I moved from NYC to Alabama while I was in high school and football had a life of its own. I don't remember football being that big in high school in NYC, maybe in Jersey. But in Alabama the high school football games were played in stadiums and they were always packed.. It was huge!!!
Of course at the college level there's Alabama and Auburn and others. The fans are insane down there, but then again there really wasn't much else to do on a Friday night or Saturday. I do remember football as being the "be all, end all" for everyone. It was date night, family night, hanging out night etc. It's where everyone, of every age, went for fun.
The Northeast seems to be into college basketball more so than football. Weird..