Given the large area that the story of college football is played out across, it might be difficult to hit all of the most important and interesting college football sites in a lifetime. It would be next to impossible to do it in a season, as that trip would require coast-to-coast travel, meticulous planning, a little luck and a lot of money.

Still interested in the idea? I've got a hypothetical plan that could work.

I put this plan together with the rivalries, stadiums, and teams that I most want to see, then tried to work the whole thing out against the 2008-2009 schedules. The only rule I had was that driving more than 10 hours every week from the last location would be ridiculous (it ended up being an average of 7.49 hours per trip). Figuring out how to see every team I wanted to see at home wasn't an easy task either, thanks to those pesky away games. But, after hours of toiling I managed to get a schedule together that lets me see a lot of the traditions, history, insanity and competition that is college football. This is hypothetical, as I'm not able to do it - but if I could, this is how I'd do it.

8/30/08: Camp Randall Stadium, Madison, Wisconsin (Wisconsin vs. Akron)
Since the first few weeks of games are mostly blowouts, I picked the first few games based on whose fans would be most fun to be around. From what I've seen and heard about Camp Randall, I don't think there's anywhere more fun in college football. The tradition of jumping up and down to "Jump Around" is one of the funniest things I've ever seen on TV - from the students to the camera guys to the production guys in the booth, literally everyone jumps up and down. The 80,000 people who pack out Camp Randall each week shake the stadium with their jumping and make Wisconsin a great starting point for the season.

9/6: Michigan Stadium, Ann Arbor, Michigan (Michigan vs. Miami (OH))
Six hours to the east of Madison is Ann Arbor, where I'll see the Wolverines at home. Michigan Stadium is called the Big House for a reason: Michigan Stadium currently holds the attendance record for a college football game (112,118 people on Nov. 22, 2003, vs. Ohio State). In addition to having a humongous stadium, Michigan football has a nearly mythical draw for me. I don't know why, but I've always been fascinated with it.

9/13: Notre Dame Stadium, South Bend, Indiana (Notre Dame vs. Michigan)
Every activity has its Mecca. Whether it's a religion, sport, hobby or profession, every obsession has a place where that obsession is glorified. For college football fans, the end of the pilgrimage is South Bend, Indiana - the home of Notre Dame football and the College Football Hall of Fame. Notre Dame is home to the greatest football movie of all time (Rudy), one of the greatest myths of all time (the "Win one for the Gipper" speech) and one of the greatest football legacies of all time (despite what this season would try to destroy). Notre Dame is one team that cannot be ignored on lists of "the greatest" anything in college football, and especially not this college football road trip.