Anytime BYU plays a sporting event within striking distance of Houston, there's a good chance I'll be there. Last September, I drove the 1,500 mile round trip to Tallahassee, FL to watch them play (or attempt to play) the Florida State Seminoles in football. (As a bonus, I got to drive through Chattahoochee, FL...where, I hear, it gets hotter than a....). I was also able to arrive in time Friday evening to attend the team's fireside (a tradition of Bronco's whenever they play a road game), which was really cool. It was there that I learned from the locals that you must always, always refer to the FSU colors as GARNET and gold - a lesson that was reiterated multiple times during our visit in Tallahassee.
My brother, Stan, and two of his kids (Colin and Jack) couldn't leave Houston until later, so they drove through the night and arrived just in time to wake me up in the morning and crash in my hotel room. After Stan caught a couple of zzz's, we headed over near campus to meet up for lunch with Cheri (my brother James' sister-in-law), her son Cody and her dad Roger who were all in town for Cody's campus visit and the football game. (Cheri posted those pics on Facebook, so I won't re-post here.)
Then came the football game. That blasted football game. The Cougs battled and scored 10 late points in the first half to close the gap to 13-10 heading into the break. Unfortunately, they didn't come out for the second half. Final score: 34-10. After another loss at TCU in October, BYU is now 0-5 in road games that I've been to. I'm starting to take it personally.
I'll think twice about going to another early season outdoor game in the hot, humid south. It was sweltering in Tallahassee! Well, ok, I'll think twice AFTER I go see the Cougs play Ole Miss in Oxford on Sept 3 and UT in Austin on Sept 10 this fall.
Here come the men in white.
The grand entrance of Chief Osceola and his horse, Renegade.
Just seconds before Jake Heaps threw a 4-yard TD pass to Cody Hoffman 14 seconds before halftime to make it 13-10 FSU....the peak of our excitement for the day.
Me and two of my stud nephews, Colin and Jack, staying in the shade during halftime. Dang, it was hot that day.
I'm pretty sure those were our hopes for a good season that were burning on the end of the statue in front of Doak Campbell Stadium after the game.
After the shelacking in Tallahassee, we wimpered over to stay the night with our Aunt Lynette, where we got to visit with her and some of our long, lost cousins (one of which, apparently, goes by "Booger.")
Very odd Ripley's Believe It or Not building in Florida. Had to do a double take.
Playing on the beautiful beach near Panama City (where my aunt lives).
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