Traveling to a Home Game (UGA) Without Leaving Home!

This past Saturday (10/16/10) was Homecoming at UGA vs, Vanderbilt and although the call to return to Sanford Stadium is a strong one I had been out of town the past 3 Saturdays and had agreed to do some volunteer work in Canton with my wife.

The Cherokee Chamber of Commerce hosted the 3rd Annual "Cherokee Pignic", a regional BBQ competition that incorporates professional BBQ teams, local restaurants and a highly competitive amateur division that brings out dozens of local entries. My favorite part of the weekend is the "People's Choice" tent that allows the amateurs to qualify (seems like 20 were selected) and you pay $5 for 8 tickets and sample their finest fare and vote with your ticket to select the "People's Choice". It like doing BBQ shots! (hint for next year; when you buy the tickets also buy a bottle of water to cleanse the pallet and help with swallowing!!).

My wife and I were working the admissions booth (one of either side of the entrance) and although my new approach to UGA football is to NOT obsess with the game (therefore agreeing to sell tickets and not watch it on TV) we both dressed in our Red&Black shirts and I did take a small radio to listen as we worked. What happened next is no surprise to any SEC fan (let alone Bulldog fan) but demonstrates the cameradie of SEC fans everywhere. Since we were both dressed in Georgia colors you would think that when someone asked for the score they would be referring to the GA/Vandy game (98% were of course) but one fellow wearing maroon and gold asked the score and when I happily replied "36-0" I thought he was going to faint! I never did know what game HE was asking about but when I followed up with "Ga-Vandy" he visibly relaxed.

Cars with UGA tags unloaded men, women, old, young, infants (and every age in between) and they would come through the booth wearing Ga. caps, shirts, bibs, etc. and with an easy "how's it going" and the brother and sisterhood of UGA would immediately kick in as I gave the score. I went to get something to eat at the concessions building and ran into a high school-age student with a GA. cap on and asked if he had heard the latest score and he replied no, "I'm getting text updates on my phone but I've been so busy I can't even check it!". I gave him the score (43-0 at that point) and left another smiling fan. Another fan came through the booth wearing a Clemson orange and purple shirt but a Florida cap and I asked him if he was in a hurry to get dressed that morning (he professed to be a UF fan, little did he know what awaited him in Gainesville).

At the end of our shift, and very close to the end of the game, I reflected on the connection we all shared via the SEC, not just UGA, but all SEC football. Fans everywhere will share and commiserate with fans from other schools (especially if they have suffered from the big 2, UA and UF) and as is human nature, we enjoy watching the underdog win against all odds (unless it is OUR team that is the favorite) and we see things from another perspective when situations change (i.e. I used to have great animosity towards Steve Spurrier for all those whippings in Jacksonville but as the Gamecocks coach he has earned my grudging admiration).

On a Homer note; We can celebrate the small things at UGA, no one has been arrested for at least a week, the offense is producing and the defense is beginning to gel. What I do know and believe with all my heart and soul is that Mark Richt is the best thing that has happened to Georgia Football since Vince Dooley was named the head coach 46 years ago and his calm, steady hand is in no small part the reason the Red and Black ship has corrected its course and begun to steer in a more acceptable direction!

South Carolina Becomes Relevant!

Sorry I've been away for a few weeks but between traveling to Washington, D.C. (twice) and actually working in an honest job for a few days a week I have just now managed to motivate myself to write about South Carolina and Williams Brice Stadium. I did some research before we rolled into Columbia for the home opener and we did find Maurice's BBQ with that wonderful SC mustard-based sauce. My only disappointment was that it was outside of town away from the Cock-fans!

When we arrived at the stadium we parked on the southeast side (from the interstate) about 5 blocks from WB and walked towards individual tail-gaters and got our first look at the long line of "Cock-a-booses (?)". That was quite unique and VERY impressive to see what appeared to be 35-40 cabooses, on rails, within 100 feet of that stadium. I guess because it was a Thursday start to the home opener the partying was quite subdued. I estimated to temperature around 5 pm at 94 (plus) degrees so more people were drinking water than alcohol (yours truly included). Now I have to say that the 'water rule' did not extend to the USC students who (like all SEC student fans) were using any excuse to 'go to the well' long and often (more about that in a minute). As we walked around the stadium, Cock-a-booses, and the fairgrounds parking lots we observed quite a few parties, mostly a little understated because of the heat, opponent, and a Thursday game. We did receive quite the hospitality from members of the Carolina Collegiate Credit Union as they distributed water to weary souls from all over.

The Captain and I were welcomed quite heartedly by the small (but upbeat) contingent of Southern Miss fans as we waited for the stadium to open. They were upbeat and positive viewing the game as "great exposure" for their program. I met a couple from Mobile whose son started for the Eagles and we exchanged pleasantries and local stories about Mobile and the Gulf Coast (both the Captain and my wife's family is from the Mississippi Coast), they were VERY nice! We were fortunate to be in the shade at that point (Carolina fans know what I'm talkin' about) and observed "Cocky" and the cheerleaders make their rounds and had to duck out of the way for the ESPN/DirecTV bus to come rambling by.

We were careful to dress in neutral and/or benign colors so we could blend in since we are sampling everything local about each stadium and their fans and not advertise that we were not "from around here." When we got into the stadium and found our seats (quite good, row 6, around the 40 yard line behind the Southern Miss bench) the crowd (mostly students) filed in, and in, and in, and in! By the time the pre-game activities were ready to begin everyone in front of us were standing (I guess in excitement), not only standing up, but standing on their seats to the point that I couldn't see anything. The mostly students that were sitting around us had been partying quite awhile and don't understand the value and importance of drinking water (either before, with, or after) their alcohol. Walking into the stadium proved to be quite the challenge for many of them. I defer to the Captain at this point to offer up his opinion but suffice it to say after one quarter of watching the game on the jumbotron we took off to find a seat in the upper level where we could watch the game AND breathe.

I have to say that as the season has progressed "the old ball coach" and his team have proven to be solid and a real contender for the SEC East. Of course there are 2 major obstacles, one in the East (UF) and another in the West (UA) and they will be tested this week BUT the USC student section is as loud as I have witnessed (I'm anxious to visit Baton Rouge)and when they crank up the volume and start waving those white towels in the end zone, they truly become a relevant and important "12th man" for the Gamecocks!

On the Road in the SEC:
I know it’s been awhile since I last posted a blog but being retired brings its own risks and rewards and work (even part time) is not what it’s made out to be! On our road trip the first week of September, that culminated in being in Columbia (the current residence of the “old ball coach”) for South Carolina’s home opener and the debut of running back Marcus Latimore, we had a serendipitous encounter with an Auburn fan in the hinterlands of South Carolina.
My UGA son and I were driving to Washington, D.C. (by way of Delaware, an explanation forthcoming) and I was tired of driving on I-85 and saw a sign to the “Cowpens National Battlefield” maintained by the National Park Service. As a child from a middle class family who loved to travel but could only afford to camp along the way, we planned vacations around National Parks and National Forests as a means to visit and see faraway places and in doing so I learned to love our nation’s history and geography. The Battle of Cowpens was a turning point for the young Continental Army in the Revolutionary War. On a sleepy Monday afternoon (Aug. 30) I turned off the highway, followed the signs to Cowpens National Battlefield and found a pristine National Park and very well-informed park attendants to give an enthusiastic tour to break the monotony of a hot, sultry South Carolina afternoon.
We had no more entered the visitor center (dressed rather conspicuously in UGA attire) when the first words out of the mouth of the person at the Visitors’ desk was not “welcome to Cowpens” but “You must be lost. What are 2 Dawg fans doing in the middle of South Carolina?”. John Robertson, a retired textile engineer from Auburn who had spent the majority of his career in the Carolina Textile industry, is now an employee at Cowpens NB. After razzing us (albeit good-naturedly) for being UGA fans he quickly turned his conversation to a date in Dec. 1972 and I immediately (and correctly) identified it as the tremendous upset of Shug Jordan’s Auburn Tigers over Bear Bryant’s dominant Crimson Tide, 17-16. He was amazed that a Dawg fan would know that but I did grow in Bowdon, Ga., 3 miles from the Alabama state line. It would have been almost impossible to not know that date.
John Robertson typifies the SEC fan, he is rabidly and fiercely loyal to his alma mater but when it comes to the brotherhood of the SEC (Yankee John Kincaid notwithstanding); understanding and accepting the camaderie of SEC fans everywhere is what it’s all about!
HarrydDawg!
PS – John Robertson did give us a wonderfully energetic and informative tour!

What’s unique about Williams-Brice Stadium and the Gamecocks?

The Captain and myself (HarryD) are beginning our SEC stadium tour next week with the home opener in Columbia at Williams-Brice Stadium in Columbia, S.C. We will be traveling the East Coast from Delaware, through Washington, D.C. (dropping off my UGA senior to spend a semester in the nation’s capital), and booking it down to Columbia for SC’s home opener against Southern Miss and ending the week at the UGA home opener.

I was doing some research online and contacted some friends in Columbia and heard about “Cockaboose(s)” and Maurice’s BBQ. Since this is an SEC travel blog and the tailgating and hospitality experience is at least as important as the game I am asking Gamecock fans to weigh in on the special and/or unique aspects of tailgating in Columbia. Williamsbrice.com touts WB as “The best” game day atmosphere as voted by ‘SEC sports’; we want to know why it is “the best!”
We will include anecdotes, recipes, and pictures of anyone who wishes to contribute to the “SECtravelblog”. So Gamecock fans fire up the old computer and join our revelry and appreciation of all things SEC. We look forward to visiting you on Sept. 2!
HarryD

No, it’s not a bad rip off of a 1970’s pop duo! Our first blog post comes on the heels of the Damon Evans fiasco, and more recently, the suspension of 2 starters for UGA and once again brings to mind that Georgia has to continually struggle to rise above the mire and the muck that clings to the second tier of SEC football, or maybe it’s just another reminder of “sh*t happens”, either way I hope that Coach Richt can soon rejoin the spotlight for Georgia and begin again to exude class for the UGA football program.

First, about the Capt.: He is a world traveler, has served his country for 21 years in the Air Force, has also worked as a small town policeman, an elementary school science teacher and is currently transporting and detonating dynamite on the west coast when he’s not traveling the south attending SEC football games. Also, he was raised on the Florida Panhandle and is a Gator and Tide fan (although he claims the Crimson Tide rules the day). The ‘Captain’ serves a dual purpose; he was an Air Force Capt. And he is a licensed sailing Capt. As well. He’s brilliant but everyone has some flaws!

I am a Georgia Bulldog, born and bred in the state of Georgia, graduated from the University of Georgia, spent 32 years ‘coaching’ bands (marching bands, not outlaws) in north Georgia, traveling to various and sundry Friday night football games and attending as many UGA games as possible. With the addition of this retirement avocation I am planning on making many more games at Sanford Stadium as well as across the SEC.

The Captain and I (HarryD) have recently retired and are beginning our tour of SEC stadiums and games and will cheer on every SEC team (except of course when they are playing vs. our ‘first’ favorite) and will compare stadiums, campuses, tail-gating opportunities and the local favorite cuisine.

49 days and counting down to our first stop and the South Carolina home opener!!