Football season is my favorite time of year and yes, I know that sounds crazy coming from a college girl. While many people wait in anticipation for fall because the falling leaves and the promise of holidays to come, I can't wait for football. Today marks the first day of Ravens preseason and I couldn't be happier. My dad has had season tickets for years but this is the first time I'm there for the home opening. I've seen heart sinking losses and crazy wins that have made my heart skip a beat. There is one game I went to during college that I will never forget. The Ravens were trailing behind the Saints, who were favorites at the time, but managed to crawl their way back. Justin Tucker, the most accurate kicker in NFL history, lined up for a kick he could have normally done with his eyes closed in double overtime. He missed the extra point which would have brought them closer to the playoffs and I felt my heart sink into my stomach. That moment sticks out in my head as one of the craziest I've witnessed at the stadium. Sometimes I ask why I put myself through the stress of a close game but the adrenaline rush I feel makes it all worth it.

I am by no means a quiet football fan during games, especially at the stadium. I often find it hard to sit still and I'm craning my neck over the guys over a foot taller than me to see. Perks of being short am I right? The atmosphere is thrilling and I can't explain the amazing feel I get as soon as I walk through the doors of the stadium. It is a feeling like no other and although I love Villanova basketball with all my heart and nothing with replace the night of the national championship, I will always hold a special place in my heart for football and I have withdrawals as soon as the season is over. Thank God the Caps were there to keep me together this year by winning the Stanley Cup. I don't know if I would have been to survive otherwise. I grew up in a household that lives, breathes, and dies by football so it makes sense that I would be a fanatic but no one expects the extent to which I actually am. I stood in line for hours in 2012 when they won their last Superbowl just to get a picture with a few of the players and, of course, the Lombardi Trophy.

Don't bother me during football season. I will promptly either stop talking to you or move to another couch so I can watch the TV tonight. I'm so excited because tonight my boyfriend will get to experience my love for football at its birthplace for the first time tonight. I already warned him already that he cannot make jokes about home runs or hole in ones or I will act like I don't know him when people look my way. I am determined to show him my world, the adrenaline rush it brings, and all the yelling of the fans. Jaguars are going down and I will be cheering the Ravens on the whole time.