Have you ever been in a situation where you thought that someone was so ill-prepared for something, and you were just stuck in the middle of it and couldn't do anything but wait it out...???
As part of this whole celebration-leading-toward-the-last-college-football-game-that-means-something this season, there are corporate sponsored events where you're encouraged to party, tailgate, and otherwise consume mass quantities of whatever the main sponsors are trying to pass off as an experience and/or souvenirs...
Sunday was that day... and I don't honestly think the city of Scottsdale knew what hit it. There was a party situation planned for both sets of fans in a central location- a cordoned-off section of mall near the riverfront. And, yes, I know what you're thinking...
Scottsdale has a river, much less a riverfront...???
Remember what we were talking about with the whole "Auburn fans buying out 70-percent of the seats in Glendale...?" That 50,000 or so fans are just the ones who have tickets. There are countless others that TBH and myself have seen looking for tickets, or just in town for the experience of saying they were there should the team win today.
And they all seem to travel in a pack- a mega-pack, or an amoeba that just happens to multiply over and over again to a suffocating level. 20,000 showed for the controlled-environment party within the confines of the fences the party-hosters put up. 2,000 showed up in a hyper-confined space to experience the Auburn Radio Network's live-from-Arizona version of "Tiger Talk."
The bar across the street from this place called "Upper Deck" proclaimed itself to be the official Oregon bar. It was overrun by Auburn fans who were told that, to stay, they had to pay a $25 cover.
They didn't care- it was part of their experience. Especially, when the few Ducks fans that actually were there to be part of the Oregon experience started flipping off the Auburn fans who were yelling at each other across the street back and forth like it was a home game. It got to the point where Auburn play-by-play guy Rod Bramblett actually took a picture for himself as proof.
Which the HQ found as funny...
Upper Deckers were confused over what to charge for beer, which was sold by the case and caused an artificial shortage of any domestic they ((and three other establishments nearby)) could get their hands on...
If the joint you're in is out of beer, you're out of luck...
And the day ends with the Alumni Association renting out the largest ballroom in a hotel near the football stadium. 3,000 tickets were sold for the event which gave any fan a chance to hob-nob with a 1957 football player, Bramblett, Stan White, Quentin Riggins, a member of the 1972 "Amazins" squad, and hear Pat Dye talk about kicking the other guy's ass tomorrow night...
Think of it as a big fantasy camp for football fans- and a chance to wander in to a high-falutin' ballroom if you waited long enough not to drop the $35 for a ticket before the door.
And Scottsdale, Glendale, and any other dale has no idea what they've gotten themselves in to for a week...
Because, people will come Ray...
People will come...
They have... and, weather permitting, they're still coming for kickoff...
((HT: Youtube/Universal Pictures))
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