Reply #9: I used to live in Florida and I knew a lot of people who loved the Gators

[hellbound-liberal]

simply because they loved college football and the Gators were good for a long time back in the 70s. I think living in Florida was close enough for these people to root for them. I think a lot of other people liked Miami because of their "swagger" (which is the same reason I couldn't stand them) I think a lot of other people like teams because of the coach (Joe Paterno, Bobby Bowden, Steve Spurrier, etc.) I live near Richmond, VA right now and I can't understand why Va Tech merchandise is all over the place but UVA stuff is harder to find even though Charlottesville is right down the road. I think it basically boils down to people wanting to root for the winner even though they have no connection to them. This also explains why Yankee merchandise is popular all over the country and the Dallas Cowboys used to be considered "America's team".