scenes from the 2015 alamo bowl
January 2, 2015. The day my mom and I returned to Texas for yet another UCLA Football game. This time for a bowl game. It might not have been the national championship team that we all hoped for in August (go Oregon – #BackthePAC), it definitely became a team that we all loved a little too much. Perhaps it was the weekly reality show treatment courtesy of Pac-12 Network’s “The Drive” or just that we had so much fun at that game in Dallas? No matter… we wanted to see them go out on top and beat Kansas State!
So back to Texas we went… this time to San Antonio. Where it was cold and rainy like it was in Dallas. To say I’m not sold on Texas weather would be an understatement. The folks from Kansas seemed warm at least, so they were happy to have driven south for a week.
This was the scene outside of the Alamo Bowl. They had all these great bands and stages and activities set up… but it was so miserably cold and wet that they barely had any fans hanging around. We spent the afternoon huddled under the Bruin Bash tent in coats and waited for the deluge to calm a little bit before making our way into the stadium.
This was the scene outside of the Alamo Bowl. They had all these great bands and stages and activities set up… but it was so miserably cold and wet that they barely had any fans hanging around. We spent the afternoon huddled under the Bruin Bash tent in coats and waited for the deluge to calm a little bit before making our way into the stadium.
Ah… yes… 70 degree warmth inside of a bowl! This makes me realize just how insane fans are in Buffalo and Green Bay, and how lucky those St. Louis, Indianapolis & Detroit fans truly are!
UCLA fans were outnumbered at least 20:1 in San Antonio over the weekend, but when we were out walking it seemed like 100:1. The running joke among UCLA fans was how many purple fans had remarked, “Wow! You’re the first UCLA fan I’ve seen!” No matter… we made sure that we represented well when we could. We were sitting in the last row, which meant I could stand up and yell for days with no one in my way. And with all of the 3rd downs and 4th downs we endured on defense, you might understand why I still have no voice a week later.
Our jubilant celebrations in the first half led to frightened heart attacks in the 2nd… but in the end we pulled out the victory to yet another 10 win season!
And even though our trip to San Antonio was short, we did get to partake in some of it’s loveliness outside of the game. We visited the Alamo, since it was literally 100 feet from our hotel (Hyatt Regency San Antonio Riverwalk).
We indulged in charbroiled oysters from LUKE (aka. one of New Orlean’s chef John Besh’s restaurant) during their killer happy hour… which may or may not be the last time I enjoy such amazingness due to my body’s not-so-awesome reaction the next morning….
And we took some leisurely strolls and a lovely boat ride down the Riverwalk in both the bitter cold and the pretty sunshine of our departure day.
San Antonio is definitely a great destination city for conventions/events… just hoping that it’s warmer the next time I stop by! And so ends 2014-15 UCLA Football… and our trips to Texas for the near future… great season Bruins and thanks for making us fans proud!
