Football

Yes I think there is a big difference between the general public and the college students.

College kids live in tight quarters with kids from all over the world, and from many diverse social groups.
They learn to make nice with each other, and in fact come to like the diversity.

Ohio State is a huge campus, probably close to 100,000 including students, faculty and employees, volunteers, etc.
You have to learn to get along with folks different from yourself.

One of my neighbors was a big Magat bubba type, hated liberals, gays, you name it.
His oldest son was the same, but he went off to the Ohio State main campus and came back a changed kid.
He defended LGBTs and even got into a fist fight with his dad over it. It was the talk of the neighborhood.
I liked that kid ever since.

Cool you went to the sugar bowl that year.