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Here's a grapefruit for folks to swing at (though I'd also appreciate some honest feedback). What advice have you got in terms of where to go/what to do/what to see gameday to get most out of our 12 +/- hours in Baton Rouge? Am bringing 7 friends (none of which are UF alum - simply co-workers) who all wanted to see a game in Baton Rouge so we're looking for best places to enjoy pregame rituals. Basically, we're a bunch of 35-40+ year olds that wish we were back in school for another football season. We're staying in New Orleans Friday night and driving up around noon on Saturday.

My first advice would be to try to get there earlier than noon. The campus fills up before that, even for a night game, and it'll probably be hard to find a decent parking space.

As for things to do, the tailgaters are everywhere, so you can pretty much wander anywhere around campus and see that. Wear your UF gear, and you'll probably be offered food and drinks.

If you're more into an indoor atmosphere, The Chimes is a popular pre- and post-game hangout. It's especially fun for Gator fans because UF sends a bus trip every year of mostly students without tickets who converge on The Chimes to watch the game on TV. About an hour before game time, as the LSU fans start to leave for the game, the Gator buses arrive and literally take over the place.

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let me pay a compliment. Of all the SEC rivals we have, I can honestly say LSU is the only one we have whose team/fanbase I admire and respect

Thanks for the kind words, and I hope we live up to your expectations. Outside of Tiger Stadium (obviously I'm biased), there is no better place to watch a college football game than The Swamp (been there six times!). UF and LSU fans are very similar in terms of our passion and support for our team. It's probably one of the reasons the two fan bases get along as well as we do. I firmly believe that our two schools, in addition to having the two best overall athletic programs in the conference, also have the two greatest fan bases.

Enjoy your trip to BR, and hopefully it'll only be the first of two (or even three?) games between our teams this season.