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Happy Trails Five days of football is a real Thanksgiving
Posted: Thursday November 25, 1999 12:15 AM
The mere mention of pigskin has done strange things to me since I was a zygote. My friends call me "The Fiend" because I can't seem to get enough football. My wife calls me an idiot, but that's another story entirely. It doesn't matter if it's pro, college, high school, rec league, 8-man, 6-man... football is football, and I will stop whatever I am doing to watch. Come sundown Friday through Monday night, I start changing into The Fiend. And, then, there are the holidays. Thanksgiving means four things to me: family, friends, fowl and football. Not necessarily in that order. That's why I mapped out the ultimate trip to pack as much gridiron action into the holiday weekend as modern air travel would allow. So I have packed my backpack, reserved my rooms at the Motel 6's nearest the stadiums, and readied my stomach for six days of stadium hot dogs, potato chips, and whatever else I can scarf from unsuspecting tailgaters in the parking lot. I'm still not sure if my wife was kidding about changing the locks on me while I'm gone. But, I guess I'll worry about that when I return. My dream weekend kicks off Thursday with the traditional Thanksgiving Day game in Detroit, and if I can't be with my wife for the wonderful day, then who better to spend it with than John Madden? Maybe he'll save me a turkey leg. From there it is on to Boulder for the matchup on Friday between hated rivals Nebraska and Colorado. Though the Buffs are down a bit this year, they could still play spoiler to Nebraska's BCS aspirations with an upset win. Saturday will find "The Fiend" making his way from Denver out to the Bay Area, but my good buddy "The Fanatic" will pick things up back home in Atlanta at the closest thing left to a Civil War in the South -- the Georgia-Georgia Tech game on the Flats in Atlanta. Sunday will be spent in Oakland for the Chiefs-Raiders game, in a battle of .500 AFC West teams who are fighting to stay alive for the playoffs. I hope the crazy members of the "Raider Nation" won't mind me crashing the party with my spiked shoulder pads and face paint for a day. Monday night I will cross over to the other side of the Bay for the Packers-49ers game at 3Com Park. San Francisco and Green Bay both may be having off years, but the rivalry between two of the top teams of the '90s still is enough to get "The Fiend" pumped up. Maybe it was growing up in the shadows of Lambeau Field that gave me purpose in life? Growing up, we didn't celebrate the Fourth of July. Rather, we lit firecrackers on the Anniversary of the Ice Bowl. Some parents have pictures of John F. Kennedy in the living room. In my house, Vince Lombardi still hangs above the fireplace. Tuesday morning I will hop back on a plane and head back home to Atlanta. I hope my key will still work. Join "The Fiend" and "The Fanatic" all weekend long on CNNSI.com for a fun weekend of Turkey Bowls around the country.
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