On Georgia's fan behavior

You might have seen a letter floating around on reddit about an Auburn fan's experience in Athens. You can see an article about it here.

A couple of thoughts:

• I'm not going to be one of those people who say 'that couldn't have happened.' Clearly, it can. If you've ever done a road trip, it can happen. I've had all of those things happen to me (not in one weekend) during my travels, usually at Tech, South Carolina and in Jacksonville. I'm sure some or all of it did happen.
• Overall, the Auburn game really brings out the worst in UGA fans. I had some unpleasant interactions with UGA fans over parking/tailgate things. Even when I tried to make nice, the particular fan I had interacted with was a jackass. Such is life.
• I saw plenty of Auburn folks about Saturday, and way too many in my section. None of them looked spat upon, were called bad names, or were physically threatened. There was some mutual back and forth at times, but that was it.
• I made exactly one negative comment to an Auburn fan, and it was about the person that gave them their tickets. I felt bad about that and apologized for my comment (while the game was still close).
• If you participated in the behavior described, or didn't stop your friends or others from that behavior, shame on you. If you spit on anyone, you need to go to jail for the night. And no, spitting on Auburn people doesn't make it ok.
• This is the type of thing that makes the UGA administration hate night games.

I'm truly sorry the Auburn fan had a bad time and feels this way. I didn't go to Auburn for 25 years because of getting hosed down in my first trip there. I'm sorry I missed some good times by my stand. While I got some pretty salty comments last year, especially after the game, it was nothing I wouldn't expect. Getting spit on is something I wouldn't expect. 

So from one Dawg fan to the writer of the letter, a promise: if I ever see someone doing that to a visiting fan, I'll step up, just as I would have on Saturday if I'd seen it being done to you. UGA has an equal number of crappy fans as many, many other schools. It is shameful that we do, but we do.

TD

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Charleston Southern and Tech to kickoff at noon on SECC

I expected Charelston Southern to be a noon kickoff. According to Emerson, Tech will be at noon on SEC Network, as well...

News on Georgia's final two games: Noon kickoffs on SEC Network for both of them. Charleston Southern on Nov. 22, Georgia Tech on Nov. 29.
— Seth Emerson (@SethEmerson) November 10, 2014

So this Saturday is your last week to tailgate it up for this season.
TD

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- Auburn Tickets
- Charleston Southern Tickets
- Georgia Tech Tickets

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Saturday Weather in Columbia

Wonder which team has the tools to handle rain? Bros, I hate that you are going to tailgate on the back lot of the studio that they shot Mad Max at while wet.

SatSep 13

86°

72°

T-Storms

CHANCE OF RAIN:

80%

 

WIND:

SSE at 5 mph

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Lewis Grizzard's letter to his son

I'm not posting all of "Great moments in a would be father's life" because I don't want to be accused of living in glory years from 30 years ago, but it fits with my current mind set. My favorite passage is

I hugged perfect strangers and kissed a fat lady on the mouth. Grown men wept. Lightening flashed. Thunder rolled. Stars fell, and joy swept through, fetched by a hurricane of unleashed emotions.

Grizzard was an unmatched poet when it comes to capturing a moment that all of us can relate to, even if you weren't alive in 1984. He hated Clemson the proper way, lustily and with vigor. Actaully, he hated everyone UGA played in the same way. 

Here's hoping folks have a few more names to add to their boy names list after tonight. It is game day folks.

TD

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Saturday weather

I can deal with 93°, because it is August in Athens. It is the chance of storms that has hovered between a scary 60% and 20% all week. Not that I'll go anywhere either way, but hanging out with 92K people in the concourse of Sanford while the thunder rolls isn't my idea of fun. Hopefully, whatever rain we have in the area will fall on my dying tomatoes and not on campus.

Day Aug 30

93°FHigh

Partly Cloudy

Chance of Rain:

20%

Wind:

SE at 6 mph

Humidity:

60%

UV Index:

9 - Very High

Sunrise:

7:06 am

Moonrise:

11:38 am

Moonphase:

Waxing Crescent

Partly cloudy skies. High 93F. Winds SE at 5 to 10 mph.

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GDay or How I learned to love Spring tailgating

I know it's been quiet time here. No excuses outside of work, kids, work, work, and work. And kids.

Also, while I'm interested in GDay proper, I'm as blah about what actually happens today as I've been in a long time. There are a lot of reasons for that, but the biggest is the two and a half game sneak peek we got from Hutson Mason back in the fall. Yes, I'm interested in seeing Ramsey sling the ball down field. I'm interested in seeing how the RBs look, especially Gurley. I'm interested in seeing how Pruitt's approach differs from Grantham's. I'm interested in seeing Quayvon Hicks at TE.

From recent past experience, we'll have one or two guys on defense stand out, with one of them doing something stupid and being forced into rumored that he has a one or two game suspension that will be announced at kickoff against Clemson. We'll either have a score fest or will struggle to score, either causing the message boards to melt down. We'll either make all the FGs or miss several....

GDay is fun, but it is just a glorified open scrimmage that ends up having no real bearing on what we'll see in the fall (and a cool reason to meet on campus for food and drink, but I digress).

Still, there are two things I'm looking for:

1. The defense, both the #1 and #2 units, to look like they are where they are supposed to be. Thinking back to the past two GDays, the confusion that was one of the most frustrating things about Grantham's tenure here was on display. We keep hearing about Pruitt's approach and how it is more intuitive/simple. I want to see that.
2. The offensive line to look competent and consistent. Blutarsky hit on something that I've been frustrated with for two seasons, the lack of a regular bunch playing up front. It looks like Theus, Andrews, Pyke, and Houston have locked up spots. Putting aside the inconsistent play from the guys in this bunch, I think getting a regular bunch and having them work together all summer and into fall will be beneficial. Especially to my psyche. Also, I'd think any of the three (Kublanow, DeBell, and Beard) still fighting for the right guard have the ability to play any of the other line spots but center, so we'll have solid backups.

Bring your canned goods. Show up and have some chicken. Visit with old friends. It's GDay, y'all.

Go Dawgs.

TD

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Saturday was Best Football Day

Yesterday was a perfect storm of awesome. Beautiful weather. Great crowd. Terrific tailgate atmosphere. When I got to campus about 6:30, there were people lined up like they were giving away booze. Crazy. I'll have more on the crowd later, but mad props to the students for showing up way early and leading the stadium's atmosphere.

I had friends trying to get tickets that said the price never fell below $150, if you could find anyone with tickets for sale. That was after kickoff. Just a nuts market. As hard as the 2008 Alabama game, at least.

Also, to my LSU bros, thanks for keeping your crap together. The LSU invitees at our tailgate were gracious, fun, and most importantly, didn't smell of corn dogs. No one got out of line, even at the game. Besides their attempts to infect our food and set up with LSU themed items, they were as fun and friendly as you could hope. I hate that I had to throw away all those paper towels, the food, and cups, but I did give you fair warning that was going to happen if you put that crap on my table.

TD

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LSU is here

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Commit to the G

I haven't been this excited about a tailgate and game in a long time. Get your asses over here.

TD

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There is no Plan B

As the coffee perks, a couple of last minute thoughts:

• It would be glorious if this is like that 2004 game.
• I'm getting more an more excited about Murray working against LSU's DBs.
• I'm getting more and more nervous about Hill and the middle of our line.
• I'm sure you've seen, but the GameDay guest pickers at Bubba Watson and some dude from West Monroe, LA. 

Bring it loud for Paul Oliver. RIP.

TD

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Party Bus from Atlanta for South Carolina game for a good cause

Check it out. Proceeds benefits Wgirls Atlanta, part of a nationwide organization that serve disadvantaged women and children.

Looks like a fun trip if you are looking for a ride and party.
TD

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WSJ: Hotel rates rise on game weekends in the SEC

In other news, the sun came up today.

There is nothing too earth shattering here, but they did note that the average SEC fan stays in town longer than the average Big 12 fan did.

Just eyeballing this, it isn't hard to see the teams that did well in 2012, Auburn excepted. The article noted how small the bump is for Vandy, but of all the schools on the list, Vandy has the largest number of hotel rooms with the smallest stadium in the conference. Metro Nashville has approximately 36,000 hotel rooms. Vanderbilt stadium holds just a little over 10000* so that isn't hard math. I'd venture Lexington is second in the conference for number of rooms, what with the all the horse stuff going on there.

And who wants to stay in Columbia, South Carolina?

Pretty interesting chart when you start thinking about road trips. They even hit on those fans that just head to games for the tailgates.

TD

*I might have rounded down

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Pour some out for your Homies

It is Homecoming. This is a cool time of the football season for me. We get to catch up with old friends, see who we are going to be in a few years, and increasingly, see who we were a few years back. I always enjoy seeing the cheerleaders from years past leading cheers. I'm guessing I'll be less interested in that in a few years when my contemporaries are leading cheers, and I hear the crowd talk about 'them cute old ladies' down there.

It is also a time of introspection. We've all lost folks that mean a lot to us over the year. We've also lost some Damn Good Dawgs in the past year: Munson, Sky, Conrad Fink and countless others. So tip a bit out for your Homies that aren't here with us today.

They've earned it.

TD

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Go Dawgs

Long day tail gating. Let's GATA.

This just seemed right for today.

Do Dawgs!

TD

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South's Best Tailgate - Vote for UGA

Go here to vote.

The line up is... eclectic, but Clemson is winning right now.  Remember you can vote once a day.
TD

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Tennessee Road Game

The hardest part about going to an away game is figuring out what your tailgate plans are.  Knoxville is a relatively easy three hour drive from Atlanta, four hour drive from Athens, and 25 years from both places.  Last I checked, there were some hotels a relatively short drive from Knoxvegas, keeping in mind that getting out of downtown there is like leaving Atlanta, but no mass transit, only one interstate and more donkey carts. 

Getting in shouldn't be that big of a deal with a 7pm kickoff.  There are some open tailgate options, with the best one I've seen being the Hedges2Hardwood's soire.  Contact them for more info.  They promise coozies. UGA's official spot will probably be the Knoxville Marriott.  It is also my experience that if you can get past the nasty orange, Tennessee fans are always happy to share their hooch. 

I mean moonshine.  Not their lady companions.  Gotta keep it in the family.

TD

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Tailgating Success

Apparently, we are playing nicely together again.  UGA made comments about how tailgaters cleaned up this week.  That they commented on it positively is a good sign. 

I noticed a considerable number of trash and recylcling bins distributed around.  I also noted that people had done a better job of cleaning up their tailgating sites after the game. The crowd got started later than I would have thought, especially for a 4:30 game, so that could have something to do with it.  Still, cleaning up after ourselves is a good start to getting the Stasi approved rules imposed on us relaxed.  

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Don't blow this

UGA announced yesterday that they are relaxing tailgate restrictions on North Campus. Most of the changes make sense ... allowing you to tailgate for 5 hours instead of 4 and bringing tents and tables back.

But I still don't get why they haven't banned Styrofoam coolers. If they allow disposable equipment on campus and continually fail to provide adequate trash cans, why are they shocked that drunk people make such a mess? I'm not justifying the mess. I'm just saying...they aren't playing to the strengths and weaknesses of their target audience.

Also no word on trailers being allowed back on campus. Here's hoping that eventually gets resolved.

PWD

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Advice Needed: Georgia vs. Florida Game Water Taxi?

Dawgnoxious and I are thinking of ditching our long standing Adams Street tailgate spot in favor of pre-gaming at a local bar and then going to the game via Water Taxi. We'd rather not drive to or from the stadium.

So my question is...how do we do that? Who do I talk to? What websites can you guys hook me up with?

We're staying in Deerwood Park this year which is east of the River. For those not familiar with the city, we're South of the stadium on I-95 between the interstate and the beach.

We're game for partying anywhere east/south of the stadium near a water taxi location. Ideally, there would be a lot of other Dawg fans tailgating with us. And we don't want to fight traffic to get to the bar...ideally.

Please post your suggestions in the comments.

Thanks!

Paul Westerdawg and Dawgnoxious

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Bourbon to Check Out

A few months ago, I tried a small batch bourbon called "Old Pogue Master's Select." A friend of the blog (and of the distillers) brought a bottle to a tailgate last season for Dawgnoxious and I to try. We were blown away. (Image: GotBourbon.com)

As BulldoginExile told me after he tried it, the flavors of honey and butter are so unexpected as to really impress. I'm not typically a guy that drinks his bourbon neat, but Pogue was so smooth that it worked incredibly well for our initial tasting(s).

I bring it up now because I saw that the package store in Athens next door to Five and Ten restaurant now carries it in stock. So, I no longer have to order online or have friends bring me a bottle when they are in the Midwest.

Just something to consider as you ponder life's meaning or the impact of the 3-4 on UGA's defense as we wait for football season to return.

PWD

Note: This is not a paid endorsement. And yes, I'm still a Maker's Mark fan.

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