“A road trip is a way for the whole family to spend time together and annoy each other in interesting new places.” – Tom Lichtenheld

There's something special about a road trip, even if there are many bumps along the way. In late December of 2007, my father and I made the 8-hour drive from Kalamazoo, MI to Nashville, TN to attend the 2007 Gaylord Hotels Music City Bowl. 

With a small business buying and selling ticket stubs, I purchased nearly 60 tickets for this game to resell. When I couldn't sell a large portion of the tickets, I asked good old dad if he wanted to go on a road trip to watch a game and spend New Year's Eve in Nashville. 

Thank you for joining me as I detail #9 on my list of the ten greatest games I've ever attended. If you're new to this series, welcome! Please read the series introduction post here and #10 on my list of the greatest games I've ever attended here. 

It was a bad decision to buy so many tickets to a single game without knowing who would play in it, which is required. In 2006, I also purchased tickets for the Music City Bowl to resell. With Kentucky and Clemson, two somewhat local teams with large fan bases getting bids for the game, the tickets sold out extremely quickly, and I turned a very nice profit. While Kentucky earning their way back into the bowl was a positive, a Florida State team with half of their team on suspension being in the game was not. 

My father and I booked a cheap hotel room west of Nashville and we made our way down.

The Game 

The game was fun and competitve. Although Kentucky was a heavy favorite due to the many Florida State suspensions, FSU, under coach Bobby Bowden, was not going to go down without a fight. 

Neither team decided to play defense as both had running backs carry for over 150 yards and quarterbacks throw for over 275 yards. Florida State scored two touchdowns in the final 8 minutes to come within a touchdown, but a late interception sealed the game up for the Kentucky Wildcats. The final score was Kentucky 35, Florida State, 28. 

My Experience 

This game made my personal top ten list for a few reasons, but mainly because it included a long and interesting road trip with my dad. This was my first of several experiences in Nashville, Tennessee. We visited bars, ate at local restaurants, avoided all sorts or interesting characters walking around the streets and more. 

I later chose to take my wife to this area for our honeymoon. 

This game also challenged my abilities as a salesmen. With 20-30 tickets in my pocket, I had to walk around the stadium trying to sell whatever I could. It did not go well, but it brought me out of my comfort zone, which was a good thing. 

My dad and I got along for most of the trip outside of an argument because I had two beers at a restaurant and he was starting to worry about me (it was New Years Eve in Nashville, c'mon dad!). 

I would highly recommend the Nashville area, long and awkward road trips with family members, and college football bowl games if you have the chance to experience any of the three. 

Thank you so much for stopping by! Stay tuned for #8 on my list and please drop your comments below!