As you may or may not remember, many of my previous experiences in Athens (as in nearly all of them) have been toxic. Given my history with the town and the team’s fans, my experience yesterday rates overall as a startlingly pleasant surprise.
I don’t have it in me to weave this all into a narrative after drinking all day yesterday and not getting to sleep ’til after 3 a.m. last night, so I’ll give you a list of positive and negative thoughts about my experience with Athens on game day this time out.
The good
- Excellent tailgating atmosphere, with nothing more than genuinely-friendly jibing to UT fans who dared to hang out and drink beer with friends who were UGA fans
- Contrary to all my previous interactions, the people I encountered were polite, knowledgeable fans who could talk football on something resembling an objective level
- Sanford Stadium is gorgeous, and the noise level and atmosphere was much more impressive than the previous two games I’ve attended there
The bad
- Those unfortunate red pants
- Unimpressive half-time show from the Redcoats (sorry Tony) and the weird choice to play an Uga memorial video at a point immediately after the Bulldogs had gained some momentum (talking about dead animals is a great way to kick off a scoring drive)
- The uphill walk from where we were tailgating to the gas station where we bought a final six pack to top us off before entering the stadium
It’s interesting how a few years of having a successful football program can so greatly affect the game day atmosphere of the place. I suppose it’s easier to be civil when not walking around with a lingering inferiority complex. I wonder if UT had had a series of years as poor as the Goff-Donnan years if its fans would have become as monstrous as I remember UGA fans being when I was in school.
On that note, I’ll leave you with a video I surreptitiously recorded with my cell phone camera while waiting in line to use the bathroom just before kickoff:
Coming soon: Results from my wager with UGA fans.
You know, if google would get on the ball, you’d be search result #1 for “unfortunate red pants” by now.
Oh, don’t apologize to me. The program has been on the decline for the past few years because they seem to be more concerned about controlling the members’ behavior than fielding a kick-ass performance group.
I’m just glad I forgot to take you up on your wager this year.
My theory is the exact opposite of yours. The more a program wins, the more “bandwagon” people and younger people flock to a particular program. Not all, but some of these people don’t have a sense of pride in representing the school in the way that people with actual ties do. Amongst 90K people, you’re going to run into some of those. But I’ve seen the same thing at places like Auburn, Columbia, and Clemson. Wear red to the UGA game in Knoxville next year, and you’ll find a few of them too.
Glad you enjoyed it this time. And congrats on the win. You guys definitely have the better team this year.
I believe I expressed my discontent about Auburn at the Pudnit, but allow me to continue.
At Auburn, that hideous tradition is carried to new heights by the frat boys, as they buy orange Dickies work pants and wear them at football games.
Perhaps though, they do the same at UT (with the orange Dickies)?
I saw a few guys with orange pants at the UT game. Personally, I think it’s great to see fans wear team colors in unconventional ways. Jeans and a white t-shirt from a 2001 game is lame.
And yes, I speak as someone who bought their boyfriend red pants.
OK - I’m not anti-Tennessee. I was rooting for Tennessee this weekend. Some of my favorite ex-girlfriends went to Tennessee. But you can’t pretend UT fans aren’t obnoxious. I went to the a UT-UF game in Knoxville about 6 years ago. I was wearing a UT orange polo, and I was cheering for Tennessee. I was harrassed by other UT fans who demanded “proof” I wasn’t really a UF fan in disguise. At the end of the game (after UF won), UT fans started chucking glass bottles….at other UT fans in the stadium.
I don’t hate UT fans (like I hate Georgie fans), so to me it was just obnoxius behavior. But don’t pretend UT fans can’t be as monstrous as UGA fans. (At least you don’t bark like an effing jackass, though. It makes me want to hit someone.)
I don’t think I’ve ever said UT fans aren’t obnoxious, only that UGA fans are, on an objective level, more obnoxious. And I stand by that as a general rule based on my aggregate experience. I’ve never encountered such a high percentage of jackasses among football fans as I did during my two previous trips to Athens. Another trip there without incident might mellow my opinion some. Only time will tell.