21 Things We Are Thankful For In The SEC

As it’s Thanksgiving time, we thought we’d go around and tell everyone what we’re thankful here in the SEC. And we’ve remembered every team. Yes, even you, Arkansas.

1) We’re thankful for processes. And the fact that life, for Nick Saban, is a process. Even leaping into AJ McCarron’s arms. His smile? Weirdest thing we’ve ever seen. Anyway, processes has brought Nicholas Lou Saban FOUR National titles. That’s pretty good going.

2) We’re thankful for heartbreak and drama. We in the SEC deliver a lot of that to ourselves (Georgia/Auburn; LSU/Georgia; Ole Miss/Vandy; Georgia/Tennessee; South Carolina/Tennessee; The Winner of the Alabama/Auburn game), and a lot to other people (see our National Championship Game opponents in the last seven years). WARNING: Heartbreak and drama do not have to co-exist with being a Georgia Bulldogs fan…..although it helps.

3) We’re thankful for Jadeveon Clowney: Because he’s a hell of a lot of fun to watch….even when he’s running at 75% and the play’s not going anywhere near him. He’s a man-giant!

4) We’re thankful for CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! I’m done with a headache in Starkville.

5) We’re thankful for Jesus. Or at least Hugh Freeze is. Speaking of Hugh, we’re grateful for Les, Mark, Dan, Steve, Will, Gary, Gus, Bret and Butch. We love you, our SEC coaches.

6) We’re thankful for Mike, Uga, Bully, Sir Big Spur, Reveille (Texas A&M fans really believe in Reveille’s legend, folks!), War Eagle, Smokey and Tusk. Our live mascots >>>> Your stuffed mascots. Anyone want to fight with Mike The Tiger?

7) We’re thankful for the times when people walk on the railtracks behind Sanford, go and have a beer with the Vol Navy, tailgate in the campus of Louisiana State University or The Grove at Ole Miss. We’re thankful for shots before 9am, and arriving two days before the game. We’re thankful for RVs, new friendships and new fun. It wouldn’t be SEC tailgating without drinking on the premises now, would it?

8)  We’re thankful for Johnny Football. God, we are so thankful for Johnny Football.

9) Georgia fans are thankful for Gurshall, Murray. LSU fans are thankfully for Jarvis and Odell. Bama fans are thankful for TJ and AJ the Brothers. Missouri’s thankful for DG-B and 5th year seniors.

10) We’re thankful for the 12th Man. That place is LOUD.

11) We’re thankful for cold. Well, we’re not, but SEC fans are soon going to realize what it’s like to be cold now Missouri’s in the SEC. OK– rephrase that. We’re thankful for the different temperatures.

12) In the same way, we’re thankful for the sweaty oven known as The Swamp on a hot early September’s day. If you haven’t experienced swimming in your clothes, go to The Swamp on a hot early September’s day.

13) We’re thankful for the Chomp! Chomp! Chomp! of the Florida Gators fans. We always know when you’re coming. And we always know when you’re leaving because the opposition fans are doing it right backatcha (see Florida, Georgia, LSU for details). Saying that, we’re also grateful for jorts.

14) We’re thankful for College Gameday, because they always seem to want to visit us and give our SEC schools some new publicity. Is it our pretty campuses? Our Top football teams? Our great action? All of the above? Welcome back Chris, David, Desmond, Kirk and Lee. Welcome. As long as you’re wearing our team’s headgear.

15) We’re thankful for pom-poms – or as we in the SEC call it – ‘shakers’. Nooooooo…..shakers aren’t terrible. They are awesome. Especially when in the SEC. Or at Penn State. Don’t worry Texas A&M, you’ll have ’em some day.

16)  We’re grateful for Kentucky. Because otherwise, there would be no ‘Bluegrass Miracle’. And when Kentucky wins a SEC game, we all kinda rejoice, because it means the conference is a little more even. Oh, and we’re grateful that generally, their basketball team’s damn good.

17) We’re thankful for Bobby Petrino. Because since he decided to go motorcycling with that young gal of his, Arkansas Football has been the gift that’s kept on giving. A lot of Wisconsin fans want to be thankful to Bret Bielema for leaving, too.

18) We’re thankful for legends like Tebow, Herschel, Peyton, Archie and Eli. And a whole lot more.

19) We’re thankful to Atlanta for hosting our bowl games, our opening games of the year, and our SEC Championship Game, and for supplying us with endless Coca-Cola (NOT Pepsi) and generally being great supporters of the SEC (as it should be).

20) We’re thankful for great, crazy SEC podcasts, like the one from AL.com from WarBlogle/CollegeAndMagnolia (Auburn) and Hunter (Alabama), the latter who finished every sentence of his Bama/Burn podcast with ‘Roll Tide’ (hosted by Matt Scailici); the Around Aggieland Podcast by Derek Aggie and Hunter (what is is about Hunters at the SEC?), which is freakin’ amazing, the Shutdown Fullcast, which is really a SEC podcast masking as a SEC podcast. I’m surprised that it hasn’t gone silent bearing in mind that they are all Gators fans who hosts it (Spencer Hall (Every Day Should Be Saturday), Jason Kirk and Celebrity Hot Tub, all of whom spend the show giggling their butts off like schoolchildren (AND IT’S AWESOME), and The Dawg Gone Podcast, featuring host Ludakit, who’s batcrap-crazy about his Dawgs. Or maybe just batcrap crazy. And finally, we mention the Solid Verbal guys, which is pretty well-rounded about college football but good if you might be heading to Vegas. Despite the fact that the host are Notre Dame and Oregon fans, we’d like to assure you now that you do an OK job.

21) We’re thankful we’re from the South, home of Oxford and oxfords, belles and smells, liquor and beer, and a great weekend of warm welcome and happiness…..as long as you’re rooting for the same team as us.