SEC football is often a family tradition in the Southeast, a time for fun and fellowship during the fall. For Joseph Samelson, the 2014 postseason became a seven-day journey alongside his father as the pair attended six SEC bowl games over a seven-day span.
As told by Samelson from his blog JosephSamelson.com, here’s a few excerpts — and panoramic photos — from his excursion this bowl season. He breaks it down diary-entry style using day-by-day glances:
Sometime during the fall semester, my father called me and suggested the possibility of going to on a “college football bowl game road trip” of sorts. The idea immediately intrigued me, and I was excited as planning began. We settled on a post-Christmas SEC game bonanza. We’re Auburn fans, so the trip also necessitated a trip to Tampa for the Auburn-Wisconsin Outback bowl.
With the exception of the first game we attended, I also managed to grab panoramic pictures from every stadium we attended. A pretty amazing component of our trip was the ability to visit four NFL stadiums. With that said, here’s a day-by-day recap of our trip.
Day 1: Independence Bowl (Shreveport, LA) South Carolina vs. Miami
Our first day necessitated a 6 AM departure time from our home in Montgomery, Alabama. This enabled us to make the ~7 hour drive to Shreveport, LA for our first game: the Duck Commander Independence Bowl between the South Carolina Gamecocks and the Miami Hurricanes.
Given their preseason projections, both teams had relatively disappointing seasons. Regardless, the game was excellent. The score remained close for the entirety of the competition. The weather, on the other hand, was brutal. Undeniably the coldest game of our trip, Shreveport gave us a low temperature, a huge wind chill, rain, and a depressingly amount of camouflage. South Carolina 24, Miami 21.
After a cold and wet afternoon in Shreveport, Samelson and his father used Day 2 as travel time to Memphis, site of Texas A&M’s Liberty Bowl win over West Virginia. Three games over the next three days concluded with a trek to Jacksonville for the TaxSlayer Bowl, Tennessee’s first postseason win in several years:
Our final game pitted the Tennessee Volunteers against the Iowa Hawkeyes. While many were predicting an Iowa win, Tennessee would not be denied, coming out of the gate swinging immediately and never relenting. The Hawkeye defense had no chance against Tennessee’s run and gun offense. While Iowa scored late, the game was never in doubt. Tennessee 45, Iowa 28.
After six games, Dad and I began the six hour drive back to Montgomery, Alabama. While driving, we reflected over the games, our trip as a whole, the friends we saw, and the new ones we made. Overall, the trip was fantastic. With that in mind, here are some rankings/miscellaneous information:
Here is Samelson’s personal ranking from this year’s bowl trip:
Best Stadium: Everbank Field (Jacksonville, FL) Runner Up: LP Field (Nashville, TN)
Best Game: Outback Bowl (Auburn vs. Wisconsin) Runner Up: Music City Bowl (LSU vs. Notre Dame)
Miles Driven: ~2,900 mi Avg. Miles/Day: 414 mi Tickets Bought: 8 Tickets Received: 4 Souvenir Cups: 5 Collector’s Pins: 4
