The 10 Most Electric Entrances in College Football

Nothing beats the pageantry, the fans and the overall atmosphere of a college football game. From filling 100,000-plus seat stadiums to mascots that just don’t quit, there is nothing like Saturdays in the fall.

The college football season kicks off with a few huge games, as fans will pour into stadiums around the country to see the 2018 version of their favorite university’s program. When teams take the field, expect the noise to be deafening and the ground beneath your feet to shake, literally.

Tradition is the backbone of college football. Universities look for creative ways to engage fans and make their football programs stand out from the rest of the pack, and the best way to make yourself known is by making a great first impression.

When teams take the field, it’s time for business. Some universities have a knack for giving you goosebumps while other entrances simply make the other team stop and take a peak at the show.

From player tributes to iconic sports songs, there are 15 college football entrances that stand high above the rest.

15. Oregon’s Duck Rides a Motorcycle
If you’ve ever ridden a motorcycle, you know that it’s a four limb job — one hand’s on the front brake, and the other operates the clutch.

14. Nebraska Walks It Out
The Cornhuskers’ slow, methodical journey underneath “The Sea of Red” at Memorial Stadium sets the tone for Nebraska’s long tradition of football excellence

13. Arizona State Honors a Hero
Beginning in the 2013 season, the Sun Devils honored former all-conference linebacker Pat Tillman, who lost his life serving in Afghanistan in 2004, by building a statue of him, and creating a new aura for Arizona State football to look toward

12. Texas A&M’s Fightin’ Aggies Band
The Texas A&M drumline marches out ahead of the Aggies at Kyle Field, home of the 12th man, and sets the stage for their SEC powerhouse to take the field.

11. Oklahoma’s Sooner Schooner
Two white horses, rightfully named Boomer and Sooner, pull the replica Studebaker Conestoga wagon on and around Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium to welcome the Sooners to the field, but also after Oklahoma touchdowns.

10. Georgia Tech’s Ramblin’ Wreck
Georgia Tech’s nickname is the Yellow Jackets, and their mascot is Buzz, but it’s a 1930 Ford Model A Sport Coupe that serves as the student body’s official mascot

9. Michigan’s Iconic Banner
The Michigan Wolverines have been playing football since 1879 and they’ve touched the Go Blue Banner since 1962.

8. Texas Tech’s Masked Rider
Since the 1954 Gator Bowl, Texas Tech’s “Masked Rider” has led the team onto the field, but he was first seen roaming Texas Tech’s sidelines in 1936.

7. Colorado Runs with Ralphie
There are live mascots, and then there’s this insanity. The Colorado Buffaloes began running Ralphie around the Colorado stadium before each half of home football games in 1967.

6. Miami’s Smoke
Since the 1950s, the Miami Hurricanes have entered the field through a cloud of smoke in one of college football’s best entrances. The smoke is produced by fire extinguishers, and the Hurricanes’ emerge in an awe-inspiring moment that is only fitting for “The U.”

5. South Carolina’s Space Odyssey
The song was made popular by the 1968 film “2001: A Space Odyssey,” but the University of South Carolina has put the movie’s iconic song to good use. Since 1983, the Gamecocks have taken the field while the melody blares over the speakers at Williams-Brice Stadium.

4. Florida State’s Tomahawk Chop
Chief Osceola rides in on Renegade and plants his spear at midfield while the Florida State faithful let their iconic war chant ring into the Tallahassee air during pregame ceremonies. The tomahawk chop, though, is mind-bending. Doak Campbell Stadium seats around 80,000 people, and all able-bodied FSU fans raise their arms, and chop in unison.

3. Tennessee Runs Through the T
The Pride of the Southland marching band sets the base of the iconic ‘T’ formation near the end zone, where the Tennessee football team gathers. The orange and white clad Volunteers run through the T onto the field, hanging a left towards their sideline for the opening kickoff.

2. Clemson Touches Howard’s Rock
Samuel C. Jones picked up a rock while traveling through Death Valley, California in the 1960s, and gave it to then-head coach Frank Howard. The rock was eventually set up in the East end zone at Memorial Stadium, where it remains today. Howard, who coached at Clemson for 30 years, once said “If you’re going to give me 110 percent, you can rub that rock. If you’re not, keep your filthy hands off of it.”

1. Virginia Tech’s Enter Sandman
If you’ve made it this far, you’ve realized that the ACC is by far the most electric conference for entrances in college football, and Virginia Tech is far and away the most exciting. Blacksburg, Virginia is one of the toughest atmospheres to play at in all of college football, and when you hear the first few notes of Metallica’s “Enter Sandman,” you better hope you’re not an opposing team.

Read more about these traditions here: https://fanbuzz.com/college-football/15-electric-cfb-entrances/