#10 Georgia Bulldogs vs. #18 Auburn Tigers - "The South's Oldest Rivalry," Nov. 10, 2007

 

Well, let me first say that Bob, I'm glad you didn't go with the jorts; not only is it an awful thing to do, but it is also a common taunt many of the SEC fans have towards the Florida Gators.  I even own a shirt that says "Gators Wear Jean Shorts;" luckily for you, I don't have to make one that says "Wevodau Wears Jean Shorts."

 

Also, I will say that this was by far the single greatest game day experience I've ever had, but the trip didn't start out on the right foot.  I got a call on Thursday from the hotel saying my room was cancelled b/c of some invalid credit card and they couldn't get a hold of me because they didn't have my contact information.  So, I called Expedia, who said they sent the hotel my information, there was nothing they could do but offer me a $100 coupon, to which I made them call the hotel back, who promptly said I would be #1 on wait list.  Most hotels are never booked when they say they are, so I knew I would get a room, just would have to wait until Friday morning and I was going to Georgia regardless of that. 

 

Friday

 

So Friday morning, I take my car in for a routine checkup and get the alignment done, but come to find out there is all sorts of things wrong, from the tires (which I knew about), to the axle, to the hub, etc. and I ended up dropping close to a grand and spending about five hours at the shop, delaying the start of my drive until 1:00.  Luckily, I got my room back.  I finally hit the road for what should've been nine a hour drive; rather, it took me eleven and a half hours, getting to Athens at 12:30.  I went straight to the bars to meet up with my friends.

 

Saturday

 

Ahhh, gameday!  My black shirt was ready, cooler packed, and we headed out to the tailgate on scenic North Campus.  As you will see in the pictures, it isn't a typical tailgate spot in a parking lot; instead, it's on the main quad of the University, the oldest place on campus, full of grills, tents, tv's, and beautiful women.  More or less a giant picnic or a calmer Preakness, kind of like if you were to tailgate on the quad at Maryland.  All in all, an awesome place to party before the game.

 

What made the day even better was that I was able to find two lower level tickets for face ($40), twenty rows off the field on the goalline; best seats I've ever had in our stadium.  A special thanks goes out to the alum who sold me those seats. 

 

The game has been played for close to 110 years and it's a weird rivalry, with Auburn having a winning record at Georgia and UGA having a winning record at Auburn (all of the other games were played in Columbus, GA); also, at one point Auburn lead the series by 1 game with the total points scored being even.

 

Now, I was skeptical of the blackout, as the students tried it before and it failed miserably; plus, we have a lot of old fans who simply don't want to infringe upon tradition.  But it was awesome and planned by the University, as well as the team.  92,000 people in black was a sight to behold, but it only got crazier when the team entered the field wearing black jerseys for the first time in 60 years.  And I will admit, they looked pretty sharp.  Plus, the stadium was very, very loud.

 

They just added fuel to an intense rivalry and we came out swinging, eventually crushing the War Eagles/Tigers/Plainsmen 45-20.    Remember these names: Matthew Stafford, our qb, and Knowshon Moreno, our rb; Stafford is just a sophomore, Mel Kiper has him as the #1 pick whenever ever he enters the draft and Moreno, a freshman from New Jersey, is drawing comparisons to Herschel Walker.   Kiper has him as his 5th vote getter for the Heisman.  Both these guys had incredible games, Moren going for over 100 yards and 2 tds against a top 5 rushing defense, and Stafford throwing for 230 and 2 td's.

 

We ended up back at our tailgate spot for my drinks and then headed out to the bars to celebrate.

 

Conclusion

 

No fights this year, so that's a plus and what started off as a dreadful beginning turned into one of the best times I've had in Athens.  All in all an simply awesome experience and I'm still riding on a high from that game.  It's a trip you all have to make once in your lifetime, if not to a UGA game then to any game in the south. 

 

Here are some pics (there are 5 videos at the end): http://picasaweb.google.com/UpInThis/UGAVAuburn2007?authkey=vU1-0FOEvbY