor Swift sells out concerts and St Vincent plays in small venues.

 

[Swervin27]

,

Disagree. Dynasties sell. Name brands sell. Nothing more the NCAA would want than Alabama, Notre Dame, Ohio State and USC in the playoffs over say Pitt or Oklahoma State. The NCAA tourney loves its 1st rd upsets, but trust me, Duke, Kentucky, Carolina and UCLA would be their dream Final 4. The NFL would like nothing more than a Pittsburgh or New England vs a Green Bay or Dallas Super Bowl. Tampa? Not so much.

Why does ESPN televise every Red Sox/Yankees game? Fans dont want new, they want familiar. We (avid sports fans) forget most people are casual fans. They want name brands. It is why Taylor Swift sells out concerts and St Vincent plays in small venues.

good post recruits but you lost me with st. Vincent venues analogy.. Almost as bad, but not quite, as my bar hopping with 20 bucks analogy with Nutting and the buccos..

My only retort here is that the "new factor" seems to really grab the newer generation of fans, the ADD / Ritalin generation... I see a lot more of the Cam Newton's of the world moreso than the Tom Brady's / Drew Brees'. A trend that is relatively new.. Our generation loves Manning, we see him on SNL and insurance commercials but going forward, to get that 15-25 demographic, I think you'll see the newest being the best.. I dont' know, just a thought, im far from a marketing genius..

 

[recruitsreadtheseboards]

,
good post recruits but you lost me with st. Vincent venues analogy.. Almost as bad, but not quite, as my bar hopping with 20 bucks analogy with Nutting and the buccos..

My only retort here is that the "new factor" seems to really grab the newer generation of fans, the ADD / Ritalin generation... I see a lot more of the Cam Newton's of the world moreso than the Tom Brady's / Drew Brees'. A trend that is relatively new.. Our generation loves Manning, we see him on SNL and insurance commercials but going forward, to get that 15-25 demographic, I think you'll see the newest being the best.. I dont' know, just a thought, im far from a marketing genius..

St Vincent is some Indie rock chick (pretty good IMO) that I just used in comparison that compared to Taylor Swift, she has far less followers.

 

[Pitt79]

Serious question, doesn't the new playoff system do this?

No, not to the degree I want. There are FIVE Power 5 conferences, only FOUR playoff teams. Pitt could win the ACC and not be guaranteed a shot at the title, based on subjective evaluations. The minimum would be an 8 team playoff, P5 Champs ALL get in, then I set aside on mandatory spot for a non-P5 school. To me, I'd rather have a system where ALL D1 teams have a path, rather than try to find the "4 best".

 

[JoseLind13]

My football preferance rank would be:
1. Pitt football games or any game directly impacting Pitt football
2. NFL football games
3. Non Pitt-relevant college football games

 

[Swervin27]

No, not to the degree I want. There are FIVE Power 5 conferences, only FOUR playoff teams. Pitt could win the ACC and not be guaranteed a shot at the title, based on subjective evaluations. The minimum would be an 8 team playoff, P5 Champs ALL get in, then I set aside on mandatory spot for a non-P5 school. To me, I'd rather have a system where ALL D1 teams have a path, rather than try to find the "4 best".

ok, well that's not possible. I suspect we'll get an 8 game playoff soon enough though. That's good enough for me.. Any team that doesn't get into an 8 game playoff, will have a blemish or two on their record.. If and only if a team goes undefeated and left out, then I see issues but not if a team has a loss.. The regular season is the most important in college football, hope it doesn't change too much. We have enough sports where the regular season is meaningless, no need to add one more..

 

[Pitt79]

ok, well that's not possible. I suspect we'll get an 8 game playoff soon enough though. That's good enough for me.. Any team that doesn't get into an 8 game playoff, will have a blemish or two on their record.. If and only if a team goes undefeated and left out, then I see issues but not if a team has a loss.. The regular season is the most important in college football, hope it doesn't change too much. We have enough sports where the regular season is meaningless, no need to add one more..

Why is that not possible?

 

[Swervin27]

Why is that not possible?

Sorry Pitt79, I misread your post. I get your point, it is possible. Having the top 4 teams get in though, IMO, is fair enough. The only valid complaint I see would be if a P5 team goes undefeated and still doesnt' get in.. Until that happens though, everyone has their chance and didnt' take advantage of it..

 

[Pitt79]

Disagree. Dynasties sell. Name brands sell. Nothing more the NCAA would want than Alabama, Notre Dame, Ohio State and USC in the playoffs over say Pitt or Oklahoma State. The NCAA tourney loves its 1st rd upsets, but trust me, Duke, Kentucky, Carolina and UCLA would be their dream Final 4. The NFL would like nothing more than a Pittsburgh or New England vs a Green Bay or Dallas Super Bowl. Tampa? Not so much.

Why does ESPN televise every Red Sox/Yankees game? Fans dont want new, they want familiar. We (avid sports fans) forget most people are casual fans. They want name brands. It is why Taylor Swift sells out concerts and St Vincent plays in small venues.

You're right! But I'm the opposite, if the football Final 4 is Alabama, Notre Dame, Ohio State and USC I have zero interest, it's just same old/same old and I'm bored with reruns, now take out USC and add a Boise State or Pitt, or Temple that went 13-0, something off the wall, I'd be all gung ho to watch.

 

[Pitt79]

Sorry Pitt79, I misread your post. I get your point, it is possible. Having the top 4 teams get in though, IMO, is fair enough. The only valid complaint I see would be if a P5 team goes undefeated and still doesnt' get in.. Until that happens though, everyone has their chance and didnt' take advantage of it..

It might happen, I can see it in my imagination, Auburn (12-1) loses to 13-0 Bama, by a point in OT, in the SEC title game, tOSU and ND are in at 13-0 and 12-0, Pitt is at 13-0 after winning the ACC, I can see Herbstreit and Corso whining and complaining about Pitt being in instead of Auburn, talk shows for weeks lobbying to make sure Pitt doesn't get it. Is this farfetched? I'd say no.

 

[9nationalchampionships]

I have always liked CFB more than the NFL.....not even close. Was a Steeler season ticket holder for 18 seasons but if the Steelers are not playing I never watch the NFL. I watch many CFB games each week regardless if PITT is playing or not.

 

[OriginalEther]

Agree. I can sit down and watch Northwestern play Duke. The thought of saying watching the Bears play the Panthers? Not so much. And it is not "about the money". I think college football fans are naive when they dismiss pro football as being "about the money". Sure, while you are watching your $4million a year college coach where a kid can't legally sell an autographed jersey.

See, I used to be that way. Now, I find a game like Northwestern v Duke unwatchable, and frankly those are two of the more tolerable teams out there.

Matchups like Bama v LSU, Texas v Oklahoma, Ohio state v Michigan etc I could care less about.

 

[OriginalEther]

Disagree. Dynasties sell. Name brands sell. Nothing more the NCAA would want than Alabama, Notre Dame, Ohio State and USC in the playoffs over say Pitt or Oklahoma State. The NCAA tourney loves its 1st rd upsets, but trust me, Duke, Kentucky, Carolina and UCLA would be their dream Final 4. The NFL would like nothing more than a Pittsburgh or New England vs a Green Bay or Dallas Super Bowl. Tampa? Not so much.

Why does ESPN televise every Red Sox/Yankees game? Fans dont want new, they want familiar. We (avid sports fans) forget most people are casual fans. They want name brands. It is why Taylor Swift sells out concerts and St Vincent plays in small venues.

Yep.
But that said the NFL actually tries to make all the teams competitive, particularly with the draft and the schedule. It's a level playing field. And, the teams work together in the interest of the product as a whole. College football is the exact opposite of that.

 

[recruitsreadtheseboards]

You're right! But I'm the opposite, if the football Final 4 is Alabama, Notre Dame, Ohio State and USC I have zero interest, it's just same old/same old and I'm bored with reruns, now take out USC and add a Boise State or Pitt, or Temple that went 13-0, something off the wall, I'd be all gung ho to watch.

Wrong. You are a college football fan, you are going to watch. Same with me. It is the casual fan. Same with baseball, as much as it would be a great and fresh story, MLB would much rather have the Cubs or Dodgers win the NL than the Pirates. And much rather have the Red Sox or Yankees in the AL instead of KC.

 

[recruitsreadtheseboards]

Yep.
But that said the NFL actually tries to make all the teams competitive, particularly with the draft and the schedule. It's a level playing field. And, the teams work together in the interest of the product as a whole. College football is the exact opposite of that.

Well said. Absolutely. The NFL realizes its weakest franchises drag down the whole league. In college football, the biggest programs try to get bigger by killing themselves. And it makes sense. How many teams are in the P5? 65? 66? There are 32 NFL franchises. So those in charge of college football really believe that creating a super 36-40 team conference would be something similar

 

[SoufOaklin4Life]

My Order of desire for championship .
1. Pitt hoops
2. Stanley cup
3. Pitt football
4. Steelers
That's really it. Just not a baseball guy.