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by Mark
11 -14-05
TI didn’t really have much of an opinion of UGA when I traveled to Athens on Saturday. I don’t know any UGA alumni and nobody from my high school went there. I’ve heard they have a tendency to be snobby but are known to be very classy fans. However, the concept of a school without an engineering school boggles my mind.
After arriving on campus their reputation seemed to be correct. Before the game, many Auburn fans were found in the UGA Student Union building watching the end of the Alabama-LSU game.
We felt weird cheering on Alabama, but it was necessary. The Georgia fans in the building cheered for Alabama, mostly because we were cheering for them, very classy. Ryan and I had some very pleasant conversations with the Georgia fans before the game. It made me sick. I realized I might feel remorse after Auburn’s football team unleashed a merciless beating upon the team these fans supported (I guess a 1 point victory wouldn’t be considered a ‘merciless beating’, but I’ll take it.)
While walking to the stadium I realized that I have absolutely no beef with Georgia bulldogs. This would truly be a football contest between two very classy teams. Our tickets were in the upper deck of the stadium, but it was a very well designed upper deck. We had a pretty good view of the entire field (at the sugar bowl, a corner of an end zone was blocked from view). Their stadium had a very different vibe than Jordan-Hare. Their jumbotron was probably three times the size of Auburn’s and had a much crisper image. There were many other LCD screens across the stadium as well. I was jealous of this until I realized they were all used to display ads throughout the game. They looked pretty cool when they all said “Go Dawgs! [sic]” and had flames in the background, but that ended at kickoff… the ads were very NFLish of them, and somewhat annoying.
We made it to our seats. We were in the Auburn student section in the upper deck. It was a great atmosphere. There was an older couple right behind us wearing Georgia garb. At the moment, I was still feeling a little weird about the fact that I had just been cheering for Alabama. I also feeling odd due to the great deal of respect for Georgia fans I now had. I exchanged friendly nods with the couple before the game, but didn’t say a word.
Here’s a picture of the guy sitting right behind me:
Notice the Georgia sticker on his shirt, his two hats - the top being an Auburn one, and most importantly, the flask in his left hand. Now, you’re probably asking yourself a couple of questions:
Why’s he wearing an Auburn hat if he’s a Georgia fan?
Shortly after kickoff he stole my hat. He asked me if I wanted it back and I said yes. He started to hand it back, an I reached for it, he then jerked it back and laughed uncontrollably. This was really weird. This guy was probably fifty years old, incredibly drunk and for some reason he and his wife were in the Auburn student section. I didn’t really care though, and I didn’t really care that he had my hat. Auburn’s offense was rockin’ on the field and they had my full attention.
Later, I noticed him walking up and down the aisles with my hat on his head. In one hand he had a flask and the other hand he had a plastic bone had “Go Dawgs [sic]” inscribed on it. He traveled up and down the aisle saying “HEY! I’M AN AUBURN ALUMNI! I LIVE IN A TRAILER AND I KISS MY COUSIN”
It was funny, but it got pretty old quick. His wife, clearly embarrassed, tried to get the hat back, but failed. I still didn’t care too much and tried to ignore the guy. Actually, I was glad I was getting an excuse to dislike Georgia.
At one point, I had a pleasant conversation with his wife. She was sober and nice. She spoke to me as if her husband wasn’t ten feet away asking a college girl if she’d like to touch his plastic bone.
The other question you’re probably asking yourself if is:
Why does the Auburn hat fit so well over the other hat he’s wearing?
Well, I have
a ridiculously large head. I’m kinda sensitive about it.
He eventually gave the hat back when I told him he shouldn't be ashamed of
hig Georgia team, so I didn't have to resort to 'extreme measures*'
to get my hat back.
But yeah. The moral of the story is this: If you’re 50 years old, and enjoy getting trashed at football games and picking on random college kids, it’s time to reevaluate your life.
Anyways… to the game itself…
I’m trying
to decide if this was the best game I’ve ever witnessed in person. I
can’t decide. Some games have meant more for rankings, but if you isolate
the game itself, this was the best. Nine lead changes. A beastly passing game
versus a beastly running game. Two teams playing their best. A 4th and 10
completion with two minutes left down by 2. Primetime TV. A kicker proving
himself as clutch. An amazing night.
Have I mentioned how David Irons might be my favorite football player? He’s
listed at 6’1” but there’s no way he’s taller than
5’10”. It doesn’t matter though; he can jump two story buildings
with ease. He’s doing a great job at filling Carlos Rodger’s shoes.
Kenny Irons might be a little more flashy when he’s hugging or smacking
the butts of refs, but if you notice, David Irons has the better ‘outside
the play’ moves. David will actually dance until the snap at times in
order to belittle the receiver he’s covering. He’ll also pat the
heads of receivers after he bats down their ball in a condescending/awesome
way.
The game was basically the football team saying “Hey, we had some tough
breaks this year…. but we’re awesome and we can dismantle any
team placed in front of us”. Ok, so we didn’t dismantle them,
but it sure does make you excited about the future- both next week and next
year.
One guy in front of me said, "If this was a game between two teams I
didn't really care about, I'd say they'd both deserved to win." I agree.
After the Auburn win, UGA band members threw drinks at the celebrating Auburn football players. I’m not sure who it was, but one player picked up one of the bottles at his feet, drank out of it and then threw it to the ground. It was smugtastic.
Leaving the stadium, the fans weren’t as classy as they were coming in. It wasn’t any worse than any other SEC school, but I one college student ran up to me and yelled “It doesn’t matter because I’m going to be your *(&#$*#$& boss one day!”.
“We’ll see.” I replied.
“We’re going to the championship game and you’re NOT! How does that feel *#$&)?” another randomly said.
“Congratulations, I hope you win.” I replied.
Anyways... the
lesson here is that I need to start working out so I don’t have to be
classy when harassed by opposing fans.
mark can be contacted
at mark@theauburner.com
*crying
like a little girl.
