Reply #13: I think it's stronger with the SEC than it is with other conferences

[fishwax]

There are certainly Big 10, Pac 10, ACC, and Big 12 fans (perhaps even a few Big East fans) who will root for rivals out of loyalty to the conference, but I think the inclination is stronger with SEC teams. I think it has to do with the regional identity, which is more consistent and pronounced in the SEC than it is in any other conference. Every conference (heck, every team--even Notre Dame) has a tendency to believe that the powers that be (the BCS, ESPN, the media in general, etc.) is biased against them, but in SEC country that rhetoric resonates more deeply with broader cultural attitudes than it does in other regions.

I also do think it's stronger in college sports than pro sports, since universities have more structural connections to a state's/regions culture than sports teams do (since they represent opportunity for advancement for citizens; are more important employers than pro teams; and support the business, cultural, and political infrastructures of the state/region by training future leaders, etc.).

In pro leagues, though, there seems to be at least some tendency to support other teams at the conference/league level (as opposed to the division level). If the Mariners don't make the World Series and the AL team that does make the series is not a division rival (or hated for other reasons), are you more likely to pull for the AL team in the Series?