SEC Football is Full Tilt

The college football season starts to take shape this weekend because the SEC is ramping up. Twice I had a chance to play road games against SEC teams - Alabama and LSU - and both experiences told me a lot about college football. It's one thing to be able to play at schools like Notre Dame or against crosstown rival UCLA but it's an entirely different experience when you go to Alabama or LSU or any of the SEC schools. It is a different type of game, different type of atmosphere. For us it was playing in front of a stadium full of red with the legend Bear Bryant standing on the sideline and having a tiger revved up right next to your locker room that had every player scared to death walking out to the field. In the SEC, each and every fan comes with a mission, a purpose and as a believer in their school. Not to take anything away from college football fans around the country, but the SEC is the closest thing to a religion that I've ever experienced. They have a love for the game and a love for the pregame like no other. When we were getting off the bus at LSU the fans were lined up on both sides of the bus with bottles of whiskey in one hand and they started chanting "tiger bait, tiger bait, tiger bait." That's what I mean by love for the pregame. Whether it's LSU or it's playing in Mississippi or against the Auburn Tigers you are always going to be just that - bait. This weekend we'll get a chance to see it all - all the elements of SEC football - LSU-Auburn, Florida-LSU - it's full tilt. SEC football will have a view and a point of view of who will be national champions. As a person and a football fan I assure you whether you are going in as bait or watching it on your couch or sitting in the stands this weekend will be unforgettable. SEC football is what makes college football so great. You hear about these ultimate road trips in sports, I assure you that it is worth it as a fan to feel hated, worth it to take in that religious experience, worth it to everyone to see why everyone loves SEC football. When we went to Alabama in 1978 my teammate Eric Scoggins was the defensive player of the game. We won 24-14 and ended up sharing the national championship with Alabama that year. Scogs was all over the field, making things happen. If you've read the previous blog posts you know that Eric has been diagnosed with ALS and is still making things happen. Only the plays he's making now are helping raise awareness and find a cure for the disease. I invite all of you to to join us in that fight too by participating in our raffle or by reading about Eric's story (http://allstarshelpingkids.org/events/raffle.html). As always we appreciate your support.

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• Annt74 said September 19, 2008

  that was such a great look into the SEC of college footbal, Mr. Lott.........Being from So. Cal. all i really knew about the SEC was the fans are rabid and just love footbal, but your article gave me a new perspective.......

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• FatManIsrael said September 20, 2008

  The SEC teams have some good defense, scoring on them is hard.

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• wardeagle999 said September 20, 2008

  Growing up in the South and an Auburn fan, I'd say you captured the essence of SEC football with perfection. And this is why I love the SEC
  

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  • SECForever replied September 21, 2008

    I'm a long-suffering Alabama fan who is finally seeing that the pain may be over. I fully agree with Mr. Lott's article. Even going further, you can't even go down a dirt road without seeing someone with their team's flag on their vehicle, and on game day, the atmosphere is just as heated and intense hundreds of miles away from the game as it is at that stadium.