Okay, so I’m really starting to get excited. It is that time of year again kids, time for the Georgia Florida Game!!!! (someone said that people in Florida call it the Florida Georgia game, which is evidence that they grew up on the wrong side of the tracks.
I get really nostalgic during the Georgia Florida game, I remember the first Georgia Florida game I ever went to, it was 1992, and I had just turned 12, I was in the sixth grade, and my father had promised me that there would be candy at The Landing,
since I would be missing my first traditional Halloween festivities. And by candy, he meant Beer. Because the Landing is a half circle mall with bars and a stage for music in the middle. I guess there might have been some bubble gum machines. I was disappointed.
That was back in the day when they were stupid enough to split the stadium into quarters, alternating Georgia section with Florida section and increasing the area where Georgia Fans HAD to sit next to Florida fans, which caused a great deal of trouble and broken noses.
Now, as I will probably tell a few people this weekend, my dad scored a touchdown at the Georgia Florida Game back in the late 60s, on a 46 yard dash, and we have a video clip of it, it is quite hilarious to watch him skip around after he scores.
We had a bad few years with Florida, but I think that we have gotten past that, and even though Shockley is hurt and can’t play this weekend, we are going to win. I have a lot of faith in this team. And you should too. I want you to read this article that is in the Red and Black today. It is about D.J. Shockley and Kedric Golston, two of our best players who are both seniors. This was Shockley’s one and only chance to start at the Georgia Florida game. I’ll share with you a few excerpts that I found especially touching:
Shockley:
"As long as we get a win, I’ll be satisfied."
"A lot of people are making a big deal out about me being out, but I think everybody knows how our team is – everybody knows we can get it done, everybody knows one person doesn’t make the team. I think from day one, that’s what we’ve all been about, being united as a team. That’s really been a key to our success this year, that everybody has been playing as a team and not just as one person trying to do one thing."
Golston:
"Playing in the Florida game is one of the reasons you come to Georgia, to miss it my senior year is bad, but to miss it with a year like we’re having – we haven’t lost any games, and we’ve made such a brotherhood on this team – I hate to not be out there with those guys, doing anything I can to help them win. "
"I’m older now, I don’t look at is as being, My God, I wish I could play in this game, I look at it as, my team’s going to go play in this game, and I want them to do the best they can, whether or not I can play. Just sitting back and watching them play is going to be just as exciting for me as if I was out there playing."
But my favorite quote of all I think is this one:
"Senior offensive guard Max Jean-Gilles, however, said seeing Shockley and Golston out for the Florida game ‘hurts me in the heart,’ so he has tried to offer Shockley as much comfort and support as he can.
‘I tell him, "We’re going to do this right," Jean Gilles said. "We’re going to make Joe T feel comfortable. We’re going to win."
Followed by this one by Senior tackle Gerald Anderson:
"We have to go out and win it for him. If we win it for him, we can set him up to play in bigger games for the rest of the season."
Wow. I think we have some real team players on our hands. And that, makes me very excited.
Other fun links to visit for Georgia Florida Game:
The Hater Bowl
Jean Shorts for Florida Fans
Just in case you need an attorney while you’re down there...
I’ll add some more links later, I gotta do a little reading….
Leave a Reply