A Trip Through the 2014 SEC Conference with Jim March

All credit goes to Jim March. Follow him at @jmmarch2 and visit his site South Bound Traveler for more.

PLEASE check out the two part special on SEC quarterbacks with Part One here and Part Two here.

In April, I decided to spend the 2014 College Football season touring the Southeastern Conference (SEC), going to the biggest and best college football games with the biggest and best fan bases in the country with the intention of writing the biggest and best book on college football ever.

The general idea is to write a first person travel narrative exploring college football fan culture and identity by living on the road throughout the course of a football season down South. I plan on leaving Chicago for Columbia, South Carolina on August 25th.

I’ve made six drafts, trying to find the perfectly balanced schedule that takes me all through the SEC, seeing every team in person at least once, and on campus for as many of the best on-paper match-ups and rivalry games as I could fit into one season. I can’t see all the best games, that’s not possible. I can’t see a home game for every school (that would be worth writing about). But I plan on seeing enough to give me a glimpse into the lives of the most passionate College Football fans anywhere in America.

I’d love for you to follow along on this journey and share your thoughts as I post.

Here’s the schedule:

8/28 Texas A&M @ South Carolina

8/30 Clemson @ Georgia

9/6 Ole Miss @ Vanderbilt (LG Stadium in Nashville)

9/13 Kentucky @ Florida

9/20 Florida @ Alabama

9/27 Missouri @ South Carolina

10/4 LSU @ Auburn

10/11 Auburn @ Mississippi State

10/18 Tennessee @ Ole Miss

10/25 Alabama @ Tennessee

11/1 World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party (Florida/Georgia @ JAX)

11/8 Alabama @ LSU

11/15 LSU @ Arkansas

11/22 BYE

11/27 LSU @ Texas A&M

11/29 Iron Bowl (Auburn @ Alabama)

12/6 SEC Championship Game (Atlanta)