Being true to your school in a faraway land

The Western sports leagues best known in China are the professional ones such as the NBA, the English Premier League and the Bundesliga.

US college sports teams are little known here. What seems to be a mystery to many Chinese are the deep passions local university teams arouse among fans - they are much more widely popular than pro teams in most cases.

The Chinese system is more geared toward having the most talented athletes attend specialized sports schools.