Magnolia Magic

 This past Saturday I made the three and a half hour trek from the Redneck Riviera to Southern Mississippi University (SoMo) in Hattiesburg, MS. I was joined by my brother Brian who flew in from Baltimore and his Maryland cohort Lagarius Buckley. A few facts about the school: The SoMo student population is just under 12,000. The football team plays in the Sun Belt Conference, and its most famous alumni is none other than Brett Favre. The Golden Eagle home games are played on campus at M.M. Roberts Stadium which seats 36,000 football hungry fans.

After an afternoon and evening of hitting the beach and bars of 30A on Friday, we jumped in the F150 for our journey to Southern Mississippi. This marked my 105th D1A home stadium and pregame that I’ve attended.* The Hattiesburg weather was mostly sunny and in the 90s with that patented late Mississippi summer humidity. Upon our arrival on campus, we looked for grassy areas with all the tents but did not initially see any (we found them at game time). 

Planting the flag in the Hat

 We set up our gate under a big shade tree in a grassy area with only one other tent close by. Regardless, the three of us engaged in our typical shenanigans. We grilled up a menu similar to that of my FAU and Miami tailgates from two weeks ago: bacon and cheddar-infused short rib burgers, hot dogs, potato salad, brownies and, of course, ample ice cold Yuengling. We scored three online tickets for $12 each by playing the waiting game and made our way down to the beautiful M.M. Roberts Stadium for the main event. The stadium has seen several renovations over the past fifteen years. The south end zone is on par with any power five stadium with beautiful suites and shaded box seats. The north end zone has their new football facilities in a detached building. 

The opponent on the day was the Tulane Green Wave who had an amazing season last year capped off by a Cotton Bowl win over USC. However, they were without their “All World” QB1 Michael Pratt missed his second straight game due to a leg injury. The absence of Pratt gave the SoMo Golden Eagles some hope they could keep up with the Green Wave. 

Tulane jumped out to a quick 7-0 lead on their first drive. From that point on, it became a defensive battle between the two squads with neither team adding any more points in the first half. At halftime we were treated to a spectacular performance by the Southern Miss marching band. They were also joined by the Tulane band and the alumni band for several songs. The three bands combined totaled over 700 members. We made friends in our section and learned a bit about the program, its history and what it means to the local community. By the second half, the student section sitting in the sun started to diminish in numbers. But those of us in the shade stuck around. Tulane added two more touchdowns in the third set and Southern Miss got three on a field goal. Final score: Tulane 21, Southern Miss 3. 

Breathtaking M.M. Roberts stadium.

Around the country: In the most hyped game of the weekend, which lived up to its billing, Colorado bested Colorado State in double overtime in Boulder in a very chippy contest. My #3 braved the packed crowd and stuck it out to the bitter end. The Washington Huskies obliterated the Michigan State Spartans who are in disarray based on this week’s Bieber news. In the SEC, we saw the once invincible Alabama Crimson Tide struggle with the University of South Florida. Staying in the state of Florida, the Gators upset the Tennessee Vold in Gainesville, and Florida State escaped Chestnut Hill in Boston with a two point win over BC. In a battle out on the plains, Mizzou squeaked out a W over the Kansas State Wildcats in Columbia, MO. North Carolina, behind Everyone’s All American Drake Maye, hunted down the Gophers in a solid non-conference win. 

Bieber: Mel Tucker, disgraced head coach of the Michigan State Spartans. With the recent disgusting scandal of Dr. Nassar at this prestigious institution, one would think they need to be on their best behavior. Overpaid and overrated head coach Mel Tucker failed to get that message as he is being charged with sexually harrssing a former rape victim in a manner so grotesque I cannot print it. Tucker has been placed on leave, but really, he needs to leave for good and leave now. MSU completely overpaid him a few years back after one good season. Hopefully they can recoup that amount and find a less, shall we say, “hands on” coach. Well Mel, you can put your hands on your new Bieber hardware as a consolation prize.

Ginger: Shout out to my buddy “Joe”, diehard Duquesne fan and alumni. It wasn’t until just recently that I learned Joe has been battling major illnesses for almost four years. Joe, being a very private and stoic person, kept this information to himself until recently when we had a text exchange. Joe and I coached girls basketball against each other for a number of years, and we share the same passion for college sports. From the DFT Nation — get well soon, Joe, and let’s get you back to a tailgate!

Next Up: I will be taking next weekend off to practice the art of couch gating at our Cali house. We are planning on taking the two grandsons to a high school game on Friday night. I will make my paternal return to Boulder on 9/30 for Dad’s Weekend when Coach Prime faces Coach Slime and the USC Trojans.

Happy Tailgating!