A look across the in-stadium intro videos found so far for the 2026 season. What they share, where they differ, and links to watch each one.
Missing your school? Send us your intro →The most common structure opens with a narrated script over slow, moody footage, then hits a beat drop into big-play highlights scored with real radio or TV calls ("Touchdown Army," "Touchdown Cards"). Eight of the ten official videos with captions use broadcast calls this way.
Several videos sell place before program. Cal's "Bay Area Takeover" stages the team across a CGI Bay Area. Arizona is "Powered by Tucson." FIU calls Miami "the crib." Oklahoma State rides "with a Posse of all 77 counties," and SMU's run-out is built around "Dallas, we're here."
Heritage is a frequent anchor. FIU builds its whole piece around season 25, with a VHS-style opening. Pitt's board runs a tally of All-Americans and Hall of Famers. UCLA tells the story of the Rose Bowl through alum Eric Kendricks. Army opens on the "Duty, Honor, Country" speech, and Michigan's board uses archival photos.
Weather and elemental power recur as the visual metaphor. Iowa's "Swarm the Storm" opens under black skies. Arizona's piece is built on electricity arcing off players. Oklahoma State "called down the thunder." Arizona State's "ALIVE" and Texas Tech's cut lean on fire, red light and molten logos.
3D work is now common at every level. UCF flies through a rendered stadium to a chrome Knight helmet. FIU's panther and Pitt's panther statue are animated. Texas Tech's Double T forges in fire, and Arizona State's opening uses wireframe and particle effects.
At some of the biggest venues, the entrance is a long-running ritual rather than a new film: Virginia Tech's "Enter Sandman," Nebraska's Tunnel Walk, Utah's Tunnel Walk and Ole Miss's "Mississippi Throw It Up." The board content wraps around the ritual instead of replacing it.
"Written in the Sky" is the most fully committed concept in the set. It uses cowboys silhouetted at sunset, the Outlaws' "(Ghost) Riders in the Sky" and clips from Tombstone, with thanks credited to an Oklahoma City drive-in theatre.
At 2:26 it is the longest official cut by almost a minute. Most of it is a narrated poem about the pirate legend before any football appears.
Both credit Major Media Agency, with David Sosna as producer on Cal and executive producer on ASU. Cal went cinematic and VFX-heavy with an original score. ASU's "ALIVE" is a fast, graphic 58 seconds.
Former Bruin and NFL veteran Eric Kendricks tells the story of UCLA in the Rose Bowl ("Two colors. One stadium. One heartbeat.").
The 25th season frames the whole video, from retro TV static and archival clips to a closing "25 Seasons" mark.
Twelve of the fifteen run between 1:00 and 1:40. The median is 1:19. Fan recordings are left out because they include time before and after the video.
Three sources split the field: licensed songs fans already know, production-library tracks built for sports and trailers, and the occasional original score.
| School | Track |
|---|---|
| Cal | Original score by Kyle Kasket |
| Duke | "Sons of the Valley" – Pavo Real |
| East Carolina | "High Octane" – Jo Blankenburg |
| Iowa | "BIRDS" – Turnstile |
| Louisville | "At the Top (Alternate 2)" – Gabriel Saban, Lionel Jerome Fabert, Patrick Kabongo |
| Nebraska | "Sirius" – The Alan Parsons Project |
| Oklahoma State | "(Ghost) Riders in the Sky" – The Outlaws |
| Oregon State | "Public Service Announcement (Interlude)" – JAY-Z |
| Virginia Tech | "Enter Sandman" – Metallica |