Side note: A friend of mine in high school once asked me if that was an actual bowl game. :)
Back to the weekend...
So bright and early Friday morning my dad and I traveled to Tuscaloosa. Now although I love to visit my Bama friends sometimes, T-town is never a good place for me to be during football season, I can get a little aggressive. This trip was not like that though. You see, I thought we were going up there to lose. And I promise I do have every confidence in my team, I just get worried in games with such high stakes. Anyway we got there somewhat early and got to eat lunch at one of my favorite places, Newk's!
You have to understand that when I road trip with my dad the whole trip is planned around kick-off and food! Heck, we drove 16 hours for a burger in 2007! Anyway, we always follow our taste buds to a location that my dad has previously visited and deemed worthy. (I say that jokingly, we don't really discriminate when it comes to food) This trip, however, was my turn to take him to best restaurants in Tuscaloosa! Very exciting! So this Newk's Cafe is a chain so everyone should try it, because it is awesome. Enough about food though, let's talk football!
The big game kicked off at 1:30 CST and for obvious reasons I will not be commenting on the first quarter. Let's just skip to where Auburn was down 24-0 in the second and had not made a single first down or crossed the 50 yard line! (any of this sound familiar? maybe being down 16-0 and not having crossed the 50 in 1972?) Anyway, here in 2010 we were having flashbacks to punt, Bama, punt, but were worried we wouldn't have the same outcome...except that we did!!
I really can't explain what happened after the half. Yes, we scored once before the half, but after it was like our defense came alive and our offense just made it happen!! It was incredible and honestly when we left that game I just asked my dad "how the heck did that just happen?" I know we like to think that since Auburn was number 2 that they should make light work of Bama, but that game is played with such heart every year. And no matter what, those teams leave everything on that field. You just never know who can walk away with the victory. We just happened to win this year, 28-27.
I think most everyone reading this watched the game so I won't do a play-by-play. I will talk about the little things (sights, sounds, etc.) that made me happy to be there. Like seeing the renovations on the stadium, nice work Bama! Also watching Cam Newton break the Auburn record for rushing touchdowns, previously held in a tie with Bo Jackson and Carnell "Cadillac" Williams! And the sunset, again was beautiful orange and blue. :)
Also, singing the fight song and cheering with nothing but Auburn fans when the game was over. That's because all the Bama fans left.
Fun fact: The only times I've gone to Tuscaloosa to watch Auburn play with my dad was when we were icing undefeated seasons (2004, 2010)! I'll see you in two years Bryant-Denny!!
One man in our section said "Brand new stadium and we got it all to ourselves." I thought that was funny. That was after the game during the Auburn celebrations.
After the game, though, we went to the best burger place ever, Mugshots!! Not even kidding, I would eat there everyday if I could. And my dad confirmed that it's the second best burger he's ever had, but since the first place winner's restaurant is closed Mugshots wins by default (a common theme in Tuscaloosa, sorry I had to say it!)
While stuck in traffic my dad called a friend of his, who we travel with sometimes, and in conversation my dad brought up the fact that I go to T-town to visit some of my Bama friends sometimes. To this point he raised the question, can you ever really have Bama friends? ha ha. I thought that was a funny yet valid point. All I can say is that it helps that they are not as psycho-fanatical about football as I am. Remember the high school friend who asked me about the Iron Bowl? That was a Bama friend. Not naming names though. :) So this friend read this and asked me to amend that not all Bama fans are like this. I'm just saying that I can be better friends with those who are not crazy into football. She would also like me to state that she is the exception, not the rule.
So anyway, on the way back to Phenix City we made a pit stop in Auburn to check out Toomer's Corner, and it did not disappoint!
On a Saturday (this time Friday, and sometimes Thursday) night in the Fall after a win that place is more magical than Disney World, yeah I went there! It's just so much fun to celebrate with your fellow Auburn family and join in a tradition that links you to so many generations! I remember being little and sitting on my daddy's shoulders to roll Toomer's, it's the earliest memory I have of that tradition! :)
In summary of the whole day I just want to say that as stunned as we were by the come from behind win, so was Bama. I can't say anything bad about them because that game was so hard fought and they played really well. It was just incredible all around.
And to top off the weekend, tonight Auburn was named #1 in the BCS standings! Now let's hope we beat South Carolina this weekend and get to Glendale!!
I believe in Auburn, and love it!!
War Eagle!!
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