The Secular in College Football, Faith, and Fandom

Rabid, emotional, and fiercely loyal sports fans defy common descriptors and social norms, hence religious terminology is often used to them. In this paper, I will apply religion differently to sports fandom with the help of its intertwinement with the secular, thus preventing a strict bifurcation between the religious and the secular when it comes to fandom. I will examine the tension between football fandom and a committed religious life at select religious universities with high-profile sports programs in order to highlight this interplay between the religious and secular for the football fan of such university football teams.