But before we talk more about the games and rivalries to come this weekend, let's talk a little about what matters most: the tailgate! Jeff & i are off to Alabama this weekend to celebrate Thanksgiving with his family & catch The Iron Bowl: Bama vs Auburn. And by the looks of this big Brunch Menu you'd never know we just stuffed ourselves yesterday at Turkey-palooza:
Fuzzy Field Goal Cocktail & Bloody Mary Jello Shots
I made Beth Sachan's Caramel French Toast Casserole for our Sunday School breakfast a few weeks back and dang near licked the dish clean. It's phenomenal, no joke. Other favorites I can't wait to nosh on tomorrow: the Artichoke Bites, the Bacon Blue Cheese Dip, and the Fudge Topped Cream Puffs. Not to mention those Bloody Mary Jello Shots. I mean, how brilliant of an idea are those suckers? Bookmark some of these for your next tailgate or party & let me know what you think, y'all!
Florida fans are notorious for their tailgate parties. From the food to the fashion, Gator fans show up big on Gamedays. Some of the most beautiful girls in the SEC hail from the orange & blue clad U of F. And I've always been so envious of their eternally warm Gamedays - no bulky sweaters or coats required in The Swamp. Just chic dresses, bold accessories, and fabulous heels. Go Gators indeed.
The tough part about doing a Gameday Guide for Florida isn't so much that they're one of my beloved UGA's biggest, most heated rivals, but that I'm not familiar with the city of Gainesville, Florida's campus, or Ben Hill Griffin Stadium (aka The Swamp). You see, Georgia and Florida never play each other at our home stadiums. Our game, The Cocktail Party, is always played in Jacksonville at a neutral site. In fact, I've been to every SEC venue at least once, except for Florida. My Bama grad Hubby however, has been to the swamp on multiple occasions over the years and has graciously agreed to assist this week's Gameday Guide. So Gator Girls, if you're not pleased with this post, blame Jeff haha ;)
That's Florida's stadium, what's affectionately & not-so-affectionately known (by their rivals) as "The Swamp." It's not the largest of SEC Stadiums, but it's certainly one of the most intimidating places to play. Since 1990 the Gators win percentage at home is hovering a little over .800 - that's a pretty incredible home field advantage. But Florida's stadium isn't the only main attraction in Gainesville on Gamedays. UF is widely known as one of the biggest party schools in the country, so there's no shortage of party hot-spots to hit on football Saturdays. Here are a few essentials for tailgating at Florida games:
2) Things to See - Before heading into the swamp check out their 3 Heisman statues of Steve Spurrier, Danny Wuerffel, and Tim Tebow. And no trip to Gainesville is complete without getting your picture taken at the famous Bull Gator statue.
3) Things to Do - If you've traveled all the way to Gainesville for a game, you have to make it a weekend trip. A couple of notable sights to check out while in town: the Downtown Concerts at Bo Diddley Plaza on Friday nights through October, go tubing down the Sante Fe River, catch great live music at Rockey's Dueling Piano Bar, hike down into a mini rainforest at Devil's Millhopper Geological State Park, and take a tour of the historic William Reuben Thomas Center.
While putting this Gameday Guide together, I realized just how much I've missed that other SEC fans get to experience while visiting Gainesville for a Florida game. I'm adding a Bama vs Florida game to our bucket list and y'all should too! But in the meantime, regardless of your team affiliation, cheer on the Gators Saturday as they take on FSU. I'll never be a Florida fan, but we all chant "S-E-C" for a reason. Other huge rivalry games on tap: The Iron Bowl (Bama at Auburn), Palmetto Brawl (Gamecocks at Clemson), The Egg Bowl (Ole Miss at Mississippi State), Clean Old-Fashioned Hate (UGA at Georgia Tech), and today's Game of the Century Junior (Arkansas at LSU). Wow - those are some big games with huge consequences! Whether you're tailgating like we are or catching all the games with friends at home, enjoy this last weekend of the season football fans! And as always, I hope your team wins, just not against mine ;)
Roll Tide & Go Dawgs!!
9 comments:
What a fantastic post! From the food to the fashion to the football viewing advice - you covered it all. I love that orange cuff! It looks like a Tory Burch accessory. Who makes it?
Drew and I will be on the plains tomorrow. I'm hoping I'm happy after the game and he's sad...but only time will tell.
Enjoy the game!
Jen: Thank you so much! I'm so glad you liked it - I have so much fun doing these posts :) You're right, that does looks like a Tory Burch cuff! It's actually from Marc Jacobs. Here's the link in case you want to add this one to your Christmas list: http://is.gd/dlDG9b
Beth: I hope we run into y'all tomorrow!! You need to do a blog post about your "house divided" for the Iron Bowl :) And I'm with you - fingers crossed for a Bama win. It should be a great game. Roll Tide!
Oh man...even with the Turkey hangover that menu looks irresistible. Happy (belated) Thanksgiving and have an awesome weekend! From the looks of the Wiki article, sounds exciting!
Thanks Isabel! Hope you & Flora had a terrific Thanksgiving as well :)
Love it! GO GATORS :)
- Sara @ Gameday Stylist
www.gamedaystylist.com
Just found your blog (thank you pinterest!) and I loved this post. Thank you for highlighting the best of Gainesville, its rare to see such curtsey given to a rival! Hopefully we get up to Athens for a game one of these years - its the only SEC stadium (of the former 12) that my hubby hasn't been to! (Although we have gone to other sports to get a taste of Athens!)
Great post Ally! If you ever need help with where to go or what to see in Gainesville, let us know. As Gator girls, we know the ins and outs of Gameday at the Swamp. :) Found your post by looking through tailgating-centric blogs to get pumped for September!! Again, great post - keep on writing!
much love,
The Gameday Girls
I totally agree with Hannah, great post from a rival!! If you ever need help with what to see or do in Gainesville, let us know - we'd love to share. :) I also found you through pinterest and love your blog! Have a great football season, we'll be reading :)
much love,
The Gameday Girls
(p.s. I think it deleted the post I did prior to signing in, sorry if this is a second comment!)
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