What a gorgeous day to kick off football season! We could not have asked for better weather. It was nice and sunny all afternoon and there was a wonderful breeze to keep you cool.
Our afternoon was filled with all sorts of fun. First, we were going to get Guthries chicken fingers for lunch. Ever since Brad mentioned it to me early last week I had been wanting them. Low and behold, when we pull into Auburn, it had been replaced by a hotdog joint. Luckily there is a Zaxby’s in the same parking lot so I was able to get my chicken finger filling.
Next came the Tiger Walk. We haven’t been to a Tiger Walk in a really long time and thought it would be fun to do for the first game. We got there in plenty of time and were on the 2nd row behind some kids – perfect view of the players and coaches. As you know, I am not one for watching the game or really knowing what is going on, I pay attention to what people wear. So, here’s my take on the coaches' attire.
Coach Trooper Taylor – very energetic. He was running down through the Tiger Walk jumping and just going crazy. Just a big ball of energy that excited the crowd and he did not lose his momentum during the game. When Terrell Zachery caught that long pass and ran for the touchdown, Taylor was running right there with him. He wore a black suit with a bright blue shirt, bright blue and black striped tie, with a black baseball cap backwards (would he have it any other way?).
Coach Curtis Luper – as Brad would say, very GQ. He was in his light brown suit with is orange shirt and don’t worry, he had his orange sunglasses. He was cool as a cucumber and seemed very well put together.
Coach Jeff Grimes – he is huge. When I say huge, I just mean tall, but like taller than Brad. I don’t really know what I expected, but I was not expecting that. Same goes for
Coach Gus Malzahn. I imagined a short, scrawny guy. He was taller than Brad and looks like he works out with the team. The rest of the coaches were as I expected. It seems like they had a good color scheme going, alternating the orange and blue between the coaches as they proceeded through the Tiger Walk. Another fashion note – I always noticed that Tommy Tuberville’s pants were faded. I often wondered why his wife did not buy him some new pants. This coaching staff all had navy blue pants for the game but they weren’t faded! They maybe next week after a washing, but I was impressed. In fact, I thought they were jogging pants because they retained their color so well. It was only after rewatching the game on TV that I saw they were wearing belts and noticed the chino material.
On to the game…actually, I must say one of the reasons I love AU football…that is running into old friends when you least expect it. Without fail we see someone different each week. It could be on our way to the stadium, just outside the stadium or inside the game. This week we saw my old roommate, Marie, and her family. Marie was the best roommate ever and I wish we lived closer to each other!! We also saw our friend, Andrew's, boss and family. They were sitting 2 rows in front of us. Too bad they don't have season tickets this year; they were fun to sit by.
Back to the game - we sit on row 61. That means a big long trek up the stairs. This year, I have been practicing, but not really by choice. The bathrooms at work are out on my floor for renovations. They are also out on the 2 floors below me (we are the top floor). That means I have to go to the 5th floor to go to the bathroom. I told myself I needed to take the stairs to be prepared for football season and it has paid off! I made it to the top without too much huffing and puffing. Once we got up there we found out that the couple that sits next to us is pregnant too! It was neat to think that our kids will be at AU at the same time.
The game itself was exciting and kept my attention pretty much the entire time. It was so nice to see the team score. They looked like they were really enjoying themselves out there too. I hope next week is just as exciting and has the same outcome! (sorry Billy and Rebecca!)
War Eagle!
Brad and me before the game. I insisted we take a picture of baby's first game but we didn't want to take the camera with us. So, here we are before we headed to campus.
Coach Chizik getting excited at the Tiger Walk.
