There are few better excuses for getting together with friends and loved ones than to root on your favorite football team. But whether it's the local high school on Friday, your alma mater on Saturday or the pros on Sunday, no football watch party is complete without some hearty food.

With that in mind, we drew up a football watch party playbook. It's a sampling of some our favorite tailgate party foods. Even if we can't guarantee your squad will win, we're confident the plays we drew up will have all of your guests doing their best touchdown dances.

We'll leave it up to you to decide if your friend who showed up in your rival team's jersey gets to join in or has to sit the bench.

Football Watch Party: Starting Lineup

These four star recipes are the anchors to any successful football watch party. They aren't the fanciest or the flashiest, but you can't go wrong with these building blocks.

What's football without wings? There's no shortage of wings recipes to choose from at Kraft, but we love these for game day because the crispy wings combine with hot BBQ sauce and cool ranch dip to create complex flavors that belie the recipe’s simplicity. This recipe is enough for 12 servings. Be sure to adjust based on the size of your football watch party. Check out the recipe for our Crispy Baked Hot Chicken Wings & Dip.

With layer upon layer of hearty toppings, these nachos remind us of a scrum of players all diving to secure a fumble. Unlike that, though, this is one pile you won't mind be in the center of. When hot chips, meat and beans meet cool sour cream, guacamole, tomatoes and lettuce, we won't blame you if you get a little distracted from the game for a few minutes. Dive into our Nachos with Cheesy Beef for game day.

Go long with a fun twist on traditional jalapeño pepper appetizer. Jalapeño peppers stuffed with cheddar and PHILADELPHIA Spicy Jalapeño Cream Cheese Spread are the perfect receiver for football-like smoked cocktail sausages. They're spicy. They're smooth. They're smoky. And they won't be on the table long. You don’t need to be a star wideout to make a one-handed grab of these Smoky Jalapeño Peppers.

When you're cooking for a crowd, one-pot meals make cleanup that much easier. It's especially easy when your guests are likely to scrape up every last bit for themselves. This chili recipe can be prepared in just 30 minutes and makes 12 servings, which should be plenty as long as you're not trying to feed an entire offensive line. When building your plate, it pairs perfectly next to the nachos. Warm up our Cheesy Chili for a Crowd.

Football Watch Party: Hurry-Up Offense

These easy recipes are great plays for facilitating last-minute plans or satiating hungry guests who don't want to wait for your star players to take the field.

Set out a bowl of salsa and chips to tease the taste buds of what's to come. Charred peppers and pineapple come together to create a contrast of sweet and heat. And while the dish's color may be evocative of yellow penalty flags, the only infraction with this recipe would be if you don't prepare enough for seconds. Kick things off with our Spicy Jalapeño-Pineapple Salsa.

This cheesy dip brings together three staples of tailgate party food: cheese, wing flavor and beer. Serve it alongside your favorite dippers, such as veggies, chips, and bread. Get the scoop on our Spicy Buffalo Beer Dip.

There's nothing wrong with store-bought onion dip, but like the difference between practice and a real game, there's nothing that can completely replicate the real thing. This cheesy dip is flavored with mildly sweet onions and baked to golden-brown glory. Like the beer cheese, it goes great with a variety of dippers. Try our Creamy Vidalia Onion Dip.

If traditional chicken wings are too big a hassle or too messy for what you envision for your tailgate party food, call an audible while maintaining that familiar Buffalo flavor. These wraps let you take Buffalo chicken on the go, without the sticky fingers and leftover bones to deal with. Wrap up your football watch party menu with Buffalo Chicken Wraps.

Football Watch Party: Victory Formation

After your team has clinched victory, break out the football desserts. From team-inspired Jell-O® Jigglers® to a sweet cookies-and-cream football dip, we have the recipes to satisfy your sweet tooth and celebrate your team's victory. Our Football Pie Cookies make a great clincher, bringing together cream cheese and pecans in bite-size sweets.

Don't forget to stay hydrated.

We have a huge catalog of beverage recipes and cocktails, find one that matches your team's color scheme to really display your fandom. If you're starting early, your guest may need a little pick-me-up. Learn the secrets to making big-batch brew with our Coffee for a Crowd. Give the coffee a little kick, make our version of Irish coffee. For a refreshing blend of tea and citrus, try our Orange Iced Tea.

If you're looking for even more tailgate party food and entertaining ideas, check out our full football party center.