As a new college football season is about to be underway, the reality is that thousands of people will be going to their first ever college football game. At the very least, there will be hundreds of Freshmen at ISU tailgating for the first time and attending their first ever College Football game. Often times it's an experience that one will never forget.

My first experience was a Gophers-Badgers game at the Metrodome in 1995, when I was 11. A family friend had season tickets on the 20 yard line, about 20 rows up from the field. At the time, I had no idea the significance of the rivalry and quite honestly knew very little about College Football. In a pro town like Minneapolis, the Gophers are second fiddle to the Vikings.

I just remember being this little kid (well kind of little), in the middle of all this excitement, not quite sure what to make of it. There was a Badger fan sitting next to me (guy in his mid 40s or 50s) explaining stuff to me (like how a 99 yard kick return for a TD doesn't happen very often, and what a "2 minute offense" was).  You see, I didn't have a football fan in my family and though I knew the basic rules to the game, I didn't understand the terminologies and strategies like I do now, but I loved to watch the game. I didn't get up once for concessions or even to go to the bathroom, I just sat there and tried to soak everything up in front of me.

Going to a game live is much faster, and you see a lot more than you would on TV. At the end of the day, Minnesota lost, Wisconsin grabbed the Paul Bunyan Axe, and pretended to chop down the goalposts, but I wasn't dissapointed, as I didn't feel any kind of allegiance to either team.

I didn't attend another College Football game until my freshmen year at ISU in 2002. That was fun, in that I had a rooting interest, got to see Seneca Wallce in person for the first time, but the game itself wasn't too thrilling as we destoryed Kansas (in retrospect, Rule #1 as an ISU Fan is to never complain about losses. They don't come easily).

It's an exciting time of year, and I wanted to open up a thread to give you the opportunity to share your experience of attending your first College Football game. I'd love to hear your story!