One man's quest to visit every NCAA D1 football stadium

All right, so the University of Miami's been caught in a humongous football scandal following Ohio State, North Carolina, Tennessee, Oregon, and, as the King of Siam used to say, "Et cetera, et cetera, et cetera." What's more to add? The sport is totally out of control, and neither the college presidents nor the NCAA can do anything but make dopey, empty promises. So why bother? Let me instead, tell you a nice college football story.

It is about...a quest.

On November 13th, 1954, young Dick Wessels, a high school sophomore, went to a football game at Purdue. Fifty-six years and two hundred and sixty-four days later, on August 4th, 2011, Richard H. Wessels, a labor lawyer from Geneva, Illinois, arrived at Bulldog Stadium, home field for Fresno State. He had done it. Wessels had visited the stadiums of all 120 NCAA Division 1 college football teams.

I mean, sports fans tend to like to collect stuff. I've heard of fans going to all major league parks. I've met people who spend their time going to sports Halls Of Fame. Autographs, cards, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera. But fifty-six years and change to go to 120 stadiums, from Massachusetts to Hawaii ---- this takes the cake. "I'm a quester," Dick Wessels says. "I'm a leaf blowing in the wind."

Think of it. Places like Boise State, which the Quester visited on July 26th, on what he calls "my last push," didn't exist as a four-year school when he began his pilgrimage. Also, he usually must travel alone. His wife, he says, thinks he's a fine fellow, but nuts in this one particular territory. Nonetheless, if Wessels hits the highways and byways all by his lonesome self, he finds plenty of company. Athletic directors, fascinated by his quest, often personally escort him around their stadium. He's the part owner of a minor-league baseball team, the Kane County Cougars, so, in season, he usually goes to a minor league game at night.

He also loves opera; so, while traveling on the pigskin path, he seeks that out too. During his final climb to the college football summit - Washington State, Idaho, Boise, Nevada-Reno, San Jose State, Fresno State - Wessels diverted to Denver and saw five operas. Yes, Buckle Down, Winsocki one day, Un Bel Di the next.

For the record, he thinks Ohio State - saw it in '89 - has the most impressive stadium, while Ole Miss - 2005 - seemed "the neatest."

Now that the long journey has ended, Wessels says "I'm taking a rest for awhile," but he does admit sometimes to a hankering to visit all the existing minor league baseball parks. He has, after all, a head start on that, and with only another couple hundred or so to go, Wessels should be able to knock that off by, oh, the mid 21st century. Not to mention, on the side, hear a lot more Carmens and Aidas, Rigolettos and La Traviatas.