GAMEDAY!

We woke up and met at 7:30am to head to the Rose Bowl. We had to pick up our student tickets at Will Call set up by the University at the Rose Bowl Aquatic Center at 9:00am. The game didn’t start until 5pm, so we decided to get as close as we could to the Aquatic Center. We had about as much chance of doing that as Colt McCoy had at coming back in the game! Dave didn’t have to pick up his ticket, so he dropped us off as close as he could (about a mile away). We walked to the Aquatic Center to find a line 100yds long. We were approached by four or five people selling lanyards and didn’t bother with getting one. After we picked up our tickets, we realized we needed something to keep them in! And as you all know, when you don’t want something it’s everywhere, and when you do want it you can’t find it! We walked around the outside of the stadium asking people where we could find someone selling the kind we were trying to find. We tracked down one guy who said, “There’s a cop up there. Let’s do this behind the van.” We decided that probably wasn’t the best idea! We continued our search and found the ones we wanted. Next, we were dying for something to eat. We headed to the west side of the stadium to a tent with cheeseburgers and cheeseburgers with no cheese (he was very adamant about that). We met up with Randy, Jon, Steven, and Eric from Long Beach. We ate with them, and then Zach left to see his uncle. We made our way to the stadium gates around 2:30, and we were the first ones in that gate. Zach eventually met up with us in the stadium and we took a few pictures. The stadium was full an hour before kickoff. The atmosphere was electric! Everyone was fired up knowing this one game was what everything came down to. Alabama fans and students may have been guilty of thinking the game was won too early. When the game started to turn for the worse, every fan did their part to be a champion! Rammer Jammer lasted maybe one round too long, but the victory celebration was awesome. Confetti was flying and everyone was hugging and high-fiving. We hung around in the stadium until they kicked us out.
We had to decide whether to take the bus back to our car or walk. We ended up talking to a limo driver that told us exactly how to get back to where our car was parked. The walk wasn’t a disappointment! We passed a vendor with a sign that said, “Texas Gear 50% Off!” We walked pass two Texas fans wearing cowboy hats and one was sitting on the curb with his face in his hands. Our first thought was, “Priceless. Let’s take a picture!” After getting the camera out to sneak a shot, the second Texan proceeded to run toward us shouting profanities and wanting to fight. Apparently he was really crying and we were being a bit classless, but it was so hard to let it go (and yes, we did it let it go)! There was also a guy selling Michael Jackson shirts for $1. Why we didn’t buy one, we don’t know. We had to take a couple breaks walking back because our legs and feet were so sore from the day’s walking and standing the entire game. After we got back to the parking lot, Dave forgot where he left La-a. We wanted to get out of town to eat so we wouldn’t have to wait, so Giselle (our GPS) found a TGIFriday’s in West Covina. We ate dinner there and the waiter changed our TV to a replay of the game on ESPN. He actually knew something about college football, unlike most locals we came across. The TGIFriday’s was almost like a dance club. The music was turned up and the place was packed. It was unlike any TGIFriday’s we had ever been to. We headed back to the hotel after eating and it was the most tiring time yet (keyword: yet) of our entire trip. Zach claimed he was wide awake, Corey was out like a light, Dave was in and out, and I was delusional. Zach would make a statement to which my response would be completely irrelevant. We did make it back, though, and passed out as soon as we hit the floor (except Zach had a bed)! Interesting ending to a perfect day!