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MaybeACoordinator

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MaybeACoordinator

MaybeACoordinator 8349

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I grew up moving back and forth between Houston and Nashville, but my Nashville scoop is decades old...like, before anybody'd ever heard of hot chicken old. (My dad still lives there so I do know a little more than average, but I am no insider anymore.) Still, it's a much, much cooler town than the one I grew up in. Sometime around 1990 Nashville decided to shed its Waco past and embrace its inner Austin and now people there call it "It City."

Vanderbilt Stadium is right in the middle of the action and pretty small, as you might imagine. Carve out some time to check out the Parthenon replica across West End -- the statue of Athena inside is one of a kind. 

Never been to Athens, but my understanding is it's a lot like Oxford, which is the perfect Southern college town....All the Texas kids who've wound up in school there have changed the local cuisine. Lots of greasy old-school Tex Mex influences now at the old restaurants on the square. 

I predict Lexington will be a revelation. Extremely cool small city with an economy based on eggheads, tobacco, whiskey and horses. If you are a history buff you'll love the old town. It feels real old there, probably older than any city we've ever shared a conference with. 

Despite spending half of my first 25 years in TN I never really got to know Knoxville. (I do love Chattanooga; similar in some feel to Lexington.) 

I imagine most of us already know the Big Raggedy pretty well. They don't call it an island in an ocean of great cuisine for nothing. Maybe they'll have the I-10 bridge fixed by 2023 or 2024 but I wouldn't count on it. I'll leave the descriptions of Fayetteville to those who've survived fire missions there. 

I've only passed through Tuscaloosa and have never been to Auburn...Birmingham will suprise y'all pleasantly if you ever end up there for some reason...Filing a protest with the league office or some shit. Also never have been to Gainesville and of course I've never been to Starkville, either. Native Mississippians don't go there either. Columbia, MO, never been there either, and Columbia, SC I only know via Fort Jackson, where my son did boot camp. Consensus is its meh...My ex-wife and I arranged to meet at a Waffle House / InTown Suites and that plan failed because there are multiple Waffle House / InTown Suites combos in Columbia. That's the kinda sizzle they got going there...

All in all it's a major, major upgrade over Big 12 travels. You get some perfect fall weather around mid October and early November up there -- that's one thing I miss about Nashville is the smell of burning leaves and the sound of a football game in the distance. Or up in your face. 

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billfromlaketravis

billfromlaketravis 11488

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Ole Miss is overrated. Their fans are dicks. Anybody visiting The Grove expecting free booze and Chick-fil-a is going to be disappointed. Plus the only nearby city with enough hotel rooms for a large Texas gathering is Memphis. That said, I think every Texas fan should go once. 

I love the move, but every SEC fanbase expects to win and they want to hurl their dip cup when they lose. 

SEC towns I'll visit :

Knoxville

Athens 

T-Town 

Auburn 

 

I think a SEC Baseball Tour of every town could be cool. Much lower stakes, and far fewer drunks. 

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MaybeACoordinator

MaybeACoordinator 8349

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18 minutes ago, billfromlaketravis said:

Ole Miss is overrated. Their fans are dicks. Anybody visiting The Grove expecting free booze and Chick-fil-a is going to be disappointed. Plus the only nearby city with enough hotel rooms for a large Texas gathering is Memphis. That said, I think every Texas fan should go once. 

I love the move, but every SEC fanbase expects to win and they want to hurl their dip cup when they lose. 

SEC towns I'll visit :

Knoxville

Athens 

T-Town 

Auburn 

 

I think a SEC Baseball Tour of every town could be cool. Much lower stakes, and far fewer drunks. 

Don't skip Lexington. Extremely cool place. 

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HenryJames

HenryJames 66079

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1 hour ago, MaybeACoordinator said:

I grew up moving back and forth between Houston and Nashville, but my Nashville scoop is decades old...like, before anybody'd ever heard of hot chicken old. (My dad still lives there so I do know a little more than average, but I am no insider anymore.) Still, it's a much, much cooler town than the one I grew up in. Sometime around 1990 Nashville decided to shed its Waco past and embrace its inner Austin and now people there call it "It City."

Vanderbilt Stadium is right in the middle of the action and pretty small, as you might imagine. Carve out some time to check out the Parthenon replica across West End -- the statue of Athena inside is one of a kind. 

Never been to Athens, but my understanding is it's a lot like Oxford, which is the perfect Southern college town....All the Texas kids who've wound up in school there have changed the local cuisine. Lots of greasy old-school Tex Mex influences now at the old restaurants on the square. 

I predict Lexington will be a revelation. Extremely cool small city with an economy based on eggheads, tobacco, whiskey and horses. If you are a history buff you'll love the old town. It feels real old there, probably older than any city we've ever shared a conference with. 

Despite spending half of my first 25 years in TN I never really got to know Knoxville. (I do love Chattanooga; similar in some feel to Lexington.) 

I imagine most of us already know the Big Raggedy pretty well. They don't call it an island in an ocean of great cuisine for nothing. Maybe they'll have the I-10 bridge fixed by 2023 or 2024 but I wouldn't count on it. I'll leave the descriptions of Fayetteville to those who've survived fire missions there. 

I've only passed through Tuscaloosa and have never been to Auburn...Birmingham will suprise y'all pleasantly if you ever end up there for some reason...Filing a protest with the league office or some shit. Also never have been to Gainesville and of course I've never been to Starkville, either. Native Mississippians don't go there either. Columbia, MO, never been there either, and Columbia, SC I only know via Fort Jackson, where my son did boot camp. Consensus is its meh...My ex-wife and I arranged to meet at a Waffle House / InTown Suites and that plan failed because there are multiple Waffle House / InTown Suites combos in Columbia. That's the kinda sizzle they got going there...

All in all it's a major, major upgrade over Big 12 travels. You get some perfect fall weather around mid October and early November up there -- that's one thing I miss about Nashville is the smell of burning leaves and the sound of a football game in the distance. Or up in your face. 

image.gif.2abccd23b44f25093921a6566ddd6891.gif

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ztejas

ztejas 43459

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No mentions of College Station? I've heard it's so incredible that from the outside looking in you can't understand in and from the inside looking out you can't explain it. Just a really magical, down-to-earth mecca of intellectualism and elite athletic achievement. 

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C-Man

C-Man 27230

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Outside of Nashville, I'm not seeing any upgrades over Lubbock and Waco honestly.


giphy.gif

I think the road trips are going to be substantially better. College Station sucks and Columbia, MO can be pretty dreary in the fall.
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MaybeACoordinator

MaybeACoordinator 8349

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6 hours ago, WBT said:

Outside of Nashville, I'm not seeing any upgrades over Lubbock and Waco honestly.  I guess Knoxville is close to the Smokies at least.  Baton Rouge has an Acme now.

Like I said, Lexington will be a revelation if your bar is Lubbock and Waco. 

 

I guess DFW would compare to Nashville...Nashville is a better place to visit IMO, and it wins because most of us are not overly familiar with it.

I'd liken Lawrence to Athens -- classic college town near a big city. 

Then I guess you'd be putting Waco and Lubbock up against smaller cities in the SEC like Lexington and Knoxville. No comparison. You'll see.

Personally I'd rather go to BR or (probably) Gainesville than Waco or Lubbock but that's me; I am a swamp Texan.

Ames might be something like the Auburn here, but Ames has the better drinking culture and Auburn the hotter women.

So you're left with Manhattan, Stillwater and Indoctrination Station vs Oxford (easily beats all three of those), Tuscaloosa (likely same), Fayetteville (say what you will about the swine and most of the Third World state of Arkansas, but that corner is nice),  the kinda generic-seeming Columbias, and the dregs that is Starkville. 

Plus, there are trees in SEC country. Trees are nice, especially in fall. 

 

  

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Flg8rfan

Flg8rfan 201

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You chose wisely. 

Yeah, grew up and live there. Great place to live but not much to do outside of tailgating and the game. Cops (GPD and UFPD) are notorious for going after people with open containers.

If it’s an early season game with a noon or 3pm kick off, prepare to get burnt and dehydrated.
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TonyTexas

TonyTexas 10515

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The problem with most of SEC towns on game weekends is the scarcity of hotel rooms. Tough to get and if you are able to, you will pay dearly. My son went to Bama and I often had to stay in Birmingham. If I was able to get a room in Tuscaloosa, it was a run down La Quinta for >$350/night. 

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DDD Dad

DDD Dad 14339

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17 minutes ago, TonyTexas said:

The problem with most of SEC towns on game weekends is the scarcity of hotel rooms. Tough to get and if you are able to, you will pay dearly. My son went to Bama and I often had to stay in Birmingham. If I was able to get a room in Tuscaloosa, it was a run down La Quinta for >$350/night. 

Sounds about like every Parent's or Dad's Weekend I spent in Austin over the last 10 years.

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South Austin

South Austin 52515

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On 7/25/2021 at 4:52 PM, MaybeACoordinator said:

Maybe they'll have the I-10 bridge fixed by 2023 or 2024

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Baton Rouge seems like a hell hole, but I've been there for two football games (2006 v. Ole Miss and 2007 v. Alabama - both games went into overtime) and they're among the best tailgating experiences I've ever had. 

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Longboard Horn

Longboard Horn 40326

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Been to Knoxville, Tuscaloosa and Lexington. The closest I've been to Columbia, SC is Charleston. But yes, locals have told me to stay in Charleston and drive up to the game just as @wildturkey8 mentioned. 

Would like to visit the grove at least once and Baton Rouge since I have a friend who lives there(free crash space).

Gainesville.... not so much.

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BabaYaga

BabaYaga 15299

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The Grove is an experience you have to see for yourself.  They do not allow (last I was there) any open flames or cooking, so it's all brought in.  I'm talking chandeliers and white linen table clothes in some tents.....tents so packed together if you looked down on them from the sky they'd look like tiles packed together.  You just weave through the tents, getting stopped along the way to sample some of the best tailgating food I've ever had.  

During the game everyone clears out, so all the coolers MUST have locks on them to keep the kids from stealing drinks.  No cans allowed, but you can drink liquid heroin as long as it's in a cup!

 

The Grove.JPG

The Grove2.JPG

The Grove3.JPG

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Flg8rfan

Flg8rfan 201

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But what about Cafe Risque?
 

Great if you’re into getting stds and mugged by meth addicts.

It’s about 20 min from Gainesville. When it first opened up, it was in Gainesville near the country club. Place was clean, girls were hot college students, etc. There was a ton of litigation to close them down, so they finally got forced out and moved down the interstate a bit.
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Cajun

Cajun 11706

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On 7/25/2021 at 9:14 PM, WBT said:

Outside of Nashville, I'm not seeing any upgrades over Lubbock and Waco honestly.  I guess Knoxville is close to the Smokies at least.  Baton Rouge has an Acme now.

If you go to BR and go to fucking ACME for oysters, you are a funny, funny person.

That's about like going to San Antonio and hitting up Taco Cabana for some "kickass tacos!"

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Pescado_Rojo

Pescado_Rojo 19416

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On 7/25/2021 at 5:59 PM, MaybeACoordinator said:

You don't even know what you are in for...you might think you do, but you don't. 

 

Back in 2015 I was in Lexington a couple times a month for about a year working on a large project, and I loved it. If you love Bourbon, the Bluegrass tavern is like a pilgrimage. They have just about every spirit distilled in Kentucky, including some small batch stuff that usually doesn't even make it out of the state. Tell the bartender a bourbon you love, and he or she will make you a flight of four you may not have ever heard of that will all be amazing. 

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WBT

WBT 20580

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1 hour ago, Cajun said:

If you go to BR and go to fucking ACME for oysters, you are a funny, funny person.

That's about like going to San Antonio and hitting up Taco Cabana for some "kickass tacos!"

It was a bit tongue in cheek.  I usually go to Parrain's or Mansur's when the company is paying.  Where should I be going?

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Cajun

Cajun 11706

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19 minutes ago, WBT said:

It was a bit tongue in cheek.  I usually go to Parrain's or Mansur's when the company is paying.  Where should I be going?

Mansur's is the right answer.

Sorry I missed the tongue-in-cheek.

Cajunfail

 

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PenelopeWitherspoon

PenelopeWitherspoon 19103

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I went to grad school at Alabama (they paid me to go there). Egan's on the Strip was our hang out. Honestly, I hated Tuscaloosa and haven't been back since I left. Archibald's BBQ is great though. When I was there, it was in Northport. Now, they have changed the name to Archibald and Woodrow's and have locations in Tuscaloosa and Northport.

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BHMCruiser

BHMCruiser 1814

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On 8/5/2021 at 7:28 AM, PenelopeWitherspoon said:

I went to grad school at Alabama (they paid me to go there). Egan's on the Strip was our hang out. Honestly, I hated Tuscaloosa and haven't been back since I left. Archibald's BBQ is great though. When I was there, it was in Northport. Now, they have changed the name to Archibald and Woodrow's and have locations in Tuscaloosa and Northport.

Egan's just closed. You're right about Archibald's. It is fantastic and remains so. The original is still called Archibald's and it's still in the backyard in Northport. Archibald & Woodrow's is run by some cousins and has a few locations. It's good, with a much broader menu, but not nearly as good as Archibald's. 

Tuscaloosa is nearly unrecognizable from 15 years ago from all the money the football program has pumped into the city. 

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PenelopeWitherspoon

PenelopeWitherspoon 19103

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1 hour ago, BHMCruiser said:

Egan's just closed. You're right about Archibald's. It is fantastic and remains so. The original is still called Archibald's and it's still in the backyard in Northport. Archibald & Woodrow's is run by some cousins and has a few locations. It's good, with a much broader menu, but not nearly as good as Archibald's. 

Tuscaloosa is nearly unrecognizable from 15 years ago from all the money the football program has pumped into the city. 

Wow, Egan's closed.  That is sad. I bartended at the Chukker when I was in grad school, and I remember it closing.  Changing the bar opening hours thanks to the "Christians" really fucked over a lot of places in Tuscaloosa.

Well, money from Saban success probably helped a lot, but having to rebuild from that massive tornado in 2011 is also responsible.  That thing was awful. I think my old neighborhood was one of the casualties.

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