As a high school student, my daughter associated football games as the major social events where most everyone hung out together and had a chance to bond.
Not knowing what to expect of college, and how living on her own, making new social circles on her own would work, looking for similar “school spirit” at colleges she was visiting, was essentially her looking for something that she was familiar with as a high-schooler.
In reality, other than the “big” football schools, most colleges have a few thousands of students will diverse interests, and with countless other social events and non-organized opportunities for building a social circle and having fun with friends, now that they no longer worry about parents’ curfew.
My daughter went to the first game as a first-year, and quickly realized it was “BIG”, and not at all the same kind of fun, as going to high school games with tons people whom she knew since elementary school.
After that, there were so many other more-fun things to do, that it also was the last game. Not because she had disliked it, just because there were more suitable offerings.