Union Jack Classic fails to spark on the pitch but electric atmosphere fires up Wembley | College football

You sensed that Britain’s first US college football game in nearly 40 years was going to be a very different experience when Wembley Way began to reverberate to the sound of steel, muscle and a few whoops long before kick-off.

The noise came from the Arizona State Sun Devils’ marching band, who were so energetic their horns and trombones swished from left to right like air raid lights hunting a target as they played.

Soon afterwards there came a risposte from the Kansas Jayhawks’ marching band, along with more cheers from the large crowd outside the stadium.

Watching on, two relaxed police officers were taking it all in when they were approached by a fan, Ian Taplin, from Milton Keynes. “I bet you’re glad you are not at Millwall,” he told them, leading them both to smile.

It was a scene that lingered during a humdrum match, played out over a long three hours and 37 minutes. Because, even in the lulls, those marching bands never let the atmosphere drop. The Jayhawks’ band played the Beatles Twist and Shout and Cameo’s Word Up. The Sun Devils’ band responded with Salt-N-Pepa’s Push It. It made for a great – and unique – atmosphere.

And the game itself? Well, let’s just say the Union Jack Classic did not live up to its billing. It was not a classic. The Arizona State Sun Devils won 24-17, a scoreline that was nowhere near as close as it sounds. Especially as, until the final minutes, the Jayhawks’ offense was as stodgy and uninspiring as suet pudding.

Before the game, the Fox Sports analyst Chris Fallica suggested to the Guardian that this match was the equivalent of a lower-tier Premier League or upper-tier Championship match. Think Nottingham Forest versus Coventry. He was soon proved correct.

Little happened until the game turned decisively in the space of a minute either side of half-time. At that point Kansas were leading a dull game 7-3, following a 72-yard punt return from Taty Nagy. But then everything changed.

First the Jayhawks’ punter Matthew Gill sliced a kick 17 yards. Then, on the following play, ASU quarterback Cutter Boley found Reed Harris for a 25-yard touchdown to make it 10-7.

Then, to rub vinegar into the wound, Jaren Hamilton dropped a shoulder, evaded a tackle, and ran in a 100-yard kick-off return to increase the lead to 17-7. “I had a feeling deep in my soul,” said the man they call Turbo. “I knew something was going to happen.”

The game was in effect over when 305lb defensive lineman Hyrum Vaeono recovered a fumble and ran 77 yards to set up a score that made it 24-7. There was a late comeback attempt from Kansas. But it was largely window dressing.

Meanwhile as the casual observers left Wembley they had more questions than answers. Was the 46,532 attendance a decent first effort, given the posh seats and executive boxes were full? Or was it a forced fumble, given that organisers had promised a 60,000 crowd?

It also seemed strange not to stage the game next weekend, during the three-week Premier League international break. Either way, it wasn’t the greatest of looks to see Wembley’s upper tier empty.

Then again, the atmosphere was good. And this was the start of what the Big 12 conference hopes will be a significant piece of brand-building in Europe.

“These schools are obviously getting rewarded financially to come over,” Fallica told the Guardian. “But it’s also about exposure. All these schools have international branches. They want international students to come over. So they are getting their brand out there.”

That much was clear as early as the game’s first timeout, with adverts telling the crowd that ASU has launched a London Campus and provides an “education unlike anything in the UK”, pumped on the big screens.

Brett Yormack, the commissioner of the Big 12, said that they wanted to follow the NFL by having more games in Europe – and said he hoped to announce next year’s Wembley game soon. “We’re not there yet, but I’m confident we’ll be back,” he said. “It’s been fantastic.”

That message was echoed by ASU coach Kenny Dillingham, who described the experience of coming to London as life changing,

“We’ve had multiple players saying: ‘Man, I want to come back now. I love this place. London is awesome. I want to come back and spend summer or Christmas out here’.

“When they asked me to do this game I said there’s a few things that are just mandatory for me. We’re bringing all 105 players. And our families are going to have a once in a lifetime experience. And our team didn’t flinch. They stepped up, they covered the cost, and they made it an experience that I think everybody and every family member, every player will remember for the rest of their life.”

His team clearly bought into the London experience. But whether the feeling is reciprocated between college football and Britain’s capital is likely to remain an open question.