[fullmetal]

A&M alumni will drive from all over the state to attend games. For many of them, it is a central, sometimes overriding, element of their personality and identity.  Additionally, as with many large state universities, their fanbase contains a significant number of non-alumni fans who have come by their affiliation through geographic proximity, family ties, etc.  Their fandom doesn't compete with the NFL team fandom, it overrides it.

I know there are a lot of Stanford fans who are diehards in that direction, and they're wonderful people, but I would never want Stanford fandom to be the biggest thing about a person's life.  I like to meet great, well-rounded people who happen to be Stanford fans.  I'm not sure it's a good thing to have a fanbase made up of people for whom Stanford fandom is the only/best thing they want to go after in their lives.  I know that's not the case for all A&M fans, but I have seen a lot of them.

Anyway, A&M pays Jimbo Fisher $77.5 million to sit at home and not coach, and they have money on top of that to fund a CFP-level team.  If Stanford makes the CFP, the fans will come.

[fullmetal]

A&M alumni will drive from all over the state to attend games. For many of them, it is a central, sometimes overriding, element of their personality and identity.  Additionally, as with many large state universities, their fanbase contains a significant number of non-alumni fans who have come by their affiliation through geographic proximity, family ties, etc.  Their fandom doesn't compete with the NFL team fandom, it overrides it.

I know there are a lot of Stanford fans who are diehards in that direction, and they're wonderful people, but I would never want Stanford fandom to be the biggest thing about a person's life.  I like to meet great, well-rounded people who happen to be Stanford fans.  I'm not sure it's a good thing to have a fanbase made up of people for whom Stanford fandom is the only/best thing they want to go after in their lives.  I know that's not the case for all A&M fans, but I have seen a lot of them.

Anyway, A&M pays Jimbo Fisher $77.5 million to sit at home and not coach, and they have money on top of that to fund a CFP-level team.  If Stanford makes the CFP, the fans will come.