College Football’s Great Culture Clash

…Because their clubhouse just got prettyyy interesting. They traded for Cody Bellinger, who is married to Giancarlo Stanton’s ex-girlfriend. Now, they’re teammates in the Bronx. Awkward.

The next Shoe Surgeon could be a DI women’s basketball hooper. Cal’s Jayda Noble is contributing on the court, and providing the custom swag to match.

Welcome to the Stone Island soccer takeover. The brand’s subtle patch—once associated with European football hooligans—has become a cultural phenomenon, and is now the badge of preference for fashionistas, like Pep Guardiola, in the footy world.

SLAM continues to give back, this time in the Motherland. The iconic brand collabed with JDS to rebuild a Johannesburg basketball court.

What a year for Captain America. The interest in Cristian Pulisic has never been higher, as he gets the GQ treatment for his incredible behind-the-scenes Paramount+ documentary.

Today, the Internet has blurred subcultures and created a stifling monoculture, but college football fan bases have stood the test of time in their unique traditions. College football is America’s great tradition. And, so, ahead of the first expanded college football playoff, we turned to two college football fanatics – Rodger Sherman, founder of Read Rodge newsletter, and Master Tesfatsion – for this weekend’s first-round college football playoff matchups. The culture clashes and bragging rights between this Original 12 go far beyond any trophy. Rodger, Master – take it away! 

Rodger Sherman

Great hate in college sports is always intrastate, but Notre Dame-Indiana has never been a rivalry. These two teams don’t even seem to exist in the same dimension.

You’ve got Notre Dame, the place Catholic moms from coast to coast dream about sending their kids, a bastion of academics, religion, and of course, college football. You may have seen a sappy movie about it.

Then you’ve got Indiana, a state school and literally the losingest program in college football history. You’ll meet people in Indiana who root for the Irish in football and Hoosiers in hoops, never once acknowledging that the two schools actually both have teams in each sport and could hypothetically play each other. Indiana football is simply non-canon to Notre Dame.

While almost every school in college football has joined a conference, Notre Dame proudly maintains its independence so it can have the freedom to schedule the schools it wants to play—which I bring up because Indiana is never one of the schools Notre Dame wants to play. The last time the Hoosiers played the Irish in football was in 1991. Before that, 1958. The last time they played regularly, people listened to the game on the radio, and now, thanks to the playoff, you’re reading about it in an email newsletter on your phone.

Every playoff game has stakes, but the Hoosier football faithful have been waiting for this specific matchup for decades. The new playoff format forced it into existence, and if Indiana wins, Notre Dame will never again be able to pretend the Hoosiers don’t have a football team.

Master Tesfatsion

Tennessee and Ohio State isn’t a rivalry, but it might as well be. There’s a battle for supremacy brewing between these schools – both linked by I-75. Both fan bases are crazy enough to do whatever it takes to find the edge.

Rocky Top fans are currently winning the pre-match battle, trolling by all means. They’re taking over TouchTunes in Columbus, and promising an Orange Invasion at The Horseshoe. At the bare minimum, they’ve drawn their line in the Horseshoe on Apple Maps.

Buckeyes fans aren’t chirping as much. For one, they’re too busy complaining about their coach and trying to make flag planting a felony. But more importantly, Ohio State has higher standards. Its fan base chases perfection as the flagbearer of the Big 10, unlike the coattail-riding Volunteers. The entire conference backs them (well, except for Michigan) in a battle for conference supremacy over the SEC as the two most influential conferences in college football.

They both have 100,000 seat stadiums. They both have iconic fight songs. And they both have some of the biggest college bands in the country, with some overlap too. Tennessee's band director previously played trombone at Ohio State.

@pitstop

What REALLY happened at the F1 drivers dinner 😂 #f1

The WAGs are coming for the holidays in the best way, and everyone is obsessed with what is in those gift bags. Their pajama Christmas parties are flooding the timeline with stocking stuffers and gift trends for everyone in the family. 

The most popping party has to be the Niners, who were blessed by Claire Kittle’s pajama-themed event with a HAUL. From customized Crocs, matching cologne sets, and probiotics, George Kittle’s wife checked all the boxes.

@itsrochellexo

A VERY Happy Holiday season 💕 #haul #49ers #pajamaparty #beauty

Not to be outdone would be the Lions and their extravagant customized gifts for each WAG, including an incredible Lions scarf for a game day accessory fashion statement. Over at the Dolphins party, Alix Earle dressed up in her cutest Grinch-themed pajamas and gave her fellow WAGs custom bag charms, featuring their initials, a dolphin mascot, and plenty of style.

@alixearle

How cute are the bag charms .. showing them close up on ig story 🐬🤞🏼 the best. @Coastal Caviar

The Ravens went full Oprah with their favorite things, including custom name necklaces and bags. We give the extra credit for using the WAG’s names for their customization, and not their respective partners’ name. The Eagles went with a classic White Elephant party, while the Falcons might’ve outdone the competition on beauty products gifted this holiday season.

@jackiexsieng

falcons christmas party for the ladies! everyone had to pick a “favorite” item & get it for each person. we had 26 people on the players s... See more