Funny Hat (via Hec Miranda)

As you all know, we had a glorious evening at the Rose Bowl last night. I am happy to say I was among the fortunate faithful to be there to witness the debut of our Terrific Trio of coaches. I went with a friend from the dorms from my first year at UCLA, Paul, who had scored the tickets.

Rather than enter into repetitive game commentary, I will tell you about the great day we had before the game even started. This will start slow and end with a bang (several in fact) so stay with me to the end.

The one drawback to our day was we had no tailgating gear to speak of, so we determined to make the rounds, visit (and mooch from?) our fellow Bruins.  I did have a friend, Graham, who comes from a large UCLA family at the game. So our primary mission was to find him and adopt their tailgater as our own. I missed his Birthday party the night before, so I brought a four pack of Boddington's English Ale as a gift. With goal firmly in mind, Paul and I set out to experience the day.

Our first stop was a small hill north of the Rose Bowl, where some frat boys had set up a game of beer pong. We watched for a minute, and kept going, when we ran into some guys playing a game of Redneck Horseshoes. A fun little game where you toss large metal washers into a homemade box much like the skeeball you will find at any Dave & Buster's. That's Paul on the left.

Redneck Horseshoes (via Hec Miranda)

After a fun time with these guys, we returned to the hill where the beer pong guys had set up a game of Flippy Cup against a group of Volunteers. We won two games to none, in what was actually a very thrilling competition. In the first game, we had a small lead until the vols got to this really big guy who downed his beer and flipped his cup in such short order that they took a lead by  an entire beer.  We chased 'em down to win it at the end, but it was very close. In true sportsmanship the winners and losers congratulated each other and had a good time.

Flippy Cup (via Hec Miranda)

Paul and I continued to wander around and found another variation of horseshoes called Cornhole. Shortly thereafter we ran into a group of people lawn bowling. I was pretty happy by then, although I am ashamed to admit I never realized there are so many ways to pass the time while tail gating that don't involve tossing a football around. Then we came across a Volunteer tail gater that was anything but. Pay close attention to the license plate frame.

enemy tailgaters (via Hec Miranda)

This didn't take me out of my joy, however, it's all part of the pregame fun and games and just contributes to the overall experience. I don't know about everybody else, but I ran into several SC types at the game, hoping to watch us lose. I gave them some good natured ribs and kept going.

And what a walk. We began on the north end of the golf course and we were in search of the softball fields to the south of the Rose Bowl where Graham and his family traditionally Tailgate. Half an hour before kick off we knew we weren't going to find Graham. (Sorry Graham! I tried!) So Paul and I found a tree for shade and we were  joined by a group of Tennessee types who had come all the way out from Tennessee for the game. I exchanged hats with one fun fellow on the condition that he would cheer for the Bruins all game long. Notice the beer in my hand. (Happy Birthday Graham!)

trading hats II (via Hec Miranda)

I exchanged phone numbers with Jim Henderson of North Carolina and we cheerfully promised each other to meet again at the UCLA @ Tennessee game next year. Not far from there, we ran into these really nice and accommodating Bruin Alumni.

Toby & Tracy (via Hec Miranda)

I thanked Toby Bailey profusely for the reverse dunk during the '95 tournament. And thanked Tracy Murray for his years of fine representation in the NBA. They in turn thanked us for being fans and contributing to UCLA's Athletic Programs as such. The single best thing I can take away from this was the fact that I found these guys just tailgating like everybody else. They were not behind any velvet ropes, or in some inaccessible Bruin Athletes only party. (Definitely a high point of my day) They were of the people, with the people and for the people. Go Bruins.

Trading Punches (via Hec Miranda)

I found these guys  in the shadow of the stadium. They were trading punches, but all in good fun. We used to play this game growing up. (It's a guy thing) We called it Charlie Horses or Playing for Bruises. Running into these Bruins just kind of added to the insanity of it all. We were close!

RB Marquee (via Hec Miranda)

Once we filed through the gates, we ran into KLAC 570's Vic the Brick. I don't doubt he was there to work, but we were running late, so if he was working, he was running late as well. I got the feeling he was there as a fan. I think it was the UCLA Serape that gave me that hunch.

Vic the Brick (via Hec Miranda)

Paul and I decided to load up on hot dogs, water, and snacks before we got to our seats, so we walked around the Rose Bowl and ran into this guy.

via www.observer.com

I told Aaron Eckhart he did a great job in the Dark Knight, and thanked him for coming out for UCLA Football. I promised him he was going to have a great time. And, for some reason, I totally forgot to get a picture with him. He had his ballcap on nice and low, so I'm sure he was trying to keep a low profile.

After this, Paul and I got to our seats and you know the rest.

celebrating (via Hec Miranda)

Vols Leaving (via Hec Miranda)

God, it's great to be a Bruin.