Florida Rivalry Goes on: The Gators vs The Seminole Boosters
Written: Nov 18 '00
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Stadium has lots of gates to facilitate traffic; Great views of the actions on the field;
Cons: Pricey tickets and scalping; some unruly fans!
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| charles's Full Review: Doak Campbell Stadium |
Back in 1995, I was at Florida State University for a three-week International conference on political organizations, Strategies and Self-sufficiency, and grass-root movements in Latin America. I had the opportunity to experience first hand what it is like to be at Doak Campbell Stadium for an important football game. It was anything like today's game between the Gators and the boosters, but being in this beautiful stadium allowed me to make some other important observations about fans and the different types of Floridians. If my memory does not fault me, it was a game between the Seminole Boosters and the Hurricanes Even for a game that did not feature the Gators and the Seminole Boosters, it was practically impossible to find hotel rooms. We were fortunate that our hotel reservations were made way in advance. We were also lucky we had a large group, hence a group discount. Otherwise, fans would crowd the place for a long week-end of revelry!
Fans' Tailgating In a place that's known for great parties
All of a sudden, people started arriving on campus. The week before, there was not so much activity on campus. The conference attendees who were mostly international students, Business representatives with investments in Latin America, some locals were some of the few faces that could be spotted around. The fans, friends, alumni, and the university's support personnel started arriving too. Fortunately, the conference organizers decided to give us a break and allowed us to leave early that afternoon. A large group of us went to the game while others just went to explore the town and its shopping centers.
Be ready to get into the spirit of the game: Noise pollution
It was like a large beach party. At times, the loud music that was coming from the nearby speakers seemed to set the mood. Well, it was such a case for noise pollution. Hey, welcome to TAILGATING at Doak Campbell. While cooking their hot dogs and other meals, some fans were observed dancing to the tune of Salsa and Merengue music. By the time the game was about to start, the stadium had already been packed with screaming fans. Among them were not only the students of both universities, but also fans from all ethnic, social, and economic backgrounds. The models, the stars, the optimistic new immigrants, the former refugees, the powerful elite of the Cuban community, the immigrants' sons and daughters, the local surgeon and politicians, and many more were all attending the game. We should not forget the elderly baby boomers who have chosen to live in the sunshine state. With a lot of discretionary income, they flocked to events such as a football game between rival teams with their friends and guests.
Today's hit game can stay in the archives for a long time
Annual National Title Elimination Game At the end of today's game between the archrivals, the Seminole Boosters and the Gators, a winner will advance. The fans know the importance of this game. This is why they don't want to be distracted by a prolongated election mess. They don't want to lose out on their big day in the sunshine. Florida's Gators may go down because Florida State has a better shot at winning the national title game with a win. No one knows how they are going to do it, but the fans want no less. No matter what they want to have fun, lots of it to forget all other problems and spotlight their state has come under lately.
Florida State is ranked no. 3 so far while Florida, no. 4
There is no doubt that the rivalry that pits these two teams against each other will have a better, sweeter meaning if the Seminole win on their own field. People will be talking about the win for years to come.
Doak Campbell Stadium is a great venue for such a game. It's a superb stadium that reminds of the one in Oklahoma at Norman. Keep cheering up your team while the band plays its tunes.
If you are in Talhassee, you want to drop by to check it out.
Recommended:
Yes
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charles
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Location: CA, USA
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