Cal football: Do you prefer watching in Memorial Stadium or on TV?

Avinash Kunnath: It really depends. If I know the team is going to be in trouble, I tend to prefer home. It gives me the option to flip, to Tweet, to write down what I'm seeing, and talk with other CGBers. It also minimizes my headaches. Going to a game and watching a blowout is occasionally fun, but it can get boring (unlike hoops, where most games generally go down to the wire). I also process a football game much better at home.

There is too much happening at a football game for me to really digest the whole game properly in the stadium; I almost always have to catch the replay afterwards to make sense of what just happened.

That being said, I really enjoy the Memorial experience on certain occasions. Big Game for one is always fun. Playing a marquee opponent like Oregon or Tennessee ramps you up (I missed Ohio State/Northwestern this year, and I still regret it even though we lost). I'll definitely be there for Texas.

LeonPowe: Stadium, Stadium, Stadium. When you live far away from the University, you miss everything. It's not just the game. The walkup to the stadium. Hearing the band. Smelling Top Dog. Getting a slice of Fat Slice or going to the bookstore before the game. Going to the Cal Drink Squad Tailgate. Seeing the game on television is just a sports experience. Going to Memorial Stadium is a full day immersion in all things Cal.

Leland Wong: I'm sad to say I haven't been to too many games, but it's definitely an enjoyable experience to be in the stands, watching your team in person. I love going to Cal games, but it's like a heavenly dessert to me. I love it, but I don't think I would want it for every meal. I tend to watch most of Cal's games on TV, with a live game experience as a special treat.

Ruey Yen: While I do enjoy going out to watch sports in person, football is one of those sports where I probably ultimately prefer watching the game on TV. A big part of NFL's popularity has been attributed to how good the game look on TV. In real life, you either sit too close to the action to only see part of the field well or you are too far up to see the whole field.

With all that said, college football is fun to attend because of all the traditions and rituals that happens during the game. Of course, most of the cheers are only used when the team is winning...so winning translates to more cheering which equals more fun at the games.

Nick Kranz: I pretty much agree with Avi - wins are much, much better in person but losses are much much easier to handle in front of a TV. For me (and I suspect most fans), attending a football game is a pretty huge investment of time, effort and money. For a 5:00 game, I would typically leave home at 12:00 at the latest and not return home until 11:00 at the earliest - so, in the range of 11-12 hours at a minimum.

And it's pretty demoralizing to use up an entire weekend day, drive ~3 hours, pay for tickets, parking, gas and food, only to watch Cal lose by 40 points. And yet I'll always keep coming back because the experience of thrilling wins is worth it.