It may seem hard to believe but we are just four Saturday’s away from College Football Kick Off! The game we love may be undergoing some major changes, but I’ll never not be excited for another season to get underway. While the sport changes, so too does our approach to coverage here at the Breakdown. We are replacing last season’s “College Football Roundup” with this series new title, “The Booster Club,” where we will cover all the top stories from around the college game each week. We also have a new member of the team, as friend of the blog Mike Sheerin will be joining us. Mike is a fellow Fighting Irish fan but more importantly a college football fanatic who will only add to the fun around here You’ll be hearing from him soon, along with an array of new contributors who will also be writing for us. More to come on that soon.

With that said, let’s kick dig into our first edition of this new series. This week we’re talking about the things make up the fabric of the game, the traditions. Every school and their fan base have something they rally around, and the rest of us sit back and enjoy them. Me being the romantic that I am felt like now was a good time to start talking about them, so we can get in the mood. So, without further ado, here are my 12 my favorite college football traditions. Why 12 you ask? Now that there are 12 playoff spots, it feels like the number is the theme of the sport. Don’t take it personally if your team’s tradition didn’t make the cut, as there were so many worthy contenders to make the list it was hard to narrow it down.

Virginia Tech – Enter Sandman

Exit Light, Enter Hokies: As a fan of hard rock and heavy metal this one speaks right to my heart. Virginia Tech’s use of Enter Sandman has become the stuff of legend, intimidating teams from the ACC and beyond. There is nothing quite like a raucous Lane Stadium crowd bouncing along to the Metallica classic and the clip above from the end of a key game against Miami is an all timer. The tradition began back in 2000 and seems to really make a difference on gameday.

Notre Dame – Here Come the Irish

The Four Best Words: This one is very near and dear to my heart for obvious reasons. The four best words in my household every fall are “Here Come the Irish!” when the team taps the sign and heads down the tunnel I get a chill down my spine, and the excitement that kicks in when the band blasts the fight song gets me so fired up! There are so many wonderful traditions in South Bend, from a pregame prayer at the Gratto to a picture with Touchdown Jesus, its hard to pick one but ultimately the entrance is number one.

Penn State – The White Out

That’s Not Snow: Once a season Happy Valley becomes very hostile when Penn State welcomes in a top ranked opponent. Beaver Stadium gets painted white by the Nittany Lion faithful, and they bring the noise every single week. The first whiteout game was in 2004 against Purdue and seems to be a good luck as many memorable victories have taken place at State College with its help. The clip above gives you a pretty good sense of how rowdy it gets as Michigan joined the long list of teams that couldn’t function in the noise.

Florida State – Chief Osceola and the Chop

Doak Campbell Stadium, the theater of Nightmares: This is by far my favorite entrance in the sport aside from when my own Fighting Irish take the field. A Florida State home game at Doak Campbell Stadium in Tallahassee is just about the peak of the sport. Chief Osceola, a send up to the leader of the real Seminole tribe, and his horse Renegade lead the Noles onto the field while a chorus of nearly 80,000 fans get the chop going, making an Atlanta Braves playoff game look tame. All this makes FSU one of the toughest trips in the nation.

Ohio State – Dotting the I

The Best Damn Band in the Whole Damn Land: I can proudly say I’ve seen this tradition in person and it absolutely lives up to the hype. While watching the Buckeyes on the field is a treat and spending time in the lovely city of Columbus is a good time too, the band steals the thunder. The world-renowned Ohio State Marching Band puts on a brilliant show before each game and usually out does themselves at half time. They’re at their peak when a sousaphone player “dots the I” in script Ohio!

West Virgina – Country Roads

Take me Home: Let’s take our show to the BIG 12, or what’s left of it at least, for a stop in Morgantown West Virginia. Sure there’s Pat white, Geno Smith, and Tavon Austin…but is anyone more beloved by the Mountaineer faithful than country music icon John Denver? His 1971 hit song “Take Me Home, Country Roads,” punctuates a West Virginia home game and feels like a fitting tribute to its author as Milan Puskar Stadium belts it out.

Iowa – The Wave

Saying Hello: This is a real tearjerker of a tradition, one that makes you proud to be a human being. While the Iowa Hawkeyes may be known for punts and Kinnick Stadium is renowned for its night game atmosphere, nothing is better than “the wave.” At the end of every first quarter the Hawkeye players lead the crowd in a waving salute to the brave children in the University of Iowa Stead Family Children’s Hospital. It’s a beautiful tribute at home games for kids who are a lot tougher than the guys on the field.

South Carolina – Sandstorm

Let’s get Cocky: Next up is an under the radar entry, one coming from the SEC, a conference known for its tradition. It’s not LSU or Alabama or even new member Texas, instead it’s the Gamecocks pregame entrance when they play at home in Columbia. The South Carolina team is greeted by a sea of rally towels that begin waving in the student section and eventually all-around Williams Bryce Stadium as they take the field. This is all done to the tune of “Sandstorm,” an instrumental track by Finnish DJ Darude, which came out in 1999. The atmosphere is electric, so no one would blame you for mistaking the game for a nightclub.

Wisconsin – Jump Around

Madison Loses its Mind: Let’s stick with the musical theme here and throwback to 1992, the year Wisconsin football anthem “Jump Around” released. There was no way hip hop group House of Pain could have known the single would be such a smash hit in football when they dropped it all those years back but here we are. The Badgers first used the song to fire up the crowd at home games in 1998 and never looked back. It’s always a highlight of the early slate of games on Fox on a Saturday, long may it continue!

Clemson – Howard’s Rock

Run Dabo Run: Our next tradition requires some athleticism, as to take part in it you have to be able to run down a hill without falling…so that rules me out. Every Clemson home game is kicked off by the Tigers pulling up on a bus and running down the hill into “Death Valley” to make a grand entrance. Of course, as they run down, they touch “Howard’s Rock,” a large quartzite rock gifted to Clemson head coach Frank Howard in the 1960’s from a friend driving through “Death Valley” in California. The rock actually served as coach Howard’s door stop until Clemson booster Gene Willimon placed it in the East End Zone where it remains today.

Auburn – Rolling Toomer’s Corner

Rolling the Oak’s: Nothing beats winning in college football, especially when you beat your arch rival. The only thing left to do after a big win is celebrate and no one does it better than Auburn, who sees their fans exit Jordan Hare Stadium and “roll Toomer’s corner.” The corner lies at the intersection of College Street and Magnolia Ave where the university campus and city meet. It is named after state senator Shel Toomer, who played for the Tigers in 1892, and founded Toomer’s Drug Store in 1896 across from the campus of the university. The trees there famously have been rolled ever since in celebration of wins, and even survived attack, as the tough old oak trees were poisoned by a rival Alabama fan.

Texas A&M – The 12th Man

Gig ’em Aggies: Call it awesome, call it a cult, in the end its impressive dedication in College Station. Every Texas A&M home game is quite the spectacle beginning the night before kick off at “the midnight yell” where the Aggies faithful gather to practice cheering on the team…yes you read that right. They carry their traditions into kick off where the 12th man, both fans and one player picked by his peers, dons the number 12 jersey for the game. The 12 represents the loyalty to the university, after it was first given to sophomore E. King Gill who was picked out of the stands to play for the team in a 1922 home game, going from spectator to player out of love for his team. After the game is over the Aggies and their fans lock arms and sing the war hymn, which ends with the fans swaying back and forth singing “saw varsity’s horns off.” Varsity by the way is the nickname the Aggies gave to their rivals from Austin, the Texas Longhorns, who they want to “saw” the horns off of. Maybe “cult” is a fitting description after all.

Honorable Mention – College Gameday

The Best Way to Start a Saturday: I couldn’t finish this off without giving some love to the best pregame show in sports, ESPN’s College Gameday. Sure, I am critical of the network and dislike Desmond Howard, hell the show isn’t quite as good as it used to be either. But nothing is more comforting to me on Saturday morning than turning on my tv and seeing the guys on set in front of a screaming throng of students who are too drunk too early in the morning. It just feels like I’m talking ball with my friends and the real fun starts when it’s time for headgear picks. There might be some good news too…it sounds like Pat Mcafee may be off the desk as the great Nick Saban joins the show.

Be on the lookout for more college football coverage in the days and weeks ahead as Mike and I will be getting busy! You can find me on Twitter @YNWA9623 and subscribe to the site by hitting the follow button in the bottom right corner and entering your email address. Check out our Instagram feed @thebroadwaybreakdownsports for special gameday and promotional content. We have also launched a podcast which carries the same name as the Instagram account. Visit the Rangers Ed Shop by clicking the link on our homepage. The store just went live and Little Ed has been in the lab cooking up some can’t miss items for you fans. Check out our mailbag page to join the conversation here on the site and on our partners show, The Rangers Ed Podcast! We’ll be back with more soon!