I haven’t done this is a couple of years, but I was in the mood to try again, so, in no particular order, here’s my list of 100 things I hope (yeah, not necessarily the same thing as expect) to enjoy during the 2011 college football season. A few are repeats from the earlier lists, but some pleasures are simple and timeless both.
Feel free to pile on in the comments section.
- Big John Jenkins stuffing Boise State’s first rushing attempt between the tackles.
- Will Muschamp, reminded of how it feels to be on the losing end of the Cocktail Party.
- LSU vs. Oregon.
- Life after Cam Newton.
- A good night game, HDTV and a glass of Woodford Reserve at my side.
- All the great SEC talent at running back.
- Clouds in front of the sun, with a little breeze, during an afternoon game in September.
- Lane Kiffin’s postseason irrelevancy.
- TCU screwing up the Mountain West’s decision to move its game with Boise State by winning on the blue turf.
- Vanderbilt upsetting an SEC team other than Georgia.
- Seeing how Houston Nutt makes the Egg Bowl personal – or if Dan Mullen gets another chance to be smug.
- Gus Malzahn retooling Auburn’s offense.
- Branden Smith in the open field with the ball in his hands.
- Florida’s October schedule.
- TIAR, B!
- The Army-Navy game. Just like every year.
- Cracking open the first cold beer at the first tailgate of the year. Ahhhhh.
- Andrew Luck’s (and Stanford’s!) performance without Jim Harbaugh.
- Uga IX’s triumphant introduction.
- Georgia Tech’s passing game. (Especially late in the fourth quarter.)
- The dulcet tones of Uncle Verne.
- Seeing how all those coaching changes at Texas work out.
- Any game with more than three overtime periods.
- ESPN’s Herschel Walker documentary.
- A game winning 53-yard field goal from the foot of Blair Walsh.
- Rivalries, of all shapes and sizes.
- Mike Bobo, sticking with what works for an entire game.
- Todd Grantham giving the choke sign and being rewarded in the aftermath.
- The losing coach’s presser after the Michigan-Ohio State game.
- The hype leading up to the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Classic.
- The spin after the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Classic.
- Fried chicken.
- Utah in the Pac-12.
- A strategically located Porta-Potty with a short line in Jacksonville. (This will always be on my list.)
- The pregame flight of the Auburn eagle.
- Every moment of silence from Michael Adams.
- Any regular season neutral site game.
- The Dream Team living up to expectations.
- Another Tyler Bray bi-polar moment.
- Jenkins and Geathers on the field together, blotting out the sun.
- Seeing how Denard Robinson does in Al Borges’ offense.
- Discovering which head coach really was on the hottest seat.
- The genius of Ted Roof, post-Nick Fairley.
- Tuning in to a game on ESPN I want to watch and realizing that Craig James isn’t on the broadcast crew.
- Isaiah Crowell’s first big run.
- Finding out if Tennessee really is just one year away.
- That first Spurrier visor toss. (Some things always please me.)
- Ray Drew’s first sack.
- Thursday, September 1.
- Reading “Swing Your Sword”.
- Referring to the World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party as the “World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party”.
- Arkansas’ receiving corps.
- Friday morning breakfast at T-Rays in Fernandina Beach.
- The vote by vote breakdown of the last regular season coaches’ poll.
- My favorite meteor game of the year, every year: Tennessee-Florida.
- Aaron Murray avoiding the sophomore slump.
- Oregon’s offense when it gets rolling.
- Justin Hunter.
- Richard Samuel proving us skeptics wrong.
- Learning if Al Golden is that coach.
- Live mascots.
- Filler programming on the Longhorn Network.
- The Oklahoma-Florida State game.
- The over/under on this year’s Backyard Brawl.
- The last five minutes of this year’s Appy State/Jacksonville State-type embarrassing upset.
- Nebraska making its way through its inaugural Big Ten season.
- Flaming baton twirling.
- Robert Griffin III.
- Orson Charles’ first 50+ yard reception.
- Virginia Tech losing a game it shouldn’t, thereby blowing its national title hopes.
- The new Sanford Stadium scoreboard.
- Seeing if Malcolm Mitchell is as fast as advertised.
- Charlie Weis and John Brantley.
- Mark Richt getting the hang of texting.
- Tailgating in the Grove.
- DVRs.
- Fewer early starts for Georgia in SEC games.
- Halfback TD passes out of the Wildcat formation.
- Seeing if Jadeveon Clowney lives up to the hype.
- Traditions, no matter how dumb or strange they may seem to outsiders.
- A perfect fall day at kickoff time.
- Watching how John Chavis’ defense fares against Dana Holgorsen’s offense.
- Three more Brandon Boykin touchdown returns.
- The SECCG.
- All the Dawg and Gator flags, decals and (occasionally obscene) messages on cars and trucks heading to Jacksonville.
- Knowing there’s something to watch on Thursday nights.
- The Auburn-Alabama rivalry.
- Georgia successfully defending the wheel route.
- Big 12 wide receivers.
- The second Spurrier visor toss. (If I’m lucky, it’ll be in the same game as the first.)
- The first time Alec Ogletree separates a ball carrier from the football.
- The class and good sportsmanship of the Georgia Tech fan base after another loss to the Dawgs.
- The drinking game marking Brent Musburger’s first Ohio State broadcast.
- The first touchdown called back due to an excessive celebration penalty.
- The return of Case Keenum.
- Big John Jenkins lining up at fullback and toting the rock.
- Georgia’s stats making sense.
- The Mumme Poll. (I gotta plug it some time.)
- Les Miles on fourth down-and-late.
- Finding out how much of a difference that schedule really makes.
It’s gonna be a good year.
Here’s to 25 happening on Sept 10th…
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101. Hearing the Gator fans start grumbling about Muschamp and his hot seat.
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September 24: Georgia fans invade the Grove.
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The guys at Sports & Grits eating their words on December 4 after an SEC championship. A guy can hope, right?
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Nothing I would like better. Sports & Grits are, in my opinion, wanting & hoping that the Dawgs have a bad season & that Richt Is Fired. I do not understand their rationale. Anyway, they are wrong. Neither thing is going to happen.
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#86 – really? The best night of TV?
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Is Justified moving to Thursday night?
Also, see #76.
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“Community,” “30 Rock,” “Archer” . . . Thursday night’s actually pretty good. Other than “Justified” on Tuesdays (obviously), that’s the only weeknight that has anything close to what I would call “appointment viewing.”
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You actually look forward to watching Georgia Tech play of Thursdays?
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If they lose and Johnson looks apoplectic, what’s not to enjoy?
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Consider me a convert to Thursday night football.
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Don’t worry Senator. If it’s on TV and there isn’t an oblong leather object involved, it’s not important.
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“88. Georgia successfully defending the wheel route.”
Oh well. There’s always next year, right?
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A man can always hope.
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We have the same taste in bourbon. I generally take mine with a nice Monte Cristo #2 though as I am watching the game from my porch.
We also have the same taste in TV.
Shoot, if you were a Gator Senator, you would be just about perfect….aside from the whole lawyer/economist thing
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I also enjoy a nice Woodford Reserve on the rocks, usually when in Kentucky, or whenever I am at someone’s house who thinks Glen Livet is actually a decent single malt scotch. Ugh, pass the single barrel bourbon please! Nice, very smooth product. Mike is right, always better with a nice cigar….especially when celebrating another UGA win over the gators.
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A giant bowl of Brunswick stew made from all the leftover chicken and pork smoked on the BGE and frozen over the summer.
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– My first plate of barbecue and brunswick stew.
– A receiver other than Tavarres King catching a pass.
– Trent Richardson as a full-time back.
– Stephen Garcia’s first interception or incident involving alcohol, whichever comes first.
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OK…I’ll bite. Can you shed a little light on #15, please?
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I could tell you to check the Lexicon, but I’ll save you a mouse click. It’s a reference to the Tech series and the current Georgia winning streak – in this year’s case, “Three In A Row, Baby!”.
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Thank you, sir.
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Honest opinion, please: Will we ever match/beat The Drought, or will that be the one thing they’ll always have?
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Georgia had its chance in 2008.
Of course, there’s still time for Tech to have more wins vacated by the NCAA, so don’t despair.
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Nov. 19th – Enjoying the Georgia-Kentucky tailgate with a shipment of Kentucky Bourbon Barrel Ale (the beer that’s aged in bourbon barrels from Woodford Reserve), smuggled in by my UK friends.
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That sounds like a tasty malt beverage, my friend.
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Only sold in Kentucky or in Cincinatti. If you ever have the opportunity, I highly recommend it. It’s best on draught, but it’s also amazing in a bottle.
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Hey, how did all this cash get in my pocket??? If I only knew what to do with it. **cough, hint, cough,cough**
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I can’t believe my brother, a beer aficionado living in Louisville who barbecues butts low and slow over pieces of barrel scavenged from area distilleries, has not mentioned — screw that — has not brought to me a supply of this most enticing sounding refreshment. Seriously. I can feel myself becoming angry.
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Louisville also has a bourbon barrel beer, it’s more of a stout. It’s made by the Bluegrass Brewing Company.
Fun fact: when we toured the Alltech Brewery last year in Lexington the day before UGA-UK (the folks that make Kentucky Bourbon Barrel Ale) we were told that former Georgia special teamer Porter Lady was employed there, but didn’t get a chance to talk to him to confirm.
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Athens’ own Terrapin beer company does a brew called ‘substance abuse’- its coffee oatmeal stout aged in whiskey barrels. Also see ‘big sloppy monster’- an imperial red ale aged in whiskey barrels. The substance abuse is a thing of beauty. It’s limited edition and draft only. Be sure to try it if you can find it.
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BTW, Senator, is there a reason Meteor Game isn’t in the lexicon? One of the all time great blog posts, although one hopes future generations will ask we oldtimers why we had such withering hatred for two such minor programs.
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I dunno – I guess I sort of figure it’s a more general expression than is suited for the Lexicon. I can’t remember the exact context, but I know the first time I saw the term, it wasn’t being applied to a college football game.
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@ Gravidy Three In A Row, Bitch – As in 3 straight over Tech
The Fu#!n’ wheel route!!
In addition to Verne’s dulcet tones, just the intro music for CBS’ broadcast sends chills as well.
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+100 on the intro! I catch myself singing (humming?) it aloud all the time during the offseason.
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Unrelenting dominance of the beer pong table.
An offensive line that starts all 14 games together.
A pick-six.
A blocked punt or three.
Bruce Figgins at H-back.
Mind-blowing playcalling… in a good way.
Auburn’s seventh loss of the season in the Iron Bowl.
Georgia’s Pro Combat unis.
Alabama-LSU.
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Your mind wouldn’t be blown by #27? 😉
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Bruce Figgins catching a pass in the flat to score a TD on Fourth and goal from the 3. Then John Jenkins doing it .
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I’d rather see Figgins catching it on second-and-goal, then I’d take Jenkins going for a two-point conversion to put Georgia ahead of Auburn…by 22 points instead of 21.
Feel free to substitute Florida, the Nerds or Tennessee for Auburn.
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A Chik-Fil-A biscuit washed down with a screwdriver before any early matchup.
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My addition to this year’s list is the pleasure of taking my two boys to see their first game between hedges. I am thinking New Mexico St. in November for mild weather and a game we can leave at half time if they get antsy. They are only 4 1/2 and 3 years old but jacked to go see a game.
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0. Watching the sun rise over the St. John River from the parking lot of the stadium f/k/a Gator Bowl at dawn on October 29, with my third Pink Martini (a/k/a STONG Bloody Mary) in one hand, cold beer chaser in the other, and my band of bro’s acting the bunch-O-fools we are.
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T-Rays FTW!!! Always nice to see the little gas station burger shack from your hometown get some recognition….. as if it even needed a sign.
Oh, and #40.
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#5 +1.
That first Thursday night game of the season is one of the best of the year, no matter who’s playing. I always pour a tailgate quality Gentleman and Coke and kick off the season with some quite appreciation for the game I love. And then, September 3rd at the dome? Oh baby.
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“Mr. College Football’s” first stunning revelation…2 weeks after the fact.
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Woodford Reserve
— if you’re able to find it (it’s not sold in every state), may I suggest you give Buffalo Trace a try. An outstanding, and much cheaper, alternative to Woodford.
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I’ve heard that’s good.
I’m sitting on a bottle of this, waiting for the opportune moment to break it out.
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The next time you are in Florida, try and pick up a bottle of Palm Ridge. It is a whiskey made at a micro-distillery in Florida. It compares favorably to Woodford, even if it is a whiskey and not a bourbon
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Yes.
Buffalo Trace is the go-to at el ranchito. If you want to step it up, Eagle Rare is smooth on the front and the back without any heat on it at all. One day I’m going to splurge on the aged variety, but for the price it can’t be beat.
FWIW, commonly available in Athens at Five Points Bottle Shop.
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A 53 yard game winning field goal?
My heart and liver can’t take it.
I’d rather kick the field goal to end the first half and win the game by 17.
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I would like to add:
#137. Waking up Sunday morning heading into Week Three with a 2-0 record, no injuries and a stretch of games to get our true freshmen some extra playing time.
If that happens, I’ll be wearing all Red-and-Black to church…you know, to take some attention away from the spiked dog collar and giant foam Dawg head I stole from Corso.
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Watching the game again on DVR on Sunday morning after a big win
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How about waking up on a Saturday morning to watch a 6am kickoff?
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Had lunch at T-Rays today….now that’s a damn fine hamburger. A little heavy on the Gator and Vol decor though…
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#200 They hype the week of the SECCG as undefeated UGA takes on undefeated LSU to see who gets the right to win the BCSNCG. As you stated, a man can dream.
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