Reflector Sports Editor R.J. Morgan is rating the road trip experiences for all away games this season in hopes of providing readers with a reference point for future trips. Trips will be graded on a 10-point scale in 10 categories and then given a cumulative score.
This week … Alabama.
1. Ease of Travel-Tuscaloosa and Starkville are the two closest schools in the entire SEC, making for a fairly easy trek over to Tide country. There are some construction issues along U.S. Highway 82, but overall a pretty simple drive. (9 points)
2. Parking-Alabama had a free parking garage just like Georgia, but no shuttle to take fans to the stadium. Fans had to simply walk through the campus, across the field where the Denney Chimes are and then on down to the stadium. This was pleasent on the way to the game, but coming back at night the campus got confusing, and it took me an hour to find the garage and get my car. I had left a trail of peanuts to mark the way back, but I guess the elephants ate them. (6 points)
3. Game Day Atmosphere-Alabama’s campus is very old and historic looking. Walking through it I got the sense that I was traveling through some 1950’s learning bubble. Very neat. the Denney Chimes were pretty impressive, as were the hand and footprints of all the team’s captains that surrounded its base. The school is very proud of its football heritage, and that resonates throughout the campus. (9 points)
4. Stadium-Bryant-Denney Stadium is an impressive structure. It is like Tennessee’s Neyland Stadium in that it was piecemealed together over the years and has many different looks and styles depending on the area you are in. The new north end zone seating makes the stadium much more enclosed, and the statues outside of the school’s four National Championship coaches throw the Tide’s tradition in your face immediately.
I must, however, deduct a point for the fact that they lock the gates to the spiral exit tunnels about an hour after the game. This in and of itself is not wrong, but there are no signs at the top to note that the are closed. Thus once you’ve walked all the way down from the top of the stadium, your reward is to walk all the way back up and hunt for a service elevator. (7 points)
5. Fan Knowledge-Oh, how Alabama fans love their football. They are not shy about sharing their football knowledge either. Be prepared for multiple stories of how “The Bear” did this or that, and how they have somewhere between 12 and 15 titles. I admire people that have pride in their tradition, but it gets annoying after a while. (10 points)
6. Friendliness of Fans-Everyone seemed friendly and not nearly as condescending as is the typical Tide reputation. Of course when your team can’t score an offensive touchdown, it’s hard to keep your nose in the air. (8 points)
7. Concessions-Standard menu, nothing too original or impressive. (6 points)
8. Band-Again, very unoriginal presentation. Same old song and dance. Their pregame show consisted of little more than marching in a straight line, stopping, playing the fight song and then starting to march again. Yeah, wow. (6 points)
9. Local Scene-Tuscaloosa is quite similar to Starkville in both size and selection. There are a few nice bars and a large selection of restaurants, but very little that could compete with larger cities. Most of the nightlife seemed to be centered on campus and the surrounding fraternity houses. (8 points)
10. Wildcard-The Tide garner major points for tradition and stoic excellence, but simply did not have the awe-inspiring feel of either Tiger or Sanford Stadium. Perhaps during a better year with fans being a little more excited about their team the experience could be better. But as of last Saturday, The Bear would not be impressed. (8 points)
Score-77