My First Live SEC Football Experience–GO VOLS!

Disclaimer: I did get a discount on the hotel room in exchange for mentioning it in this post. All comments about the hotel are my honest opinions.

I am not proud to state it, but it took WAY too long for me to finally go down to Knoxville to watch some UTK Volunteer football. Better late than never, though!

My family is nearing the end of a stage. My son is currently a senior at University of Tennessee in Knoxville. I previously shared our story of the initial college visit while he was in high school. Less than two years later, I shared the story of move-in day for my first born. Now, he is a senior and is preparing for the next stage of his life. His parents are as well. He emphatically TOLD my husband and myself that we HAVE to come down to see a Tennessee football game before he graduates. We agreed. We finally got our act together, picked a weekend, and made plans.

We picked the weekend of October 14. We knew that there was a home game, it was not parents’ weekend, and it seemed like a decent time to take off a few days of work. My husband and I planned to drive down, so we made it a Thursday-Monday trip. Over the years, I have learned more about and paid more attention to college football. Nevertheless, I did not realize that the Tennessee—Texas A&M game was a “big deal” game. Surprise! It is. What did that mean? It meant that tickets were pricey as were the hotels. Despite that, we KNEW that we had to make the weekend work. This would truly be our last opportunity to experience UTK Volunteer football in person while my son was still a student on campus. Plus, I had never made a social visit to him at school—I was there for freshman year move-in and sophomore year move-in. My time was quickly running short.

We bought our tickets for the game. The proper term for the section would be “nose bleed.” Ironically, my son did not sit with us. He was going to be sitting in the student section with his friends. Additionally, one of my son’s best friends from home was coming down to Knoxville with us, so my son and his friend sat in the student section of the stadium while my husband and I sat elsewhere. More on that later…

The next challenge was finding a hotel. We were not huge fans of the idea of spending $500+ or so a night, especially since we planned on staying for 4 nights. During out previous visits (the move-in dates as well as an additional visit my husband had made to Knoxville), we had wonderful experiences at the Comfort Inn in Powell, Tennessee. Although it would certainly have been fun to stay at a hotel in downtown Knoxville which is walking distance from campus, it wasn’t worth spending hundreds more for that opportunity. Powell is an easy 15 minute drive from Knoxville. My son’s apartment is walking distance from campus, so when spending time at his apartment or on campus, we just looked for parking in his neighborhood. It wasn’t the easiest thing, but it was doable.

We headed down on the Thursday before the game. We have a bad habit of leaving for road trips later than usually planned, but this time we left at around the time we intended. We had an obligation to leave by a certain time because we would be stopping in Champaign, IL to pick up my son’s buddy who would be enjoying the weekend with us. My nephew attends school there as well, so we made plans to meet for lunch before the next leg of the journey.

I admit that after driving past lots of corn fields and then seeing a sign for Maize Mexican Grill, I started to crave Mexican food for lunch. After getting my nephew and my son’s friend on campus, they suggested Maize. Woohoo! I was all for that idea! All of our meals were delicious! As part of the adventure, I decided to try a dish that included “corn mushroom.” As a vegetarian, I feel that it is harder to be grossed out by a vegetarian item. Saying that, I did look it up on my phone before ordering and learned that another term for “corn mushrooms”is “huitlacoche” or “corn smut.” Corn smut is a fungus (thus the term “mushroom” on the menu). This did sound a bit disgusting, and the photos looked kind of gross, but I asked for the server’s opinion and went ahead with my order. After all, I have eaten other mushrooms without hesitation in the past. No regrets! It was delicious.

After lunch, our party of three (my nephew stayed back at school), continued the next leg of the trip down to Knoxville. We did take a little field trip on the way down. My husband and I just experienced this for the first time when we took our daughter to college in August, and we wanted to share this experience with my son’s friend. We stopped at Buc-ee’s. As the kids nowadays say, IYKYK. If you don’t know, Buc-ee’s is like a gas station/convenience store extravaganza which is a legitimate tourist spot. It is also known for having “The Cleanest Restrooms in America.” I would have to agree with that. I won’t be able to do it justice here. Look it up.

We arrived in Knoxville shortly before midnight. I am happy to say that my son looked happy to see us. Yay! Because it was late, we were tired, and there was no available parking spot in front of the apartment, we dropped off my son’s buddy and his belongings, and my husband and I made our way to our favorite, tried and true local (enough) hotel.

There were no issues getting to the hotel. We feel that the area is safe, the rooms are clean, and the morning breakfast gives a good start to the day. As a bonus, since our last visit, the hotel rooms had been renovated and looked really nice. Since a picture is worth a thousand words, here are some views of the room. (Of course, being that we were tired, we threw our stuff on the bed as we entered and then remembered that I wanted some photos before we “spread out,” thus the wrinkles on the blanket after taking our bags off.)

With the exception of planning to pick up something from a friend of my husband who lives in the area (before out trip, though various modes of communication, he arranged to pick up an item from a friend down in Knoxville to delivery to another friend in Illinois) and game day activities, the weekends was going to be somewhat of a “go with the flow.” We just really wanted to focus on enjoying time together. We had not seen my son a lot this year. He was out of town for much of his winter break, he spent the spring semester studying abroad, and he had a summer internship in another state. He was only back home for a short time before we took his sister to school at Florida State University. (One of the major criteria for both of my kids when choosing a college was “warmer than here.” They both got that. Come February, I am sure that they will be rubbing it in big time.)

On Friday morning, I enjoyed some breakfast at the hotel, but we did plan on meeting with my son and friend to then go out for lunch together. No one wanted to wake up early, but we wanted to fully enjoy the day. We went to my son’s apartment, and then we walked to Market Square in Knoxville. You could certainly see that a lot of people were in town for the game. There was a lot of orange and white. There were also the brave souls walking around Knoxville wearing maroon and white, the colors for Texas A & M. (They looked very out of place.) Based on my son’s recommendation, we put our name down at Tupelo Honey Southern Kitchen. To pass the time while waiting to be called (it was a busy day), we walked around the area enjoying the chance to be tourists. The boys enjoyed some chicken and waffle dishes while I enjoyed a harvest bowl. We also ordered biscuits (about which I felt a little less guilty since my entree was healthy). I LOVE GOOD BISCUITS!

Time to burn off the biscuits. My son wanted to go hiking, but we ended up with less time than originally planned, so we went to the Look Rock Tower Trail for a short hike (1 mile round trip). It wasn’t very far, but it was far enough for us! I thought that I was in decent physical shape. As we walked up the trail, I started to second guess that. My husband and I found it more challenging for us than expected. My son and his friend had no issue; they had a legitimate reason to taunt us a bit. Despite that, we made the short trip to the top of the viewing tower, and it was gorgeous! (We also enjoyed chit chatting with some other families who were there as well. We are social that way.)

After the hike, we met up with my husband’s friends for a bit and then called it a day. My husband and I wanted to get some rest; we had a big day of football festivities the next day. My son and his buddy were tired, but, in true college form, my son showed his friend how students enjoy weekends in Knoxville. Ah, youth.

Saturday. LOTS OF ORANGE. As soon as I made my way to the dining area of the hotel, there was no doubt that it was GAME DAY! This was just the beginning! My son wanted his parents to experience GAME DAY AT UTK!! From what we had been told, there is NOTHING like it! Well, we were about to find out for ourselves.

We made our way to my son’s neighborhood, found a parking spot, and went to his apartment. My son loaned me one of his Tennessee shirts. “Why?” you may ask. The weekend of the UTK vs Texas A&M game was a CHECKER NEYLAND game! When the fans checker Neyland Stadium, it looks like the iconic checkerboard pattern. IT’S SO COOL!! This game would be the 7^th time that Tennessee would Checker Neyland. Your color is determined by your seat. There is a website to use to look up your seat and find your color. Our seats were in a white zone. Of course, all of my Tennessee tee shirts are orange or gray. I brought a plain white tee shirt with me, but I really wanted to better represent the school. Thus, my son loaned me a shirt. It was the least he could do for his dear mother.

There is A LOT of activity on campus on game day. There is A LOT of orange on campus on game day. I am sure that any college has their school colors on display on game days, but, seriously, that much bright orange is a sight to see! Even with all of the white (for the checkering), there was still A LOT of orange! (There was a smattering of maroon and white on campus and in town from the Texas A&M fans, but enough about them.) Over the past few years, I have come to like the color orange a lot more than before my son became a Tennessee Vol! (I admit that I have even started liking the ugly orange and white checkered overalls that so many students, my son included, will proudly wear. I NEVER expected that to happen. I don’t call them fashionable, but I do now sort of like them. My daughter has garnet and gold striped overalls to represent her university, Florida State University, where she is now a freshman. I am likely to start liking her ugly, reminiscent of a circus tent, overalls at some point over the next few years as well.)

The campus was just full of activity and energy. Lots of tailgates were being set up. There were multiple vendors on the campus grounds. We did pick up some swag along the way from the vendors and had some fun photo ops. I still smile each time I receive Pepper Perks email since I provided my email in exchange for some swag at the Dr. Pepper table. (I don’t remember exactly what they were, but the samples of some new Dr. Pepper flavors were quite tasty, too.)

My son’s fraternity, Phi Kappa Tau, hosted their own parents’ weekend that same weekend. It wasn’t synchronized with the university’s parent weekend. This was a bonus, because I had never attended a parents’ weekend event! We made our way through campus to get to the frat house where they had a brunch buffet set up for the families to enjoy. My son gave us a nice little tour of the house. Although he never lived in it, he still spends a decent chunk of time there. We really enjoyed seeing him interact with his brothers. I also enjoyed meeting the parents. I even had to chance to meet in person another mom with whom I had become friends on Facebook. (FB can suck hours out of your life, but, sometimes you can actually benefit and connect with people!)

After some time, my husband and I left the house while my son and his buddy met with more of his friends at the frat tailgate. (The early part was more for the families; the latter part was more for the students.) As we walked around, we found more vendors to get something to eat plus, of course, we got some more swag. My personal swag “highlight” was winning a clear fanny pack from the Dunkin Donuts area. As you may know, nowadays you can only bring clear bags of a limited size into many stadiums or similar venues. (Women also know that women’s jeans have small pockets which cannot hold much. It was not a hot day; the jeans were appropriate.) I did have a zip lock bag with me as well as a money belt, but having an actual fanny pack to use was definitely a bonus. (I grew up in the 80’s. I appreciate a practical fanny pack. I am also now set for any future stadium events which only allow small clear bags.) I got a clear tote bag from a different vendor, so the rest of the swag had a place to go. Woohoo! The main thing I was waiting for before heading toward the stadium was the UTK marching band, The Pride of the Southland. I LOVE a good marching band, and this one is great! Although I did not position myself well enough to get a full view, I was able to watch part of their walk toward Neyland Stadium. Seeing and hearing them walk toward the stadium on game day just increased the excitement!

TIME TO HEAD TO NEYLAND!! We gave ourselves plenty of time because there were A LOT of people there. It was a sold out game, and the stadium has a capacity of 101,915. No matter how you look at it, that’s a lot of people.

We made our ways to our seats. I believe that the proper term is “nosebleed” section. We were in section OO, row 31, seats 15 and 16. This put us in a corner way up high. The stadium has 34 rows; as mentioned, we were in row 31. I felt like I could almost touch the big “V” for VOLS which was above us. It looks so much bigger in real life than it does on television! I have to say, seeing “checkered Neyland” is, simply put, COOL! Just ignore the smattering and small section of maroon in the photos. Just focus on the orange and white.

The whole experience in the stadium was just “WOW”! Not only could you see, but you could also hear and feel the pregame flyover of two F15 jets! Even hearing them practice the day prior was awe inspiring.

The UTK marching band is well known, and I love to watch and listen to a good marching band. The Pride of the Southland Band is one of the best! You could even feel their energy just watching them. From Rocky Top, the big T, the entrance of the football team, and everything else, I just couldn’t help but smile during the entire pregame show! I can’t do it justice in words, so here is the link to the University of Tennessee—Pride of the Southland Band page on Facebook. Enjoy! (I certainly did as I rewatched it!)

I don’t understand football well, but I watched, cheered, and jeered during the game. Sometimes, honestly, I had to check the reactions of those around me—I had some Texas A and M fans in front of me and Volunteer fans behind me. Also, I can get anxious for a team very easily, and this game certainly helped me demonstrate that: First quarter—Texas A&M 7, UTK 7; second quarter—Texas A&M 3, UTK 0; Texas A& M leading 10 to 7 at the half. Oy! I am not enough of a connoisseur to appreciate a good, close game. I would much prefer my team to have a nice blow out. This game was not going to be that blow out game.

At least there was the Pride of the Southland Band half time show to help relieve some stress but continue to bring excitement. The band performed their well known Circle Drill. Better for you to watch and enjoy than me explain. (It starts just before the 2 minute mark in the video.)

Back to the game! The weather was actually getting cooler, and I was very glad that I had on jeans as well as a sweatshirt. The jumping up and down was not enough to keep me warm. Plus, there truly wasn’t much space to move. Third quarter–Texas A&M 3, UTK 7; fourth quarter—Texas A&M 0 UTK 6. VOLS WIN 20 to 13!! Woohoo!! It was nerve wracking, but it was exciting!! I now had a much better grasp of my son’s excitement about Tennessee football. Go Vols!!

Fortunately, we weren’t in a rush to leave, because, as you can imaging, there were A LOT of very happy people (plus several less than thrilled Texas A&M fans) leaving the stadium all at one. Once again, the sea of orange was impressive and inspiring.

Miraculously, we were able to meet up outside the stadium with my son and his friend. It worked out well that we had to walk a few blocks to get back to the apartment and our car because there was no easy way to drive off campus at that time. Even after reaching our car so that we could go to dinner (we had built up quite the appetite), there was a lot of traffic, but we all we could do was be patient. We made our way to The Tomato Head (in West Knox, not Market Square. I’m guessing that it would have been crazy busy at that site.) The guys all enjoyed delicious looking pizzas, and I enjoyed a great sandwich. (I don’t remember which vegetarian sandwich I ordered, but it was very tasty!) At that hour after such a fun game, this hit the spot!

We had just one final day to enjoy together before we had to make our way back to Illinois. My son was in charge of deciding what to do. He kept things simple yet great! Plans included treating ourselves to ice cream at Cruze Farm (there is NEVER bad weather for ice cream) and playing pickle ball at a local court. My husband and I ate breakfast at the hotel; we did not start our day with ice cream. (Not that there is anything wrong with that as an adult, but we did not start our day with ice cream.) It was SO good! I don’t recall who ordered which flavor, but we were all very happy and content!

Next stop, Dick’s Sporting Goods. The idea to play pickle ball was a good one. We just didn’t have any of the proper equipment. Considering that neither my husband nor I had played before, we wanted to buy ourselves some paddles but weren’t going for “high end.” Unfortunately, Dick’s only seemed to sell “high end” pickle ball equipment. We weren’t in the mood to spend quite so much for our first attempt. My son and his buddy still enjoyed spending time looking around the store (my son is a HUGE sports fan; HUGE!). They spent some time checking out golf putters and hitting some balls on the green in the store. As a mom, I truly enjoyed watching good friends have a good time together. Those little moments really had an impact.

We ended up buying one set of paddles with a ball from Walmart. Unfortunately, they only had one of the less expensive sets, so we made do with one. It worked out just fine. Once we arrived at the courts, we had to wait a bit since they were all being used, but we eventually had our chance. We kept it very casual, and the four of us simply kept taking turns. I felt a little bad for the people in the court next to us since many of our balls made their way into their court area. Whoops. Considering that neither my husband nor I had played before, I like to think that we held our own. We all had a great time playing each other. Once again, we had good fun just playing a game together. I also appreciated the physical activity (especially after the Cruze Farm ice cream) and time outdoors. That day was more of a “family/friend” focused day than a tourist day. There are still plenty of touristy things I want to do in Knoxville, but, on that day, family time was just perfect!

I truly believe that my son really enjoyed being able to spend quality time with us as well as have the chance to show off and share the fun parts of student life experience at UTK with his buddy.

Sadly, the trip had to come to an end. We left very early the next morning because my son’s friend did have to get back to a class later that day. Fortunately, we had a nice easy trip back to Champaign (with another stop at Buc-ee’s on the way) and then back home.

We successfully checked off a “I have a college student!” bucket list item: We attended a home football game! In the SEC, this is a big deal! (I know it’s a big deal with other conferences, but, over the years, I have developed a greater understanding and appreciation of the role of football in the south. I have a feeling that the SEC has a character very different from other conferences.) It took us long enough, but we did it! Although attending college games may not be anything new and different or a big deal for some people, being able to experience this with family and friends was not only a lot of fun but very meaningful and created some wonderful memories! This was more about the “who” than the “what,” but the “what” was a whole lot of fun!

Go Vols!