By: Charlie Moon

TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services

I’m glad I was born and raised in a family with friends that believed it was better to be hooked on sports than it was drugs and alcohol.

If we Family Feud style poll 500 UGA fans on their favorite memories of the annual UGA – Florida game, the #1 answer would assuredly be Larry Munson’s call of Lindsay Scott’s TD catch-n-run from Buck Belue that saved the Dawgs’ 1980 National Title hopes.

Even many young Dawg fans would agree. They weren’t even alive. Maybe they know because it came up in the Dawgs’ recent titles, the first since 1980.

But I could almost guarantee they know because it was passed down from family and friends. On some late October Halloween weekend, they watched the annual “World’s Largest Cocktail Party” game. It came up on the broadcast, or maybe they saw it on College Gameday. But maybe, just maybe, they heard of Munson’s call by mom, dad, uncle, grandparent, etc etc.

Then they hopped on that Worldwide Internet Machine and found out for themselves!

All too often, bigtime sports fans wonder if they’re spending too much time in front of the TV on weekends, or weekdays for that matter. We wonder if we should spend more time cooking, cutting the grass or whatever else. And then sometimes we’re reminded the answer to that question is very relative.

The spices of life that reveal who we are, come from different aspects. Maybe it’s nature. Maybe it’s the arts. Maybe it’s cooking. But we all have that one thing that draws us in, no matter how bad the day is.

It hits that sweet spot in our soul. My parents raised me to know it was certainly okay to be obsessed with sports, as long as you stayed well-rounded. And I am.

I was heavily involved in the arts, even into my adult life, as a vocal and percussion performer. I love the movies, crime shows and other things.

But anyone that knows me, will tell you. “Moon’s crazy about sports!”

And the Georgia-Florida game has provided many memories around family and friends that remind us why we love it.

Sure, the game is big. But in the end, it’s memories of seeing family and friends – the times on Amelia Island, or the Landings. The first time you drive across the St. John’s River Bridge and overlook the sea of Red and Black versus Orange and Blue tailgate tents.

Like the Moons, many fans see specific family and friends, only in Jacksonville.

I know I’ve got some memories that will always stick.

Once, we went to the UGA-FL Game Hall of Fame Banquet. David Pollack was inducted. My mom has always loved him. She went right up to him, like a fawning teenager, and Pollack signed the back of the left shoulder of her shirt.

I remember my brother and I going onto the docks on Jacksonville Beach with a bucket of beer and just chilling in the late night breeze. Once, my dad nearly ripped off a drunk Gator fan’s head when they got rude with mom.

Bottom line is, no matter the outcome, the annual UGA – Florida game is one that splits a stadium right down the middle. It produces iconic photos like Tebow’s bloody face or the Dawgs storming the end zone while Mark Richt grins.

So, no matter how you take in the game – from the seats, from a watch party outside the stadium, Fernandina Beach, Jekyll Island or any town in Georgia, always remember this.

The value of being around family and friends and those memories will mean so much more than whether Larry Munson is celebrating in high, or Gator Nation is doing that ridiculous chomp.