So many great stories, legendary plays, etc. involved in the SEC, the entire NCAA for that matter. It has always seemed to me like the old ones were the best. The story of the Halloween night run was always bigger than life to me. The Four Horsemen, the Galloping Ghost, many Grantland Rice bylines. What's your favorite story, the one that had the biggest impression on you while growing up?
What SEC football legend impressed me as a youth? Coach Bear Bryant. You have to understand that the LSU student section in the early 70's was WAY rowdier than today. Drinking age was 18, there were no searches, and there were no reserved seats. You got in on your ID and it was first-come first served. So students lined up for hours before the game to get the better seats. And the line was a party. Tennessee once brought their band to Tiger stadium and after the halftime show they marched off the field playing "Rocky Top" directly into the corner of the stadium where the LSU students were sitting. It rained whiskey bottles on those poor bastards. Several bandsmen and majorettes were injured and many instruments damaged. Tennessee swore they would never bring a band to Tiger Stadium again. But they did, many years later. Any opponent's mascot or cheerleaders running with a flag suffered much abuse if they came down in front of the LSU student section. Now, visiting bands, cheerleaders, mascots, and team members are forbidden from going anywhere near the student section in Tiger Stadium. But whenever Alabama came to town, during pre-game warmups, Coach Bryant himself would walk down in his houndstooth hat and lean against the goalposts in front of the LSU student section and just watch the practice. Nobody ever yelled a word at him, the place would actually get respectfully quiet. Later he would nod to the students and slowly walk back to his sideline getting a round of applause from the whole section. Never seen anything like it.
Bear was probably drunk. Who'd wear that bad sport coat and awful hound's tooth hat if they were sober ?
Two stand out in my family: Of course the Halloween punt return... But this has extra meanign in my family... My grandpa was going to go to the game without my dad, but when he told my dad of this, he said, "Cannon will win it for us." So he opted to go over trick or treating... That is a story we often liek to tell... Then one with less of a story is the earthquake game of course
The one that stands out for me because I was old enough to remember it, was the Earthquake Game. Obviously, the Halloween Night run is one that my family has always told, but from a personal standpoint, the night the Tigers moved the earth was a time in which I remember being able to recall and tell from first-hand knowledge.
Dalton Hilliard.. saw him in Bon Marche Mall when I was like 5 or so.. his legs were so big that he walked like he had something up is a$$.... i was impressed...
I shouldn't betray my age but I will admit that as a student at Auburn, and a big FB fan in general, I listed to the Halloween game on the radio and was pulling for LSU. I can still remember the excitement as the announcer described Cannon's punt return. My favorite game was the so-called "Punt bama Punt" game that Auburn won 17-16 on 12/2/72. We were huge underdogs and apparently beaten late in the game. With the score bama 16-Auburn 3, bama was just doing running plays to run down the clock. On 4th down, bama's punter, Greg Gannt, dropped by, took the snap and.....Boom...our DT Bill Newton blocked the punt and our DB Langner picked it up and ran it in for a TD. The Bear slammed down his program and threw a metal chair on the sidelines. He was pissed to say the least. But with little time left, the bama faithful weren't sweating losing the game but were grumbling that they were going to lose money because bama wasn't covering the point spread. So we kick off and bama runs three up the middle. Gant goes in to punt and Auburn fans are screaming "block that punt." The bear is screaming and waving to Gannt to back up. He takes a couple of steps back, the ball is snapped and.......Boom.....Newton blocks it again and again Langner scoops it up and runs it in for a TD. Game tied 16-16 as Auburn lines up to kick the extra point and win the game. Legion field was going wild and I could only think about the pressure our kicker, Gardner Jett, was feeling. With bama's luck, I could just see him missing it. But the kick was true and we won 17-16. I looked across the field thru my binoculars and the Bear was beside himself with rage. It was a great moment!!! :thumb:
