Syracuse, NY - Otto the Orange

08/31/07 - Syracuse Orange - Carrier Dome

I love college football. If every day could be a Saturday in the fall, I'd be OK with that. The tailgating, the bands, the student sections - the fact that 6-8 times every fall, little college towns like Tuscaloosa, State College, South Bend and Blacksburg turn into small cities with fans and alumni coming in from miles around. As the 2007 season was preparing to kickoff, we did what we always do. We grabbed the schedule and sought out a part of the country that we wanted to see and found a game that interested us. In this case, I couldn't even wait until that first Saturday instead choosing a Friday night contest in Syracuse, NY between the Syracuse Orange and the Washington Huskies. And since sports travel isn't just about the game, we took a little detour to Buffalo and Niagra Falls.

For those of you who don't know, Buffalo Wings originated in Buffalo, NY and we went right to the original source - Frank and Teresa's Anchor Bar. They've been serving these up since 1935 and they don't waste their time with a zillion different flavors or a spicy so hot that it makes your nose bleed (don't laugh, I've seen it). The wings here are a basic mild or hot and come out with a crispy skin rarely found in the large-volume wing joints throughout the country. These were good. Real good. I've always said you should try every food where it was meant to be served before you decide if it is for you. Have a cheesesteak in Philadelphia, clam chowder in Connecticut and these wings here. If you don't like these, don't bother ordering them anywhere else.

Afterwards, we headed up the road and across the border into Canada to Niagra Falls. For those of you who have never been there, its something you should definitely see once. Granted, it's a bit touristy but it is an impressive sight. Take a ride on the Maid of the Mist, which will take you right under the falls. And look out your hotel room window at 3AM, just to make sure that the falls are still on even when there is no one watching. (I would be remiss if I failed to mention that Mrs. Mascot Hunter beat me at mini-golf north of the border. Even she will admit that this is not an every day occurrence and I think it has something to do with the exchange rate or the metric system. The scorecard said 15 meters, which I assumed to be somewhere around 40 feet but the dollar was weak against the yen that week and before I knew it I had a pocket full of square coins for change and a scorecard that said I lost by 3 strokes, which I figure to be at least 5 strokes back in the states.)

An afternoon drive across New York state got us into Syracuse mid-afternoon for the 8PM kickoff. They had a great party going on the quad with some quality tailgating fare and a performance by none other than Mini Kiss, a Kiss tribute band made up entirely of little people. It was here that we caught up with Otto, Syracuse's mascot who is (you guessed it) an orange. Syracuse University used to be named the Orangemen until 2004 when someone came along and saved us from our political incorrectness and changed it to the Orange, which we were led to believe was not a color or a fruit but a state of mind. Fortunately, they didn't feel the need to change Otto, who has been hanging around campus since 1980 and is truly one of the more entertaining mascots in the business.

We then headed into the on-campus stadium known as the Carrier Dome. A few things struck me as soon as I walked inside. First of all, I had never walked through an air lock to watch a sporting event before. It was kind of like watching a game from inside a big balloon. Secondly, it was uncomfortably hot and stuffy in there. Last time I checked, Carrier made air conditioners and it seems like they could have spared a few more for inside here. Maybe it's a home field advantage thing - let's show the team from the pacific northwest what humidity is. Well, it didn't work this time as Washington beat the over matched Orange 42-12. We had a great time on the whole trip but the best moment of the game was walking back through the air lock and feeling our heads decompress. Syracuse has a great football tradition that has fallen on hard times the last few years. Like it or not, college football is better with a competitive presence in the northeast and Syracuse is as likely as any to grab the vacant New York City market. My suggestion is some good recruiting classes and an outdoor stadium to take advantage of those late fall conditions.