1) Cheese (shredded, slices, anything...)
2) Frozen Meatballs
3) Crescent rolls
4) Cream cheese
5) Frozen slider buns
6) Pizza sauce
7) Tortillas
8) Salsa
9) BBQ sauce
10) Tortilla chips
Cheese - probably the #1 food staple I have in my house at all times. For football parties, I always make some kind of dip:
Frozen meatballs - the reason I love these so much is because you don't have to waste time thawing them. Just dump them in a crock pot with some sauce (I love just mixing ketchup, brown sugar, and a little BBQ sauce together) and let them cook. OR, you can also throw them in the microwave for a few minutes if you're short on time with your sauce, and then throw them in a crock pot after they're heated to keep them warm. I love using these for meatball sliders (see above pic!) - simply put some saucy meatballs on some slider buns (or use Hawaiian rolls, those are my favorite!) and melt some cheese over them in the oven for about 10 minutes at 350. This takes less than 10 minutes to prep and they are SO cute and delicious.
Crescent rolls - I use these for last minute pigs in a blanket, calzones or pizza rolls (just spread on some pizza sauce and cheese, then roll up and bake) or even for cold veggie pizzas with a cream cheese/ranch base. You can also stuff some of your cheese dip inside (like Buffalo Chicken Dip!) and roll them up and bake, either cutting them into pinwheels, or keeping them in their crescent shape (serve with some extra pizza sauce for dipping!):
For impromptu desserts, I totally cheat - I use foods in my panty and just make them look like football-themed delicacies. I'm also a fan of trifles (<-my fancy version of just shoving pre-made sweets or fruit in a bowl with some pudding/cool whip - repeat for fancy layers, and poof - awesome dessert). In the pic below, these are just pre-made brownie bites, oatmeal cream pies (yes, the ones that cost like $1.25 for a box of 12!) and some Rice Krispie treats (from a package - I always have these in my pantry for emergencies!) and a little frosting on top for the theme.