Florida man takes 60,000-mile road trip to 77 college football games across the US

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- A man named Ben teamed up with Betty to travel, by himself, to visit 115 different teams. No, this isn't a riddle; it's just one epic college football road trip.

Ben Chase, a 33-year-old man from Florida with a law degree and who loves college football, was out of a job and decided to make some history and memories.

"My thesis for the trip was: nothing brings people together more than college football," Ben said in an interview with ABC13. "I wanted to try to ingrain myself in every culture possible and try to learn a tradition or two."

A tradition or two? How about 115?

According to Ben, the record for most games attended during a single college football season is 57. So he mapped a course around three fall weddings to which he was invited, and an epic trip was underway.

During the 2022-23 college football season, Ben drove 60,230 miles, covering ground in the lower 48 United States - mostly in his white van, so lovingly called Betty White. That is until the transmission blew 40 games into the trip, so he snagged a rental car for about 6,000 miles.

Ben attended 77 college football games featuring 115 teams in 75 different stadiums.

Ben shared his entire experience in the interview with ABC13, all from his white van.

"When you're just there going for a team, no one is talking about politics," Ben shared. "You're there, and you're family. That rang true. I literally spent the night at a coach's house."

That coach was Central Michigan's Jim McElwain. No bench boss in Texas offered that type of hospitality, but Ben's multiple games in Texas left an impression.

"Prairie View, Baylor and Texas State - something was surprising on each one," Ben recalled. "Prairie View A&M has one of the nicest new stadiums in the country, and their atmosphere is electric. Unfortunately, they lost the game to Alcorn State. Then, you had Texas State, which had probably the most-underrated tailgating experience in the country for the students. To me, Baylor has maybe the most under-reported traditions that I enjoyed in the whole trip," he said.

Ben also attended the Alabama vs. Texas game in Austin on the same day he went to Texas State. He was also on hand for six bowl games in Texas and the Rockets' home game vs. Utah on Jan. 5

On Monday, Ben will start his new job at his alma mater. He's been hired as the Director of Name, Image & Likeness (NIL) Strategy at the University of Florida, a job he applied for before he began his historic trip.

"It's storybook," Ben said of his new endeavor. "I'm very lucky and blessed, and I'm excited about this next chapter. And I think the things I've seen across the country add value to my new role."

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