Gamecocks vs Commodores

This week we struck lucky and managed to get tickets to the USC vs Vanderbilt game! When I say struck lucky I mean we spent the most stressful hour and a half trying to get tickets online, admitted defeat, and then suddenly half an hour later realised that some were still available! It made trying to get Beyonce tickets a positively enjoyable experience.....

Before the match starts everyone tailgates at the stadium which is pretty cool. Having a massive pick up truck is standard here, there are absolutely no small cars! Anyway everyone brings their SUVs down to the car parking lots near the stadium, as well as copious amounts of food and drink. They go all out. I didn't get any good pictures but everyone has proper barbecues, and often a wide screen TV to watch the match on!

Everything is garnet or black, and it seems like a big family day out. It's actually really nice and makes a good change from the slightly more laddish atmosphere at English football games. Another thing that takes place at the tailgate is playing 'cornhole'. This game is so popular, it's crazy. I'd say every other family tailgating had a set. The aim of the game is, essentially, take it in turns to chuck a beanbag in the hole. However, having played it I can now confirm it's not as easy as it sounds and there's all sorts of tactics. Although I still think that it looks like someone's nicked it from the local village fete.

Me and Helly didn't manage to get tickets in the student section which is lower down so we were high up, in fact about as high up as you could go! We still had a great view though and the atmosphere was amazing. People are very openly passionate about the game here and everytime points are scored fireworks go off, the song sandstorm gets blasted out, and everyone whips out their game teatowels (they almost definitely are not teatowels and probably have an official name but I have no idea what) and waves them around like mad. I didn't realise until very recently that Norwich City was unusual in having a goal celebration song (the best celebration song ever) but it's definitely something all teams should take on, makes scoring so much more exciting for those of us who don't know any of the rules of the game.

We stayed until the half-time show, which was the school band, the cheerleaders, the dancers and one (very good) baton-twirler. We've watched the band practice before but I still have no idea how they all know where to go, they are constantly moving into different formations and do it all perfectly, it's really impressive.

I was pretty sure that the commodore was a type of bird and was going to make some sort of lame joke about a chicken taking on a commodore but I just googled it and it turns out in fact that it's a naval officer of high rank. Anywaaay USC won 35-25 so a good first game for us to go to! woo go cocks.

 

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