SAN DIEGO -- Penn football celebrated its 80th anniversary in 1956. The school certainly had a lot to celebrate. The Quakers had won seven national championships and they were regularly playing in front of packed crowds of over 50,000 at Franklin Field.
Also that year, a little Catholic school in San Diego started its varsity football program.
Penn's eight-decade advantage on the Toreros was certainly on display this weekend in California.
It was obviously reflected in the score, where Penn demonstrated that a storied tradition of success helps to maintain a high level of talent.
But the difference between these two programs was even more apparent off the field.
I, for one, have never been ecstatic about going to Penn football games.
Sure, there's something fun about watching your school beat every other school by 30, but week after week of constant blowouts can get rather boring.
But it took a 3,000 mile trip across the country to recognize all that's right about Penn football -- its tradition.
In case you've never been to a Toreros football game, don't worry, because you're in the same boat as just about every student who attends the University of San Diego.
I wish I could compare the student section at Torero Stadium to the one at Franklin Field, but that would require San Diego to have a student section, which it doesn't.
In fact, San Diego doesn't have most of the things that I've come to expect from college football programs.
There's no mascot, no pep band and no school song. Most of all, there's no passion from its fans.
While San Diego probably had more fans in attendance, you wouldn't know it by listening to the crowd.
So what is a game at Torero Stadium like?
Well, it starts with the pregame festivities.
Outside the beautiful but horribly named Jenny Craig Pavilion, spectators are greeted by a moonwalk, carnival games and, of course, a Mexican mariachi band.
Penn took the field first, entering to "Fight on Pennsylvania." San Diego came out to a combination of "We Will Rock You" and Metallica's "Enter Sandman."
Penn's cheerleaders led the large contingent of Quakers fans in cheers. San Diego's cheerleaders promoted Subway and Domino's Pizza.
Penn's fans brought a slew of homemade posters to cheer on the Quakers. "San Diego Loves U Penn #50" read one banner, while another went with the much simpler "Go Quakers." San Diego had nothing.
When the Quakers scored a touchdown, which they did a lot on Saturday, the new-look Quakers mascot -- who was donning a homemade pair of sunglasses for the occasion -- would do his traditional pushups with the cheerleaders. When San Diego scored, which it didn't do that much on Saturday, the P.A. system blasted the incredibly annoying "Ole, Ole, Ole" song.
Penn fans, especially the large contingent of former Penn football players, were sneakily drinking beer in the stands despite the stadium's ban on alcohol. San Diego fans were eating sandwiches from Carl's Jr. that consisted of a piece of chicken between two big pieces of lettuce.
The Quakers faithful threw toast onto the field at the end of the third quarter. Then, they took the free Subway sandwiches that they were given by the San Diego cheerleaders and threw those on the field, too.
These are the little things we take for granted when we come to a Penn football game.
The traditions are what makes college football so appealing. It's what makes students and alumni feel like their team is really their team.
These traditions are the reasons why alumni keep on giving money to the Penn Athletic Department.
And from Penn's display on Saturday, expect a heck of a lot of money to roll in from these California alumni.
This is why the school was so eager to play a game on the West Coast. It wanted to take the show on the road.
And the school pulled out all the stops.
Penn unveiled the new look of Penn Athletics (from its logo to its mascot), flew the Penn band and cheerleaders across the nation, packed the stadium full of Penn fans and then beat the pants off the opponent.
After the game, Toreros coach Jim Harbaugh compared the Penn team to the Michigan Wolverines. And from San Diego's point of view, Penn was.
Across the continent from our campus in Philadelphia, Penn's fabulous traditions were on full display.
And at least in the small confines of Torero Stadium, it felt like there was nothing greater than to be a Penn fan.
