Why I pull for certain teams changes through the years. It has to do with interaction with the people associated with them.
It might be a player, a coach or a set of fans. Sometimes it’s all of those.
For example, I’ll pull for Penn State against Boise State at the Fiesta Bowl in the second round of the College Football Playoff.
It’s because of the interaction I’ve had with Penn State coach James Franklin, in part because of a brief conversation at a curbside restaurant in State College, Pa., on a fly fishing trip to the Nittany Mountains.