USC football has always been pretty special to me. I grew up in Milwaukee, but I was always a fan of California teams because I was born in the East Bay.
USC always attracted my attention because of their success and the way they went about it. 8 national championships, which I think ranks only behind Notre Dame, and 4 Heisman trophys, all from tailbacks. When I was a kid I really only got to see them twice a year in the UCLA and Notre Dame games, but I watched both of those games every year.
I really wasn't planning on going to USC until late in my Junior year of high school. A guy I knew who was a Physics genius got a scholarship to attend USC after his junior year in high school and he told me to apply.
USC is an incredibly unique school, especially for a kid coming from middle class Wisconsin. Quite honestly, I just never realized there was as much money out there in the world as there is until I got to USC. I mean, move in day was a line of Mercedes, BMWs, etc. in front of the dorms. I get to my room the first day and on my way I pass at least three chicks hotter than any girl I've ever seen in Wisconsin and they're all millionaires and they're all living on my floor. Heck, those of you who went to the Super Bowl party last year saw that my girlfriend is *way* too hot for me, but that is what happens sometimes (not all the time, mind you) in Southern California.
At USC there is only one sport, football, but it is totally unlike most colleges who have successful football programs. USC students, alums and fans care how the football team does, but in general they are apathetic compared to most schools. Gosh, I wish everyone could experience the difference between sitting in USC's student section and sitting in Wisconsin's student section. USC's fans are generally into the game, but with not even one tenth the passion of Wisconsin's students. I remember at the first TV timeout of the 1999 Rose Bowl I made the mistake of sitting down just as I always had in the USC student section and immediately I was serenaded (sp?) with an "Assss-hoooole" chant by anyone who saw my dumb ass take a seat (including the three friends I came to the game with).
Because of this, tickets are readily available to every game except the UCLA or the Notre Dame game, whichever one happens to be at home that year. In the school's defense, they are trying to fill a 90,000+ seat stadium with a school that has about a 12,000 undergrad student body. Just in alums alone that means that every year there are about 1/3 as many alums to attend games than there are at Ohio State, the largest undergrad school in the country.
School spirit on campus is generall nonexistent. During UCLA week or Notre Dame week there are a few events and there are a large number of students that sport USC clothes or hats, but in my experience it is nothing like school spirit at schools in the midwest or southeast.
The exception is before USC football games. Generally there is a gigantic tailgate party in the middle of campus where various student groups, alumni groups and just people with tickets in general all meet and sit around and eat and drink. The band comes out to play before they march to the stadium and there is a pretty great procession of the band and students into the Colissum.
The stadium itself is not as bad as people make it out to be. It's true that the walkways inside the stadium are a bit narrow and the concessions and bathrooms are not especially modern, but the views from virtually all seats are great and the fans are closer to the field than almost any newly built stadium out there.
As for why we stay fans of our college teams the rest of our lives, that is simple. People identify with people who are like them. They root for their home teams, home countries and, individually, people who share their race, sex or background. Every USC football player is a USC student and I identify with that, just as every alum does.
As an aside, I always find it kind of rediculous when people point an accusatory finger at folks who root for individuals based on race. Only in America is that an issue. It comes up in cases like black people rooting for Venus, Serena or Tiger or players like Jason Sehorn, Brian Urlacher or Jason Williams succeeding at jobs where blacks rule and gaining increased popularity from it. I just find it so dumb when people decry these situations as if these fans are racist. It is just simple human nature to root for those who you share a background with, whether that be village or race.
Sorry for getting off topic. Anyways, that is my answer and if you have any other questions, obviously I love talking about USC football so I will definitely answer them.
