Football 101 explains the game to students

USC organizations hosted Football 101, an event designed to help students get a better understanding of the game and culture of American football, at Heritage Hall on Friday.

Football school · Alex Rios, a recruiting analyst for USC football, explains the different player positions at the Football 101 session. – Carol Kim | Daily Trojan

USC Program Board’s International Student Assembly, Graduate Student Government and Recreational Sports collaborated to host the event, with sponsorship from the Office of International Services and others.

“Beat the Sun Devils” T-shirts and tote bags, as well as free game tickets, were passed out to the 100 participants.

USG Wellness kicked off the event by talking about tailgating policies and safety. GSG organized a tailgate on Trousdale Parkway so all the participants of the event could experience the chaos and Trojan spirit for themselves on game day.

Donald Ludwig, executive director of USC Spirit and Traditions and USC Spirituality and Sports, and Luis Nevarez, a senior safety on the Trojan football team, talked about what it means to be a part of the Trojan family. They went on to explain the game of football, everything from specifying the dimensions of the field to creating an interactive activity for the audience to understand the snap count. While a football helmet was being passed around the room, Ludwig and Nevarez helped the event’s participants feel like they would be able to yell and chant with the rest of the Trojans at the ASU game.

The event ended with a jock rally and performances from the Trojan Marching Band and the Song Girls.

“This is actually an annual event, and we at GSG wanted to continue this because we wanted to get the students accustomed to American culture as well as USC culture,” GSG President Yohey Tokumitsu said.

He said that another purpose of the event was to familiarize international students with tailgating culture.

While this event had been held in years past, this was the first time a number of USC organizations collaborated on it.

“I asked the Office of International Services, and they led me to speak to Athletics, as well as Rec Sports, ISA and USG. They were very helpful and eager to work on this project with us,” Tokumitsu said.

Rachel Zou, director of ISA, believed that there was a great deal of student demand for an event like this, especially because of their efforts to increase publicity for Football 101 this year. Four hundred undergraduate and graduate students at USC RSVP’d for the event. Because of limited capacity, the 100 participants were chosen through a lottery system.

“I think there is a lot of student demand [for an event like this], especially for free football tickets,” Zou said. “I think there is also a lot of student demand among international students to understand how football works because football is a foreign concept to people outside of America. I grew up in America, but I am not an avid football fan. I came to USC and had no idea what the rules of football were, so Football 101 has really helped me understand that.”

Participant feedback was positive.

“I think I will understand more and enjoy the game more because I’ll know what and when to cheer,” said Jolie Vu, a graduate student at the Leventhal School of Accounting. “They should definitely have this event every year.”

Students who had previously attended football games also found the event to be helpful.

“The workshop was great,” said Danshi Li, a graduate student in mechanical engineering. “I’ve seen a lot of football games at USC, but this will be really helpful for the game tomorrow because it’s clearer how to be integrated into the Trojan community and cheer with everyone.”