The “Holiday Season” is Unofficially Here! – College Football is Back!

For many, the traditional “holiday season” officially begins around Thanksgiving and goes through Christmas and New Year’s Day. But here in the South, the “most wonderful time of the year” starts when College Game Day premieres on ESPN. 

Football is a deeply-felt religion in the South, or at least a serious obsession. I saw a plaque once in a gift shop that sums it up: “In the South, there are four seasons – winter, spring, summer, and college football!” It is part of our culture and as dear to us as sweet tea, grits, “bless your heart,” and biscuits. Signature events in our lives, like weddings, reunions and even funerals, are planned around the bye week of our favorite team.

I write about gardening and dearly love this passion, but I may be more passionate about college football, especially the Georgia Bulldogs. I am a proud graduate of UGA, as was my father (who was a UGA cheerleader) and my uncle who was inducted into the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame as a sports journalist. One of my most treasured memories was interviewing former Coach Vince Dooley as he gave me a private tour of his beautiful Athens garden. 

Going back to Athens, (the Classic City) feels like a pilgrimage. In Athens, you don’t say “hello;” you say, “How ‘bout them Dawgs!” There is nothing more thrilling than to be in town on a football Saturday among a sold-out crowd of 93,000 fans to watch the Bulldogs compete “between the hedges” at Sanford Stadium. How much do Georgia fans love their Bulldogs? Well, all the deceased English bulldogs who served as the beloved mascot (Uga) are buried in marble vaults in the southwest corner of the stadium!

Until recently the Dawgs had not enjoyed a national championship since 1980. It was on my bucket list (and maybe my prayer list) to experience one more National Championship during my lifetime. I’ve gotten to experience two – back-to-back championships in 2021 and 2022.  (But I find like most fans, that enjoying a championship doesn’t make you content but rather makes you greedy for more!)

Mention college football to most Southerners and we will eloquently expound for hours about the team we love and the teams we loathe. In the Southeastern Conference (SEC), there are plenty of teams to love and hate: Alabama, Arkansas, Auburn, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, LSU, Ole Miss, Mississippi State, Missouri, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas A&M and Vanderbilt. Last year we added Texas and Oklahoma. Texas has now become my most favorite team to “loathe.”  My husband and I traveled to Austin last year to see the first match-up between Georgia and Texas and watch the Dawgs put Texas in their place. Imagine the Longhorns thinking they could come into the SEC and take over the first year!

Fans are just as passionate about college football rituals as they are about the game. Each school has a rich tradition, dictating how to spend a Saturday game day. To get you ready for football season, here are some of the great college football traditions in the South.

University of Georgia: Saturday in Athens “between the hedges” at Sanford Stadium is an experience dripping with traditions that include the Dawg Walk, where fans greet the team as they arrive; lining up for a picture with Uga, the beloved English bulldog mascot; listening to the lone trumpeter from the Red Coat Band standing in the south upper deck of the stadium before the game playing the opening notes of “Glory, Glory to Old Georgia,” and students rushing to ring the chapel bell after Georgia victories. Win or lose, Georgia fans greet each other with, “Go Dawgs!”

University of Alabama: Alabama’s biggest tradition is winning! This juggernaut team officially claims a record 18 national football championships!  “Roll Tide” is the battle cry, referring to its name, Crimson Tide. Alabama’s mascot is an elephant, “Big Al.” Tradition suggests the elephant image was first used in 1930 to describe the impressive size of the team. They soon became known unofficially as the “Red Elephants,” and a mascot was born. Fans sing the fight song, “Rammer Jammer” after each game win and are also fond of singing “Sweet Home Alabama.” 

Auburn University: Many fans from other teams are often confused about Auburn’s mascot – is it a tiger or an eagle? According to one university source, “We are Tigers who yell ‘War Eagle.’” Auburn’s official mascot is “Aubie” the Tiger. Legend suggests students started chanting “War Eagle” after a fan pronounced one tough game was going to be a “war.” An eagle was then spotted and fans started the call, “War Eagle!” Whatever its source, the eagle who flies through Jordan-Hare Stadium at the start of the game is a thrilling sight and a favorite tradition. After a win, students rush to Toomer’s Corner to decorate the Auburn oak trees with toilet paper. Two of the mature trees had to be replaced in recent years after a deranged Alabama fan poisoned the trees in an example of team spirit gone wildly amuck! 

Ole Miss: Chosen by many polls as the best place to tailgate in the nation, Ole Miss knows how to set a good table before a game. “The Grove,” ten beautiful acres of greenspace on campus, is the backdrop for upscale tailgating parties that can include chandeliers swinging from the trees, lace tablecloths, china and silver place settings, floral centerpieces, great food and party-goers dressed to the nines for the occasion.  Ole Miss students like to say, “We may not win every game, but we have never lost a party.” The “Hotty Toddy” chant is their game day battle cry and students often greet each other with “Are You Ready?” In 1998 a “Walk of Champions” arch was built on the east side of the Grove under which the team walks and high fives fans before the game.

Mississippi State: The “Maroon and White” are best known for their tradition of ringing the cowbell! While greatly annoying to fans of the opposing team and those worried about hearing loss, the cowbell remains a signature ritual to celebrate team victories. No one is sure of the origin of the cowbell, but a favorite story is told that a jersey cow wandered onto the playing field during a game between Miss State and Ole Miss, and the Bulldogs beat the Rebels soundly that day. Mississippi State students started bringing a cow to games but then decided ringing cowbells was more fun and less hassle! The most popular version of the cowbell has a long handle for better gripping and a louder ring. 

LSU: That rich aroma you smell before an LSU game is from the gumbo and jambalaya made in cast-iron skillets and served up at most tailgate parties. Everyone is welcome to have a bowl of gumbo, even a fan from the visiting team! The Golden Band from Tigerland plays and the fans sing the Alma Mater, with arms around each other, swaying to the music. But it is at the end of the game when LSU takes the tradition a step further – win or lose, the Alma Mater is sung again. Afterwards, the horn section of the band plays, “Let Us Break Bread Together on Our Knees” and then band members sing the Alma Mater again a cappella. The band ends with the chant, “1, 2, 3, LSU Tigers, Fight, Fight, Fight!” 
More Traditions: The Clemson Tigers are proud of their “Howard’s Rock” that players rub for luck before a game. The Tennessee Volunteers feature their own “Vol Navy” – a flotilla of boats that come to the game from the Tennessee River. “Mr. Two Bits,” is a Florida Gators beloved tradition, where a former Gator great leads the fans in the “Two Bits, Four Bits” cheer before each home game. South Carolina fans enjoy tailgating in style on the railroad tracks in 22 stationary cabooses that make up the Cockaboose Railroad. Georgia Tech fans look forward to the football team being led onto the field by a 1930 Ford Cabriolet Sport Coupe, the “Ramblin’ Wreck of Georgia Tech!” The sporty, classic car is a cherished mascot who shares time with “Buzz,” the lovable Georgia Tech Yellow Jacket.