Coping with the Post-College Football Season Blues

By Ian Donnelly

That’s all, folks. College football season has come to a close. After a year full of ups and down, more bowl games than anyone can expect to keep straight, and a nail-biting National Championship game that stretched into overtime, this year’s season is over and done with. Most fans see the inevitable void of the offseason coming, but for die-hard football fanatics this can be an emotional gut punch—especially if your school spirit is on another level and you paint your stomach with your team’s colors on a weekly basis.

When you’re used to spending every Saturday in the bleachers, on the couch, or at a bar rooting for a team that you are 100 percent invested in, a world without football is a hard reality to accept. It can quickly lead to a bad case of the post-season blues, an honest-to-god medical diagnosis. According to numerous studies, the thrill and excitement of watching a football game can cause your brain to release dopamine, a neurotransmitter that helps control the brain’s pleasure centers. Less football means less dopamine, which translates into depression-like symptoms such as sadness, irritability, and mood swings.

If you’re feeling deprived of your favorite pastime, you’re not alone. Football withdrawal is something that many fans experience, but there are ways to ward off despair and make it through the dreaded seven-months of downtime. Here are some reliable remedies for coping with the post-football season blues.

Don’t Go Cold Turkey

If you live and breathe for your favorite team, the end of football season can feel like hitting a brick wall. The mad dash of the playoffs is one emotional roller coaster after another, and every post-season game raises the stakes to life-changing levels. But once it’s done, all that rising tension comes to a screeching halt. The out-like-a-light aspect of football season is tough for die-hard fans to adjust to, and some supplemental treatment may be just what the doctor ordered.

If you’re in agony without a game to watch on the weekends, indulge in some highlight reels from your favorite games. Put on that championship matchup you saved on your DVR, or watch some classic football showdowns on YouTube. Gradually diminishing your weekly helping of football is much easier than completely slamming on the brakes once the season draws to a close.

Now, I know I will lose half of you reading this just by suggesting it, but you could also try broadening your sport horizons and find another game to follow. It may seem like blasphemy, but believe it or not, there are other sports out there. There’s a good chance that your school has a basketball team you can root for, and if not, there are plenty of professional teams to choose from. Baseball teams play a mind-boggling 162 games every season with plenty of innings to tide you over until September. Or you could try golf, soccer, tennis, the Winter Olympics, UFC fights, competitive video gaming, whatever—the list is endless, so you’re almost guaranteed to find something to cheer for while football takes a well-deserved knee.

Open Up

Following a team isn’t just about the play-by-play. Football fans forge an emotional bond with the sport, but building relationships with the players, coaches, and commentators plays an important role in the football experience. For mega fans, the offseason can get lonely without them and can leave you feeling like your best friend just moved away.

That’s why it’s important to keep in touch with the friends you regularly watch the game with. Your friendships that revolve entirely around football are still friendships, so you don’t have to be alone in your post-season blues. Meeting up with your tailgating troupe or fantasy football league will give you a chance to let off steam and bring you all closer together for next year’s season. And you might find something in common with your buddies other than your team’s defense strategy. They’re most likely feeling the emptiness of the postseason as much as you are, and you can all cope with the gameday void with some good, old-fashioned group therapy at your favorite downtown hotspot.

Get Your Own Team Together

One of the best ways to end the college football season is by kicking off a pick-up team of your own. You can be the one to organize a game or find a group that could use another player—there are tons of recreational football leagues and social meetups out there, and your school most likely has a few already established clubs. Sure, it’s not a starting position on your favorite team, but you can still live the dream and have some proactive fun with an easygoing game of football.

If you’re more interested in theory than practice, you can still put your energy to good use by volunteering as a coach. Coaching for your local youth league is as rewarding as it is fun and getting involved in community sports can add a whole new dimension to your love of football. Not only will the offseason fly by, but you may end up being a bigger fan of your little league team than your university’s champs.

There’s no denying that the offseason is rough for football fans. At its worst, it can feel like an eternity that’s gone into overtime. But with these helpful game plans for football’s hiatus, you can keep your spirits high and look forward to another year of exciting showdowns, unbelievable plays, and big wins that are on the horizon.

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