The Somanystadiums 2022 tour wasn’t cheap, but it was memorable. As usual, I made some mid-season course corrections and a late double header weekend in Kansas was dropped. However, anytime you can knock out ten games and pick up a bonus game in LSU, you’ve had a good year.
It was a heavy travel year that started with back to back weekends in Colorado. We started by seeing the Buffs get trampled by the Horned Frogs. Arguably this may have been the worst match up of the year, given that TCU finished number two in the country and Colorado was the consensus winner(?) of the Bottom Ten rankings. The only thing worse than the game were the kids from the Colorado student section that leaked up into the seats next to us. I love college students but at a distance. Thankfully our bounce back at Wyoming the next day was fantastic. We had great weather and saw the Cowboys grab a big OT win. Our faith in college football was fully restored. After a week of hiking and sight-seeing, we returned to see Air Force also lay the wood on the hapless Buffaloes. If not for the company, the cold and wet day would have been a bust. As it was, I apparently had picked up Covid somewhere during the week and my symptoms were just starting to show. We really did like Colorado Springs, but it wasn’t a great finish to the weekend.
Surprisingly, after a couple of days of rest, I had only some light, lingering congestion. I thought I might have to cancel my trip to Washington, but my earlier vaccinations helped my body recovery quickly and I was essentially symptom free in a few days. After discussing with my travel buddy who was also getting over a cold, we decided both of us were sufficiently recovered to make the trip. We spent a long weekend tramping around the Palouse, squeezing in the first half of the Drake – Idaho game before hitting the main event at Washington State. There we watched the game from the posh confines of the Coaches Club enjoying great food and drink. The only thing that marred the day was that we were treated to another beating of a hapless Colorado football team. The Colorado State Rams weren’t much better than the Buffs, and WSU rolled in a game that was essentially over by the end of the first quarter.
I was rolling into my fourth straight weekend and sixth game when I found out the couple that was to join us for a reunion weekend at Texas Tech was going to have to cancel. This led to a mad scramble to find someone, anyone who would be willing to go with me. My good mate, Andy, stepped up big and made the long trip to Lubbock to see Texas Tech host UT. Thankfully, we were rewarded with one of the best games of the year. An overtime upset of a bitter rival is a sight to see and we had a first when we joined the student body in rushing the field. It made 16 hours in the car (almost) worth it.
There was no rest for the wicked as less than a week later I was off to Utah for another double header weekend. BYU is what you’d expect: good, clean fun and a pastry the length of your arm. The University of Utah, on the other, has tailgating that can compete with any of the classics venues. While the games were not great, the overall experience was very thumbs up.
After five weeks on a road, it was nice to get a weekend off. This gave me some time to recharge prior to the annual weekend with the 9 O’clock Club. While Maryland versus Indiana may not have been a marquee matchup from a rankings perspective, the game was not without merit and the tailgating was superb. It was a pleasant surprise and made for a weekend full of memories. The next weekend I was off, or I was until I got a call early Friday evening to see if I wanted to head over to see Ole Miss play LSU. My first game at LSU was a bit of a disappointment, mainly because it was hotter than a Mumbai laundromat. I had always wanted to go back and with the visiting Rebels being undefeated, I could not turn down the opportunity. This time we had local connections we could rely on which made the experience top tier. However, the trip also wore me out and convinced me I didn’t have enough steam left for the Kansas trip. It was shame because the scheduling aligned where I could have hit both the Jayhawks and Wildcats. I have been hoping to avoid two weekends in Kansas but that might not be possible.
My final game was at Sam Houston State and while technically in the FCS this year, they are jumping to the FBS next year. Additionally I was moving back to Virginia after the season was over and this game was to be a quasi-retirement party. It meant a big tailgate with about forty guests. Fortunately the current state of Bearkat tailgating provided an excellent opportunity to host a proper tailgate with two tents, lots of grub and refreshments. It was a fine end to the season and an excellent way to close-out the state of Texas. It was a great year albeit an expensive one with all the travel as the stats below bear out.
Games and Teams
Total Games Attended: 11, up 2 from 2021
Best Team Seen: TCU – The Horned Frogs had a helluva run.
Final AP Top Twenty-Five Teams Seen: 5 (#2 TCU, #10 Utah, #16 LSU, #17 Oregon State, #25 Texas)
Worst Team: 1 -11 Colorado, (#1 in the Bottom 10). Honorable mention to Colorado State.
Best Game Seen: Texas Tech 37 – Texas 34, 9/24/22. -Texas Tech’s first home win over Texas in 12 years
Worst Game Seen: Washington State 38 – Colorado State 7: Over after first quarter.
Bowl Game Teams Seen: 15
The Players
College Award winners seen: Four, Davey O’Brien QB award Max Duggan TCU (although he was actually on the bench in the Colorado game), Doak Walker – RB Bijan Robinson, UT, Jim Thorpe DB Tre’Vius Hodges-Tomlinson TCU, Coach of Year, Sonny Dykes TCU.
All Americans: 10, with 3 on the first team.
The Stadiums (of 2022 visits)
Best Stadium: LaVell Edwards Stadium – BYU, Provo, Utah. One of the most dramatic views in college football.
Worst Stadium: Bowers Stadium – Sam Houston State University, Huntsville, TX. Not a fair fight really, given they are still in the FCS.
Best Game Day Experience: Indiana Memorial Stadium – University of Indiana, Bloomington, IA. Tailgating in the Grass Lots is superb, affordable and with a little planning, available to anyone.
Easiest Stadium to Get To: Falcon Stadium – U.S. Air Force Academy, Colorado Springs, CO. Easy drive from Denver, and entrance and exit into the Academy is run with military precision.
Hardest Stadium to Get To: Jones AT&T Stadium – Texas Tech, Lubbock, TX. Lubbock is a long way from anywhere, whether by plane or car.
Best Concessions: LaVell Edwards Stadium – BYU, Provo, Utah. The Cougar Tail is legendary and the legend is all true.
Worst Concessions: Folsom Field – University of Colorado, Boulder, CO. Grab and Go style concessions have a long way to go. Not efficient, not enough and no souvenir cup.
Best Souvenir: War Memorial Stadium, University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY. Free bobble heads, even if they are of the team announcers, always win the day.
Worst Souvenir: Colorado, my fault I bought a hat and a t-shirt. They aren’t worthy of both.
Best Cup: A slew of good cups this year. Sam Houston State gets the nod for a classic design, but Wyoming was not far behind.
Worst Cup: BYU’s was a bit weak, but at least they had a cup. Shame on you Colorado.
The Costs
Total Season Spend: $7,300 ($6,600 ex mileage) made this the most expense year ever. Flying all over the place was not cheap; Ave per Game: ~$739 (ex mileage ~$660) up over $200
Most Expensive Ticket: Oregon State vs Utah – $185 actual (Stubhub) with a $75 face
Cheapest Ticket: Tie, Idaho and Washington State – Free thanks to Doug’s extensive network
Average Ticket Price Paid: $46 (up $15 over 2021)
Average Savings on Tickets over Face Value: $12 saved per ticket
Miscellaneous
Miles Driven: ~2,056 vs 1,500 in 2021
Miles Flown: ~5,551 (Denver, Salt Lake City, Spokane, Chicago)
Two Game Weeks: Three – Colorado / Wyoming, Idaho / WSU, BYU / Utah
Best Fans: Indiana. Plenty of sharing going around in the Indiana Grass Lots.
Worst Fans: Colorado. I don’t want to sound like the grumpy old man, but the kids at Colorado were killing me. A stark contrast to great ones we met at IU.
Most Pleasant Surprise: Wyoming. We heard lots of criticism before we got to Laramie, but we had a great time there.
Most Unpleasant Surprise: University of Colorado football team – watching them play twice was brutal.
Lesson Learned / Re-affirmed: Never, ever arrive into O’Hare after 10am on a Friday. Any later and your Friday night is going to be ruined.
My Regular Season Pick Record: 26 – 20 Not too shabby but a decline versus the prior year.
Conclusion:
At 104 stadiums. The planning won’t be easy, but the memories will be worth it. Got to savor it now.
When I told my wife to pick up some Mission tortillas for this weekend, she said, “You know we only eat HEB.” I said, “These aren’t for eating. They’re for throwing because we are going to Texas Tech.” The only negative to seeing the Red Raiders host the Longhorns is the eight hour drive to get there. Surprisingly, it was my wife’s call to not fly and drive instead. But this is stadium number 100, so the miles are worth it.
I had a great week on my picks, going 4 – 0. Vanderbilt took care of NIU. My hunch that there wasn’t going to be a “win one for Frosty” movement at Nebraska panned out. Oklahoma had no problem covering against the Huskers. Likewise, WSU was well in control from the start against Colorado State. That game was effectively over by the end of the first quarter. I only had to wait on Liberty to see if they could keep it close against Wake Forest. It turned out to be not much of a sweat, with the Flames nearly burning the Demon Deacons, losing by one.
Other random thoughts from last weekend:
Troy versus App State – Like I said, Sun Belt = Fun Belt
I was wrong on PSU though. The Nittany Lions crushed Auburn
We now know that BYU was kinda, only sorta, real
Looks like I was right about the Huskies too. West coast travel can be rough
On to this week’s picks. ESPN’s GameDay is in Knoxville for Tennessee’s game against Florida. There isn’t a particularly strong slate of games so the choice is a reasonable one. It could be argued that they could have just stayed in Boone for the JMU – App State game instead. It is one of the better games of the weekend. The Gators are getting 10.5 points against the Volunteers and for some reason that half point makes me want to take Florida. Clemson is only a seven point favorite against Wake Forest. Taking the Tigers is a no-brainer. I had told myself that I was going to ride with the Liberty Flames until I got burned, but they are 26.5 point favorites against Akron. I think the Zips have enough to cover. Instead I am going with the 22.5 point underdog Wyoming against BYU. I think the Cowboy are better than that. Texas Tech is getting 6.5 against Texas. I am taking the Longhorns as an emotional hedge because after eight hours of driving to get to Lubbock, and then sitting in the sun and the watching the Red Raiders lose would be an awful weekend. In that case, at least a winning wager would salvage some of the weekend.
Some other gems for this weekend:
Duke vs Kansas may be the game of the week. Both are a surprising 3 – 0.
I wanted to pick Minnesota over Michigan State but the Gophers really haven’t played anyone yet.
It looks like Colorado State is going to get off the snide this week as they host FCS Sacramento State. Of course, the Hornets are 2-0 so keep fingers crossed Ram fans.
Speaking of bad teams. The worst match up of the week features 0-3 UMass vs 0-3 Temple. That is some bad football. I will give kudos to UMass for one thing. They have declared their upcoming game against Liberty as their Pride game. Hey Flames, make sure you bring your unicorns and rainbows.
2021 is in the books. After the train wreck that was 2020, it was great to get back at it. I hit nine stadiums, but one, Texas A&M, was a repeat. I have to be honest, I don’t think I wore a mask at any game this year. It’s not that I am against mask wearing, but I was vaccinated and boosted. Plus, we were outside although it was pretty close quarters for a few of the games. I figured the occasional shot of whiskey at a tailgate would give the Corona a good run for its money. At the end of the day, I apologize to the immunocompromised (which is about 3% of the population) but as for the rest of the unvaccinated, eh. Honestly though, the impact of the virus was fairly muted until late in the season. It was not an issue anywhere I went.
I opened the season with a scintillating double header for Labor Day weekend. First stop was Ohio State at Minnesota for a rare Thursday Big 10 game. Before that though, was a stop at the state fair where I ate and drank too much. I also spent fifteen minutes on local Minneapolis sports radio at the fair. My buddy Doug joined me for the game where the Gophers hung with the Buckeyes until late in the 4th quarter. It was a great way to kick off the season. Friday was a travel day to Madison where we ended our evening looking over Lake Mendota and enjoying pitchers of Spotted Cow with our great friends Karen and Dan. Madison has a reputation as a great college town and it did not disappoint. Camp Randall was a great experience. The only downer was that Penn State pulled out the victory with an game ending end zone interception. Jump around indeed.
The following weekend was a short run up to College Station to see Texas A&M roll over New Mexico. This was more a practice tailgating run to make sure I worked out all the kinks than about the game. Luckily, I had Aggie Super Fan Kurt with me to refresh my memory of the A&M traditions of which there are many. This prep work paid dividends as the tailgating at OU the next week went off without a hitch. The game was a great one and again came down to the wire. The Sooners kicked a field goal as time expired to win it. Despite our planning, Que, another frequent somanystadiums participant, and I agreed that we botched the weekend timeline. We were both impressed with Oklahoma City enough that we regretted not arriving Friday night.
After the mad rush of games, a three weekend break wasn’t just welcomed, it was needed, especially because the next weekend was South Florida at SMU for the annual Nine O’clock Club get-together. While we weren’t willing to fork out a grand to get a tailgate spot on the Boulevard, we made the best of the weekend, partying with old and new friends. Speaking of new friends, as is the Wisconsin way, when Dane learned we were heading to ASU later in the season, he provided an immediate tailgating connection with the Sun Devils. We met Rocky and his tailgating crew in a prime spot right in front of Sun Devil Stadium. He filled us up with great food and drink and added in a ticket to boot. We had a great time watching the Sun Devils rout the Stanford Cardinal. The next day, perhaps a bit later than planned, we headed on down to Tucson to see UCLA thump Arizona. We probably didn’t give the Wildcats their full due, but it’s not like their reputation warranted it.
About a month later, I wrapped up the season with a surprise double header. I say surprise because when I scheduled a trip to El Paso to see the Miners host the Roadrunners, I knew there was also a game at New Mexico State just up the road. However, the preliminary schedule had the kickoffs only an hour apart and that wasn’t going to work. Thankfully, a red hot UTSA team made the game good enough to be switched to prime time. I was back in the double header business. Unfortunately, New Mexico State and UTEP were given the business by Utah State and UTSA respectively. What was more surprising was the level to which New Mexico exceeded expectations and UTEP did not.
Games and Teams
Total Games Attended: 9, up 1 from 2019
Best Team Seen: #5, Ohio State
Final AP Top Twenty-Five Teams Seen: 3 (Ohio State, Oklahoma #10, Utah State #24)
Worst Team: 1 -11 Arizona, (#4 in the Bottom 10). Also making the list: UTSA (for getting upset by North Texas State and losing a chance at a New Year’s Day bowl), South Florida and New Mexico State. I continue to excel at seeing some of the worst teams in the country.
Best Game Seen: PSU 16 – Wisconsin 10, 9/4/21. – Great finish in a great environment.
Worst Game Seen: Texas A&M 34 – New Mexico 0 – ho-hum.
Bowl Game Teams Seen: 13 but some didn’t actual end up playing thanks to Covid.
The Players
College Award winners seen: One, Wuerffel Trophy (Community Service Leadership): Isaiah Sanders, Stanford.
All Americans: 10, with 3 being consensus.
The Stadiums (of 2020 visits)
Best Stadium: Huntington Bank Stadium – University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, Minnesota. At 50K capacity, it’s a Goldilocks stadium, just the right size for the Gophers. Makes for raucous good time.
Worst Stadium: Gerald J. Ford Stadium – Southern Methodist University, Dallas, TX. Really not a bad stadium, just the worst of good bunch.
Best Game Day Experience: Camp Randall Stadium – University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin. The Badger experience is everything it is billed to be.
Easiest Stadium to Get To: Sun Devil Stadium – Arizona State University, Tempe AZ. Navigating the greater Phoenix metroplex is easy, there’s great hotels and bars right around the stadium and there’s even a public transportation option.
Hardest Stadium to Get To: The Sun Bowl – UTEP, El Paso, Tx. Unless you’re a drug running mule, hard to imagine a reason to be in El Paso.
Best Concessions: Aggie Memorial Stadium – New Mexico State, Las Cruces, NM. Hard to beat a Frito Pie and a sharp looking souvenir cup.
Worst Concessions: Arizona Stadium – University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ. Worst pretzel my wife has ever had. Enough said.
Best Souvenir: Wisconsin wins a tie-breaker over UTEP, as both had nice $9.99 T-shirts, but the Badger one was easier to get, right at the bookstore. The Miner one was a Wal-Mart special. (Note, I met another guy doing the stadium challenge, and he had bought the same UTEP shirt. We both marveled at a small school being in the Wally world supply chain)
Worst Souvenir: SMU, Everything, except for tickets, is expensive at SMU from tuition to tailgating to hats and t-shirts. Ended up buying something on ebay post trip.
Best Cup: SMU, but New Mexico State was not far behind.
Worst Cup: Oklahoma for giving out the cups from the previous week. At least they had a cup. Shame on you UTEP.
The Costs
Total Season Spend: $4,100 ($3,300 ex mileage) with some reduction for vacations tagged onto the back end at Minn/Wisc and the AZ trip; Ave per Game: ~$459 (ex mileage ~$363) down nearly $150.
Most Expensive Ticket: Ohio State vs Wisconsin – $69 actual (Stubhub) with a $135 face
Cheapest Ticket: Arizona State – Free! THANKS ROCKY!
Average Ticket Price Paid: $31 (up $6 over 2019)
Average Savings on Tickets over Face Value: $32 saved per ticket
Miscellaneous
Miles Driven: ~1,500 vs 2,300 in 2019
Miles Flown: ~5,640 (Minnesota / Wisconsin, Phoenix, El Paso)
Two Game Weeks: Three – Minnesota / Wisconsin, Arizona State / Arizona, New Mexico State / UTEP
Best Fans: New Mexico State. Really, just about everywhere, it was good. Maybe it’s because they don’t get a lot of visitors, but the Aggies aimed to please.
Worst Fans: UTEP. The folks I met were great but the tailgate scene in the big lots was a show.
Most Pleasant Surprise: New Mexico State. Free tailgating at New Mexico State – who does that?
Most Unpleasant Surprise: El Paso, even with a good friend guiding me around, way too many negatives. It was down hill after Chico’s.
Lesson Learned / Re-affirmed: Do your research. Absolutely should have done Friday night in Oklahoma City. Would have had good time on Friday night, saved money on the tailgate spot, and it would have been in a better location.
My Regular Season Pick Record: 31-23 Not too shabby. Bowl Games: 21-15
I am not alone:
As mentioned, I met a young guy at UTEP who was at, I think 56 stadiums. A friend then sent me a link to an article on Frank Lipchick, who’s number is 124. But, the real kicker was this guy, Clark Humble, who hit all 131 in five years. Apparently, my quest is more an exhibition rather than a competition. But with JMU, Jacksonville State and Houston State joining the fold. It’s not 131 anymore. First one to 134!
Sometimes, I hate being right. The playoff selection process is so laden with bias and status quo that here at Somanystadiums we were able to fully predict the playoff field with all the “championship games” yet to be played.
Some things we knew right off the bat:
Alabama was in, win or lose. Even if the Tide had lost by 35, they were in under the “We want the four best teams” sentiment. The premise is fine if you have an eight field team where you can give a Power Five team a break for the one-off loss. However, it makes conference championship games meaningless. Bama has looked great all year so they were automatically in, win or lose.
Notre Dame was in, win or lose. This is all about the national team / east coast bias for the Irish. They are a good team, and at times, a great team. I would have given this spot to Texas A&M. But, I have seen A&M play a few times this year and their case is only a little bit stronger. We are talking feet, not yards if you are looking for a football analogy. Nonetheless, I’d rather see the Aggies than the Irish. I think ND is going to get crushed by the Tide. Having already played them once, I give A&M a better shot.
Clemson had to win to get in. I think everyone knows they are heads and shoulders better than ND, but they had to prove it. They don’t get the old school, east-coast bias benefit that ND does today so a win was a must.
Ohio State was in the same boat, but only because they had played six games. To be fair, the Buckeyes have been winning with a lot of backups thanks to Covid-19 precautions. If Ohio State had rolled into the Big Ten championship 11-0, they would have gotten the east coast bias, beauty contest playoff bid. Of course, you could argue the Big Ten already gave them that gift when they changed the conference requirement rules. Like it or not, the Buckeyes did take care of business.
This left Texas A&M hoping for some upsets. None of which happened. Gig’ em next year.
As Bruce Hornsby sings, “Did you really think about it before you made the rules?” This is not the way it should be. The playoffs should be an eight team field team with the following fully transparent rules.
1) Power Five conference winners get an automatic bid.
2) Undefeated Group of Five conference winners get an automatic bid.
3) Remaining slots filled by Selection Committee ranking.
With that in mind, this is what it should look like.
Bama is still the number one seed and they get the Oregon Ducks, as PAC 12 champions. I hate that the Ducks get in over say a Florida or Coastal Carolina, but by virtue of winning their conference, they are in. If Florida had beaten Texas A&M, they would have been in a much different spot. Plus, this season is different and giving a PAC 12 team a shot would be a lot more inclusive. The PAC 12 winner would not be nearly as problematic if the USC Trojans had taken care of business in the first place.
Notre Dame still gets in with an at-large bid and the four seed based on the selection committee ranking (thank you very much east coast bias). Texas A&M gets the other at-large bid and comes in at five. Honestly, isn’t this the game you wanted to see anyway? It allows the arguments to be settled on the field instead of in a hotel conference room.
Clemson rightly gets the number two seed and would play the Bearcats of Cincinnati. The Bearcats are undefeated and won the American Athletic Conference. Congrats Group of Five, you wanted it, you got it.
Ohio State gets the third seed and will play Oklahoma, the Big 12 Champion. Is Florida better than Oklahoma? The selection committee didn’t think so, having put the Sooners one spot ahead of the Gators.
The big losers in my eight game scenario are the following:
Florida. The Gators looked awfully good on offense against Bama. It feels like they could keep up with anyone in a shoot-out. Again though, when a team loses three games, it is hard to feel too badly for them.
Coastal Carolina. Let me be clear, had the Chanticleers beaten Louisiana (Lafayette) in the now cancelled Sunbelt Championship, they would have rightfully knocked out Texas A&M, only because the committee rated ND ahead of them. However, since this is a purely hypothetical bracket. I would suggest the Committee put A&M above Notre Dame. This way, you would get some great regional games that feel very much like first round playoffs. Coastal would play Clemson, OU would take on Texas A&M, and Cincinnati would play the Buckeyes. Plus, college football fans get the added bonus of watching Irish fans go apoplectic and wail at the injustice of it all. My work here is done.
I am not alone in my assessment of the challenges facing the current system. You know there are problems when even the NCAA poster boys at ESPN’s Game Day are bad mouthing the college playoff system. As an aside, it was not exactly a great year for Game Day. From the forced and tenuous connection between The Masters and college football to backdrops with no audiences, the show really never caught its stride this year. The Bear’s Bank segments feel like they have run their course. When your picks are hitting only half the time, it’s the equivalent of a Christmas Club savings account – a feel good endeavor at best, and wasting away money at the worst.
But it wasn’t just ESPN that struggled. Some of the weekends, let alone games, were unwatchable this year. I am not sure that is the fault of anyone, it was just the way Covid-19 impacted the season. Thankfully, the precautions, by and large, kept most everyone safe. Sadly, though, there were some outliers. With that in mind, please celebrate the holidays with as much care and responsibility as possible. Let’s make 2021 a better year in every sense of the word.
If there was ever a year that you’d say a Hokie is a Turkey, it would be 2020. The only thing the Hokies have to be thankful for is that they don’t have to play Clemson until next week.
This week is normally one of the best weeks in college football. There’s nothing like rivalry week to bring out the best in teams. Alas, Covid-19 has claimed this weekend, with several traditional rivalry games not being played.
Typically, Thursday is for the NFL. Unfortunately, we’re getting the brussels sprouts (Houston versus Detroit) and lima bean casserole (Washington versus Dallas) of Thanksgiving games, with the stuffing (Ravens versus Steelers) relegated to Sunday leftovers. Thankfully, the NCAA has responded with University of New Mexico (0-4) versus Utah State University (0-4). Mmmm, creamed onions anyone?
Friday’s slate improves if you were looking for an excuse for not putting up the Christmas lights. ISU at Texas and ND at UNC should prove to be watchable. If you must get out of the house, there’s still tickets available for UMass at Liberty, although they are bit pricey.
Liberty is a dry campus but I hear that Falwell’s tailgate is jumping. Just ask for the signature drink, “The Pool Boy”.
ABC’s big game on noon EST is PSU at Michigan. Hmm, anyone up for Maryland versus Indiana? The Iron Bowl is still a thing this year, but does it count with Saban watching from his den? Well, maybe he can catch up on his Aflac paperwork. If your family Thanksgiving was cancelled, you still have a chance to get Covid-19 . There’s going to be a super spreader event at College Station this weekend as the Texas A&M hosts LSU. Wear those masks Aggie faithful.
Surprisingly, after a couple of days of rest, I had only some light, lingering congestion. I thought I might have to cancel my trip to Washington, but my earlier vaccinations helped my body recovery quickly and I was essentially symptom free in a few days. After discussing with my travel buddy who was also getting over a cold, we decided both of us were sufficiently recovered to make the trip. We spent a long weekend tramping around the Palouse, squeezing in the first half of the Drake – Idaho game before hitting the main event at Washington State. There we watched the game from the posh confines of the Coaches Club enjoying great food and drink. The only thing that marred the day was that we were treated to another beating of a hapless Colorado football team. The Colorado State Rams weren’t much better than the Buffs, and WSU rolled in a game that was essentially over by the end of the first quarter.
After five weeks on a road, it was nice to get a weekend off. This gave me some time to recharge prior to the annual weekend with the 9 O’clock Club. While Maryland versus Indiana may not have been a marquee matchup from a rankings perspective, the game was not without merit and the tailgating was superb. It was a pleasant surprise and made for a weekend full of memories. The next weekend I was off, or I was until I got a call early Friday evening to see if I wanted to head over to see Ole Miss play LSU. My first game at LSU was a bit of a disappointment, mainly because it was hotter than a Mumbai laundromat. I had always wanted to go back and with the visiting Rebels being undefeated, I could not turn down the opportunity. This time we had local connections we could rely on which made the experience top tier. However, the trip also wore me out and convinced me I didn’t have enough steam left for the Kansas trip. It was shame because the scheduling aligned where I could have hit both the Jayhawks and Wildcats. I have been hoping to avoid two weekends in Kansas but that might not be possible.
Best Stadium: LaVell Edwards Stadium – BYU, Provo, Utah. One of the most dramatic views in college football.
2021 is in the books. After the train wreck that was 2020, it was great to get back at it. I hit nine stadiums, but one, Texas A&M, was a repeat. I have to be honest, I don’t think I wore a mask at any game this year. It’s not that I am against mask wearing, but I was vaccinated and boosted. Plus, we were outside although it was pretty close quarters for a few of the games. I figured the occasional shot of whiskey at a tailgate would give the Corona a good run for its money. At the end of the day, I apologize to the immunocompromised (which is about 3% of the population) but as for the rest of the unvaccinated, eh. Honestly though, the impact of the virus was fairly muted until late in the season. It was not an issue anywhere I went.
The following weekend was a short run up to College Station to see 
After the mad rush of games, a three weekend break wasn’t just welcomed, it was needed, especially because the next weekend was South Florida at 
About a month later, I wrapped up the season with a surprise double header. I say surprise because when I scheduled a trip to El Paso to see the 
Best Concessions: Aggie Memorial Stadium – New Mexico State, Las Cruces, NM. Hard to beat a Frito Pie and a sharp looking souvenir cup.
Two Game Weeks: Three – Minnesota / Wisconsin, Arizona State / Arizona, New Mexico State / UTEP
