College Football: College Football Without Booze?

For many people, especially those under about age 60, the college football season means tailgating, booze, socializing, cooking, wearing their school sports clothing, and crazy fun. College football is like a fever, especially in states like Georgia, Alabama, Michigan, Ohio, Texas, California, Florida, and the South in general.

To a great extent, college football is a sort of “religion.” I do not mean that it is pagan or wrong, just very consuming in and of our American culture. And yes, we often overdo it in various ways. (In my home state of Georgia, September through January is ‘Dawg Time’ period. In the last 40 years, booze and football season have become synonymous with each other.

This presents a great dilemma for me, the blog writer. I am also a college football fan, but have not drunk booze in well-over a year. (The Georgia Bulldogs are my team. Furthermore, the town I live in is also abundant with Alabama, Georgia Tech, Florida, Auburn, and Ohio State fans.) I love football but miss the socializing that goes along with it!

The point is that I can take only so much of going to sports bars and simply eating, playing Keno, and watching tv. Without alcohol, there is little excuse for the craziness and overboard behavior. It’s simply not very much fun being a nondrinker in a drinking crowd. Get it?

There is also the aspect of being single. Watching college football in a bar without drinking booze is like window shopping with a limited budget. How? Lovely women are all-around, yet it is far more difficult to fit-in and meet them without the confidence afforded by alcohol. That’s a social fact.

To make matters worse, some folks even assume you are a nut or religious nerd if you do not drink! I am a Christian, but not a boring one. I like fun, a bit of frolic, and being around people at ‘arm’s length.’ I am an avid people watcher, and selectively a people-meeter.

What is my solution for college football season? I watch most of my football either at home or in local neighborhood restaurants without all the craziness, to avoid the madness. I suppose I truly act “nerdy” as charged!

I use football Saturdays wisely, eating and staying up-to-date on that week’s scores, saying hello to friends and acquaintances, and keeping one eye peeled for a feminine “needle in a haystack.” For me, this is everyday life anyway.

After all, I once sat at a bar drinking a Coca-Cola, watching Georgia play a lesser known team, and won $2,000 playing Keno while eating pizza flatbread! Football without booze doesn’t have to be all that bad!

Jimmy Hall (404-580-1501) writes resumes, business plans, and web content for clients...