4 NOV 07: YAWN-ABAMA?
As they say around the sports cliche corner, it was crunch time. Louisiana State had just scored a fourth-down touchdown to tie Alabama 34-34. It was late in the fourth quarter. And as I walked into a restaurant in Ladonia Saturday night, a TV was turned on.... a Fox News Channel history show?! Did the Russell County Republicans have a dinner meeting or something?
When I left home for a Saturday night run, things seemed much as I expected for the L.S.U.-Alabama game. The Phenix City Riverwalk was practically empty, save for a couple standing at the center circle looking at the Chattahoochee. I suppose a few Auburn diehards really didn't care who won or lost....
The weather was perfect for running, and I made it 3.4 miles non-stop. I was even able to salute a few uniformed Fort Benning soldiers walking along Broadway. Someone needed to tell them "God Bless Fort Benning" doesn't happen for two more weeks.
Then I stepped in the car, to drive down Crawford Road to Ladonia for dinner. The bump at 13th and Broad shook me a little. The sight of the Big Cat station on U.S. 80 selling diesel fuel for $3.15 a gallon shook me quite a bit -- especially since the three was spray-painted on the sign.
Another surprise came when I saw fireworks in the distance, past Big Cat. They apparently were fired at East Alabama Motor Speedway. So how far back in the field did Jeff Gordon qualify for today's NASCAR race?
I finally stopped at the McDonald's in Ladonia -- the one with a convenience store attached to it. Shop on both sides, and you might just come out with the ingredients for a nutritious meal.
And that's where the big surprise came - as the TV inside the Ladonia McDonald's did NOT show L.S.U.-Alabama. It did NOT show the "Saban Bowl" - which might as well have been the Super Bowl, because it took about four hours 15 minutes to play.
I didn't ask the McDonald's staff why its TV was showing Fox News Channel. On a couple of previous trips to Ladonia, this restaurant had the Weather Channel. That would make sense for commuters and travelers - but Fox News Channel on a Saturday night really doesn't. Ronald McDonald's red hair might be condemned by Bill O'Reilly as a sign of Communist tendencies.
By the time I'd ordered dinner at McDonald's and returned to my car radio, Alabama's John Parker Wilson had made a fateful fumble - and L.S.U. had scored again, for the winning 41-34 margin. It's no wonder McDonald's doesn't like to be called "fast food."
Alabama is often presented to the rest of the country as a football-centric state. But what I saw at this restaurant Saturday night made me wonder if times have changed. Have the Crimson Tide teams in recent years been that dull? Or did the McDonald's managers fear the staff would become too distracted to help the customers?
This restaurant doesn't get all of the blame for overlooking L.S.U.-Alabama. WEAM-AM lost the Crimson Tide broadcast for a lengthy period during the second half -- and it didn't even make up for the loss, by finding a Columbus Cottonmouths broadcast and putting it on the air.
I was left to listen to the Alabama broadcast on WIOD-FM 95.7, which can be hard to pick up in downtown Columbus. But I heard enough to remind me why Crimson Tide fans love Eli Gold. It's his attention to detail -- like saying L.S.U. was short of a first down by a "teensie-weensie bit." [True!]
Taking a look at other Saturday college football:
+ By 35-3, Auburn blew up TNT. At least that's how I abbreviate Tennessee Tech....
+ Georgia trampled Troy, but the 44-34 score probably wasn't what Bulldog fans wanted to see. Someone should have reminded the Georgia Athletic Director that Troy actually plays Division I-A football now.
+ Albany State beat Fort Valley State 32-27 in the Fountain City Classic. For the first time, the game featured a parade through downtown Columbus - and after Friday's economic boycott, businesses on Broadway must have had their best Saturday morning ever.
+ And I'm sorry, but I can't keep quiet any longer - My old alma mater annihilated Nebraska 76-39 - which almost matches the score the Kansas basketball team made last February.
(You have to understand that Nebraska beat Kansas for about 35 consecutive years. The string ended two years ago - but to give Nebraska the worst losing score in its history seems like true redemption. Call it an "eye for an eye," and a TD for a TD.)
BLOG SPECIAL EVENT: We've received no new credit card offers in the last couple of days, but we did receive an e-mail about it:
This mail in your credit card applications to a firm who is counting them sounds like a scam to me...Are you just sending the number of applications you get or the applications themselves?....and to add to all that you can win a prize...watch out...
I have family that have been deceased 10 yrs and I still get card applications for them. The only credit cards they ever had were a gas card company,which no longer lives,and Kirven's,a local store which is also deceased..I have no idea where they ever got their names..
I'm not only sending in the applications, but the entire contents of the envelopes. But this is a national firm, which has sent me surveys for years. It beats having someone interrupt the 6:00 news, to ask me questions about the last ten pizzas I bought.
But then again, the survey firm DID call me the other evening. It was a computer call, reminding me to collect the credit card applications. Maybe this company also publishes the "Idiot's Guide" books.
Now before I race off to bed to get that extra hour of sleep, let's check other items of note from the weekend:
+ The WRBL weather mystery deepened, as Susan-Elizabeth Littlefield presented the forecast two nights in a row. I can't possibly believe their meteorologists are going on strike, as members of the Writer's Guild....
(Meanwhile, a blog reader alerts us to big news about former WRBL meteorologist Trent Aric. He's becoming the top weather forecaster at a major TV station in Miami - and if Aric lightens his hair, he could take on ABC's Sam Champion in a male beauty contest.)
+ WRBL's newscast showed the 20th annual Georgia State Fishing Championship, at West Point Lake. I'm not saying the water level is low - but one of the top three baits this year is a baseball catcher's mitt.
+ Callaway Gardens hosted its annual Steeplechase - and if I heard WXTX "News at Ten" correctly, about 3,000 people showed up. Compared to the packed bleachers at McClung Memorial Stadium for the Fountain City Classic, this crowd was small. But the hats women wore probably cost a lot more than the barbecue platters football fans bought.
+ Columbus High School won the Georgia AAA state volleyball title. So why is this only a sport for girls in Georgia -- with no teams for guys? Is there concern local players would wear advertising for tattoo parlors on their arms?
+ Instant Message to the organizers of the regional high school cross-country meet: Have you considered alternatives to Kinnett Stadium? A couple of laps on that uneven and dusty Lakebottom Park walking course would be every bit as challenging - and the stop lights at 17th Street would allow trailing runners to catch up.
SCHEDULED MONDAY: A big victory over a famous Columbus name, which took more than two months to accomplish....
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