College: The Rose Bowl
Year: 2015
Game: Oregon 59 Florida State 20
Rating: 10
Cost Index: High
Tickets: Moderate
Cost Index: High
Tickets: Moderate
Stadium: The Rose Bowl
Some places and experiences are difficult to describe, especially in modern times with all the hype surrounding a given event. The Rose Bowl has been around forever, it's reputation precedes it, but somehow it doesn't really oversell itself or the experience. It's understated to a degree, even if this particular edition was the first college football playoff semifinal.
This wasn't a raging party and it wasn't a spectacle. It was just a classy event that stuck to it's traditions. These traditions start with the stadium itself, which is a tribute to the time which it was built and to it's name: it's a oval shaped bowl. Not nearly as big as I thought it would be (it seats 90,000 and it squeezes them in) but there is literally not one bad seat anywhere. I had second row seats, I think I would have been just as happy in the upper bowl. In a world where we keep pushing for bigger is better and the louder you scream for attention the Rose Bowl offers the opposite.
The stadium sits in a valley, right next to it is a moderately sized drainage "river". I think its the Arroyo Seco. We parked on the golf course north of the stadium. The stadium is a public facility on public land. The tail gate is what you would expect at such an event, large in scope but relaxed in feel. I do think there is a bit more energy on the south side in the parking lots.
The game experience was refreshing, the stadium is not obnoxious...there isn't a huge screen in your face asking you to "raise the roof" or some other bullshit. The marketing and advertising isn't in your face. The pregame festivities were topped off by a flyover with the B-2 (Stealth) bomber. I never thought I would see anything before a game that was at all close to the flight of the War Eagle....but this was right there with it. I have a vid below but the vid does not do justice to the experience of that war plane flying a few hundred feet above. It immediately made me question whether or not I should be critical of the budget of the U.S. military.
The game itself was deceiving and indicative of modern college football. We had the last two Heisman winners squaring off with the winner going onto the first ever Championship game. The first half was pretty even. At times you could sense Oregon was ready to rev their engines and start racing, other times you felt Florida State was controlling the game. Florida State shot themselves in the foot in the red zone setting the stage for the second half, but at half time the game was pretty much even.
In the second half the wheels came off as fast as I've ever experienced. Once FSU started turning the ball over the avalanche was set in motion. It was like a haunted house, seemingly every couple of seconds Oregon was either forcing a turn over or scoring a TD. Very chaotic, and after it was over it went 25-20 to 52-20 in the blink of an eye. These were two heavy weights and FSU stood in there but in the end Oregon hit them with a good body shot and then walked 'em down to the point where they threw in the towel. The last quarter was essentially meaningless, but it was a great game. We could have went to the Sugar Bowl, which was a better game, but there are no regrets. This was a better experience.
This trip was more of a quest for us than anything recreational, we had always promised ourselves that if there were a playoff we were going hell or high-water. We made it happen but it was expensive and was not simple from a traveling standpoint.
In addition to the game my perspective of LA was reinforced...very cool place once you get past the Hollywood bullshit. Interesting landscape and architecture. Griffith Park is unlike any other urban outdoor space.
If you want to make it part of a larger trip: This one stands alone given the time of year
Some places and experiences are difficult to describe, especially in modern times with all the hype surrounding a given event. The Rose Bowl has been around forever, it's reputation precedes it, but somehow it doesn't really oversell itself or the experience. It's understated to a degree, even if this particular edition was the first college football playoff semifinal.
This wasn't a raging party and it wasn't a spectacle. It was just a classy event that stuck to it's traditions. These traditions start with the stadium itself, which is a tribute to the time which it was built and to it's name: it's a oval shaped bowl. Not nearly as big as I thought it would be (it seats 90,000 and it squeezes them in) but there is literally not one bad seat anywhere. I had second row seats, I think I would have been just as happy in the upper bowl. In a world where we keep pushing for bigger is better and the louder you scream for attention the Rose Bowl offers the opposite.
The stadium sits in a valley, right next to it is a moderately sized drainage "river". I think its the Arroyo Seco. We parked on the golf course north of the stadium. The stadium is a public facility on public land. The tail gate is what you would expect at such an event, large in scope but relaxed in feel. I do think there is a bit more energy on the south side in the parking lots.
The game experience was refreshing, the stadium is not obnoxious...there isn't a huge screen in your face asking you to "raise the roof" or some other bullshit. The marketing and advertising isn't in your face. The pregame festivities were topped off by a flyover with the B-2 (Stealth) bomber. I never thought I would see anything before a game that was at all close to the flight of the War Eagle....but this was right there with it. I have a vid below but the vid does not do justice to the experience of that war plane flying a few hundred feet above. It immediately made me question whether or not I should be critical of the budget of the U.S. military.
The game itself was deceiving and indicative of modern college football. We had the last two Heisman winners squaring off with the winner going onto the first ever Championship game. The first half was pretty even. At times you could sense Oregon was ready to rev their engines and start racing, other times you felt Florida State was controlling the game. Florida State shot themselves in the foot in the red zone setting the stage for the second half, but at half time the game was pretty much even.
In the second half the wheels came off as fast as I've ever experienced. Once FSU started turning the ball over the avalanche was set in motion. It was like a haunted house, seemingly every couple of seconds Oregon was either forcing a turn over or scoring a TD. Very chaotic, and after it was over it went 25-20 to 52-20 in the blink of an eye. These were two heavy weights and FSU stood in there but in the end Oregon hit them with a good body shot and then walked 'em down to the point where they threw in the towel. The last quarter was essentially meaningless, but it was a great game. We could have went to the Sugar Bowl, which was a better game, but there are no regrets. This was a better experience.
This trip was more of a quest for us than anything recreational, we had always promised ourselves that if there were a playoff we were going hell or high-water. We made it happen but it was expensive and was not simple from a traveling standpoint.
In addition to the game my perspective of LA was reinforced...very cool place once you get past the Hollywood bullshit. Interesting landscape and architecture. Griffith Park is unlike any other urban outdoor space.
If you want to make it part of a larger trip: This one stands alone given the time of year
Don't Miss:
Avoid:
Avoid:
Attendees: Bones, Polychronopolis
Game Recap: http://scores.espn.go.com/ncf/recap?gameId=400610177
Some pics & vids of LA and the game:
Some pics & vids of LA and the game:
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