where will YOU watch the game?

I’ll admit I was pretty cranky as we drove into El Paso on I-10 at 12:30 a.m. (Mountain time) today. I had Ryan in stitches as I complained about everything, including how far we were from our exit and how cities/buildings/hills here seem to get further from you the closer you get to them.

I really lost it when we checked in and found our hotel spread over 10 different buildings, requiring the clerk to give us a map to our rooms.

But after a good night’s sleep I’ve realized what a great town this really is. People are friendly. And the El Paso Gators I’ve managed to contact so far have been super cool.

None more so than Marine 1^st Lt. Beau Benedict (pictured here), who is currently deployed in Iraq. I found the 2003 UF grad via e-mail.

Despite being in constant danger, Benedict wrote me to say he’s been able to watch all or parts of five games (Tennessee, Alabama, LSU, Auburn, Arkansas) while in the combat zone. He wrote:

"Some of the games started at 3 or 4 AM here, yet it was still not uncommon to find Gator Fans flocking around the nearest TV watching the game. I have watched games with Marines ranging from Lance Corporals to Lieutenant Colonels here, and there is always a common bond that Gator Fans share."

I asked him if he’d be able to watch Monday night’s Florida vs. Ohio State. Benedict said he doesn’t know yet but if he does it will be "here in Camp Fallujah."

That made me think of people who also can't watch the game at home much less in Glendale. Restaurants, hotel rooms, standing out front of department store windows?

Jeff