College football - what's its purpose?

Before I start, I (again) wish to make a couple of disclaimers. The first is I am definitely not, in any way, suggesting that college football has no purpose. My question is a genuine one, not rhetorical. I invite answers. Secondly, in my last post, I was quick to downplay my knowledge of pro football, given that I'm a relative newcomer to the sport, and I live in the UK, where access is not as readily available. However my knowledge of pro football dwarfs my knowledge of college football, so please don't post just to point out how ignorant I am. I know. But at least I'm trying to do something about it. And the reason I'm trying to do something about it is that, as well as the obvious connection between the pro game and the college game through the draft, I am planning a trip in November to Atlanta, where my friend studies at Georgia Tech. Whilst there, as well as seeing the town and getting a feel for the college environment in the states, I will go to my first ever American football game, featuring Georgia Tech. I am desperate to avoid being as everyone would surely expect a Brit at a football game to be, so I've been doing a little research. It seems that the Georgia Tech offense is likely to be built around (but not solely rely upon) the triple option. This in itself intrigues me (maybe I'll devote a whole post to it at a later date!), but what really interests me is that this is just unheard of in NFL playbooks. In fact, delving a little deeper, there are a raft of other plays and concepts which feature heavily in the college game, but which just don't apply in the NFL. Keeping an eye on the draft earlier in the year, I found it interesting to hear comments such as "this guy is NFL-ready" and "this guy has all the attributes, but will need time to adjust to the NFL". So what I learn is that, in many cases, college football is a different game from pro football. I don't just mean that the standard of the NFL is much higher than that of the NCAA - one would expect that. But a lot of the things you learn in the college game are completely useless in the NFL. This leads me to the point of the article. What purpose does college football serve? To me, there are two parties with interests at stake here. The first is that select group of players who will eventually make the grade to the pro ranks. It is in these players interests for the college game to give them the best possible platform for success in the NFL - so when they reach that level, they are doing the same things they do now - just "better". The other group, of course, is the vast majority of players, for whom college football is the pinnacle. For them, college football must provide opportunities to compete, to enjoy, and if possible, to win. So this is where the plays which make an impact at college level, but which are toothless in the NFL must come in. Creating a playbook based solely around preparing your star players for the pro ranks is of no importance to these players, if it means the other 40 of them have no fun, and get beaten every week. Of course the fans must be considered, but this is a slightly greyer area for me, since I don't know any. What I've heard, however, is that many fans prefer college football precisely because it is a different game, with a different atmosphere around the stadium. So maybe they side with the majority of players there, although I'm sure they'd love to see their hero in the college game go on to make it big in the pro ranks. So which is it to be? Should colleges protects their own interests and create a team designed to win, ignoring those players who will eventually enter the pro ranks? Or should they try to mirror the NFL as closely as possible, so when a player does make the grade, he has the greatest possible chance of success? For me, from what I know, the current balance seems about right. College football has a massive fanbase - and to a Brit, this is something completely foreign - and ultimately, if you're good enough, you will make it in the NFL, regardless of your college experiences.