Dawg-Fight in CWS Finals

[Appa23]

My son and I will be watching game one of the best-of-three series between the Georgia Bulldogs and the Fresno State Bulldogs.

My son is pulling for Georgia (having decided at Saturday's game that he liked Georgia over Stanford).

I think that I will root for Fresno State, as I like Cinderella stories. It was a #4 seed in its regional. To put it in more familiar "March Madness" terms, Fresno State is the equivalent of a #13 seed making the championship game. (They were seeded 51st, IIRC.)

We start tailgating at 4:00. I also will be treating my son to a Zesto's shake or cone.

[themanintheseersuckersuit]

I also will be treating my son to a Zesto's shake or cone.

I went to Zesto's a lot while away at school. Columbia still has a few left. Glad to know that there still a few around the country.

[Appa23]

I also will be treating my son to a Zesto's shake or cone.

I went to Zesto's a lot while away at school. Columbia still has a few left. Glad to know that there still a few around the country.

Didn't know that Zesto's was some type of chain.

It is a College World Series landmark, often mentioned on the ESPN and CBS telecasts over the years. Zesto's sits right on a corner across the street from Rosenblatt Stadium.

It will be sorely missed when the Series moves to a new ballpark in downtown Omaha. (Much consternation and teeth-gnashing over the increasing corporate nature of the CWS, driven by the NCAA.)

[lilclyde54]

Have fun watching the Dawgs. We'll be watching the TV in case you want to wave.

[Appa23]

Lilclyde, did you see us waving?!

What an awesome game! I probably should put it in the top ten of CWS games that I have seen.

Didn't make it to Zesto's, but the tailgate that my brother won (from a grocery chain and Coca-Cola) was pretty good. Burgers, hot dogs, tater salad, baked beans, cookies, and all of the Coke products that we could drink. (Brother took home lots of leftovers). The grocery store caters did burn some of the burgers and really over-seasoned the beans, but the Coke was refreshing (and free!).

As I said, my son was rooting on the Dawgs. Meanwhile, my brother and one of my nephews (who is six months older than my son) were cheering for Fresno State. (My oother nephew, who is the same age as PP, decided to cheer for Georgia because my son was). Anyway, my older nephew kept telling my son that he had to root for Fresno State. Finally, my son said, "Well, why don't you convince me?!" My nephew admitted that he did not know what "convince" meant. My son then told him that he should tell him the reasons why he should cheer for Fresno State instead of Georgia. Made me proud!

Of course, when Fresno State took a 6-3 lead in the top of the 8th, my nephew started riding my son about how Georgia was going to lose. My son wanted to leave, but I reminded him that Georgia still have two more turns at bat. Thank goodness that they pulled it out for him! (I have to admit that I asked my nephew, when Gordon Beckham hit hsi two-run home run: "Excuse me, but did you see where the ball went?"

My son took photos throughout the game. (There were several pictures taken of pretty girls. LOL) At the end, I took photos of Georgia's game-winning hit, the pop-up for the last out, and Georgia's on-field celebration.

Some other highlights and lowlights:

- Less than 20,000 fans showed up for this first game of the chanpionship round. It was just another example of the NCAA ruining what was a perfect event. The overall attendance is down 25-30,000 because they have scheduled fewer weekend games. While the Fan Fest had some fun things, I still would have preferred to take my son through Dingerville.

- Some local singer really gave a good national anthem performance (although she got a little "vocal-riffy" at spots.)

- The outfield bleachers fans showed very little originality as they carried on a war of "Left Fileld Sucks", "Right Field Sucks." Thankfully, there was no wave.

-- I did wonder if I had made television. There was a LSU fan who was throwing Mardi Grad necklaces during half-inning breaks. When he got to our section, I had my son standing on my legs while I was seated, so that the guy could see his cute, beaming face. The necklace came in behind us, so I reached back to snag it out of the air. Meanwhile, my son starts falling into teh seats in front of us. So, here I am, catching the beads in my left hand while grabbing my son with my right hand, as he is tumbling over the seat back in front of us. (Plus, his camera is tumbling down, as well.) Thankfully, no one was hurt!

[lilclyde54]

Of course I saw you when you were on TV. Didn't you see me wave back? I am glad your son got to be a fan of the winning team, especially with the dramatic way that they won. He and I are on the same page. Even though I hope we both get to celebrate at least one more time (after all, I am a SEC guy) but I wish it wasn't against such a likeable team as Fresno.

Now that you have mastered multi-tasking while catching beads, maybe you can come down to Mardi Gras this year and put that skill to use.

[melleon]

Have fun at the CWS, Appa! We will be rooting for the Georgia Dawgs since:

1. My son just found out he got accepted there as a transfer and will be attending in August ...
and
2. the player who saved the game , Joey Lewis is from our hometown, Peachtree City, and starred on their high school team.

And we have Zestos in the Atlanta area, even one in PTC! Love those nutty brown monsters.

Mel

[Ritterskoop]

1. My son just found out he got accepted there as a transfer and will be attending in August ...
and


Mel

Congrats to him and to you!