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Auburn Family Road Trips to Glendale

When we won the SEC Championship game, I told my family that we were not rich but we were going to Glendale. The kids said great! When I said it would take 2 days to drive and 24 hours in the car, and that was just to GET THERE, they looked at me like I had lost my mind! Look at it this way, I said, 12 hours each day in the car with your computer and Mom not limiting your playing time…so they were a little more excited but still had that -we think your crazy but we are going along with it- look.

Looking for tickets let us immediately know that 5 tickets to get us all in going for $1000+, well it would more than likely be a trip to be there and tailgate only. This is due to the fact that my husband and I planned so well; we will actually have 3 kids in college at the same time 6 years from now. Yes, I know, Brilliant! Barring an unexpected win of the lottery, we can’t afford tickets even if it was to see us play for the Natty.

The drive was not that bad actually, once we were out here, I was struck by the beauty and diversity of Arizona. It was amazing that we could go from 60 degree, sunny, and short sleeve Phoenix to 30 degree, wind like a tornado, and 3 inches of snow Grand Canyon in 3.5 hours of driving time. I think 5000’ of elevation had something to do with it.

The Grand Canyon is something to see! What was almost more amazing was the sea of blue and orange that covered it up Saturday. It looked like we had scheduled a home game with Oregon there and forgot to inform them. We counted a collective 10 Oregon fans all day and it was crowded folks!

Game Day started with a trip out to Scottsdale to try and score some free Karlos Dansby game tickets at the Upper Deck Bar and Grill. We didn’t win but some friends of ours did and my twin boys got to hang out with Karlos and talk about going to his football camps in the summer. Thank you to TOTM and Jay for the heads up opportunity.

Next we drove over to the stadium and parked in the Westgate Parking lot where the tailgate party was and wandered through the shopping district close to the stadium. Let me tell you, Phoenix has it going on with the whole layout there! It had a very "Orlando, FL" feel to it. It was here that we were really able to mingle with some Oregon folks and get a feel for their fanbase. My impression? They were GREAT fans.

One of the major things we heard a lot from Oregon fans was "Why are you so dressed up?" This seemed rather strange coming from a dude who was shirtless, with a painted yellow & black skeleton design all over his body, large black wig and a HUGE bone going through his nose. (I think I actually caught shots of our new-found friends on TV later in the Hotel lobby.) The amazing thing was, there was more than one of him…a whole group of natives from somewhere very remote had apparently escaped to America and decided to attend the NC game and root for Oregon. Folks, how can I say this? This was the norm, not the exception. Oregon fans try to find new and freakish ways to dress up to support their team. I thought it was wonderful!

Of particular interest from Oregon was why were all the "guys wearing brown pants?" I guess they don’t have khakis in Oregon. We also got a lot of "Why are all the girls wearing dresses?" "What’s up with all the high heels?" I tried to explain that in the South, tradition is to dress for an EVENT, but somehow I mainly got a –you people are really strange in Alabama- look. "What is a War Eagle?" That question came up no less than every 5 minutes. Not all Oregon fans are familiar with TEM or ATQ, I guess.

Next was Tiger Walk, although it was more like, -Look at the sea of people OH MY GOSH where did we all come from-Walk. We caught a lot of Oregon fan questions about that as well. The team came through in buses, but it was a good thing because they would have saved Oregon the trouble of wearing us down, Tiger Walk went on for blocks.

Next we went to the Renaissance Hotel and hung out in the lobby for the game and allow my 14 yr old daughter to count how many cute guys she could find. There was a mix of Oregon and Auburn and everyone was very good sports. There was also your occasional sprinkle of Alabama fan here and there. You just can’t get rid of them I guess, no matter how hard you try. We were all in the courtyard for the Now Very Famous KICK…I love you Wes Byrum and you have my forever and undying love and devotion. Then the screaming, crying, jumping up and down, peeing in the pants, dancing in the streets, more screaming, more crying, ensued. What more can I write? My family was off the charts crazy with joy.

After we came to our senses about midnight walking around among all the other Auburn Family, no voices left, no tears left, my daughter turns to me and says, "Mom, I get it. Thanks for getting us here. I will remember this for the rest of my life."

Me too, Sweetie, me too!!

We're all just trying to have a good time here. Don't be a jerk, and we won't have a problem with you. War Eagle!

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