Our little local football tradition continues

Ye socks from this little corner of heaven know what happens every New Year's Day at 1pm.

It's been going on every year since 1947.

Of course, I'm referring to our local bowl game.

It's had many incarnations over the years. Originally, it was called the Tangerine Bowl. Then, all the orange and grapefruit growers got jealous and decided to get involved, so it became the Citrus Bowl. And, in 2001, we sold out to a big corporate sponsor: Capital One. I'm not sure how I feel about that last one.

This little bowl with a lot of heart is one of the few long-lasting traditions we have in a metro area full of transplants who aren't keen on such things. It was here in 1977 that my alma mater was humiliated by that hated unmentionable former all-girls school. I was there in 1991 when Georgia Tech beat Nebraska and claimed half of the national championship. And, I was one of the "oh-so-huge" record crowd of 72,940 that turned out to watch the Gators beat Penn State back in 1998. (ORANGE AND BLUE!!)

Actually, it's not such a little game anymore--probably the biggest non-BCS bowl around--and because it picks from the SEC and the Big 10, it always draws a lot of out-of-towners to join in on the fun.

That's what I think I like most about it. You don't have to be a fan of either team to enjoy the experience, from tailgating thru kick-off and the final whistle.

Of course, yours truly generally pulls for the SEC team. Not, that my support has accounted for much lately. They've lost every year since 2004. But, I'm feeling pretty good about Georgia this year. (They were the last SEC winners in the storied history of our bowl!)

We'll see what this afternoon has in store . . .