The Game that Changed the South

When someone talks about the South, they rarely ever forget to talk about FOOTBALL. SEC (South Eastern Conference) Saturdays are a vital part of a Southerner's life in the fall, year in and year out. (Watch the video above to find out what the SEC is all about). The SEC has produced some of the best players that play in the National Football League because of the tough competition that SEC teams provide. Peyton Manning, Eli Manning, Champ Bailey, and Hines Ward are just a few former SEC players to mention. Even though football has been such a huge part of the Southern identity, it was not always that way.

After the Civil War, the South was "devoid of regional pride," but one event gave the South something to be proud of for several years to come. In the early 1900's, Southern football was considered inferior to football in other regions. Personally, I cannot imagine Brown or Yale being better football schools than Alabama. Because of this assumed inferiority, Southern teams were not even taken into consideration to play in the Rose Bowl. "In the 1920s, many Ivy League as well as other colleges felt that football had become too popular and might interfere with academics. Some schools decided that the regular season games were enough and they would no longer accept Rose Bowl invitations (Jarvis)." In 1925, the Washington Huskies had an undefeated season but they denied an invitation to the Rose Bowl because of their coach's "grudge" with Southern California. Another college also had an undefeated season; the University of Alabama. So, reluctantly, the Rose Bowl committee decided to consider the University of Alabama (Jarvis). After hearing this, the Huskies reversed their earlier decision and decided to play Alabama in the 1926 Rose Bowl.

Alabama was a huge underdog in this match-up. The game is considered one of the greatest Rose Bowls of all time, for two reasons. The final score was Washington 19 and Alabama 20. That's right! Alabama beat the mighty Huskies. I would say that the crowd got its money's worth. This game marked the beginning of Southern dominance in college football and has been dubbed as "The Football Game That Changed the South."

*Georgia Tech was part of the SEC until 1963.

Sources:
1) "Reconstruction and the Rose Bowl" by Gail Jarvis
2) "The Football Game That Changed the South" (Press Release)

This is a Rebel Flag

This is the flag of the Confederate States of America (aka. The Rebel Flag, The Battle Flag of the Confederacy). The Confederacy was made up of states in the southern region of the United States, which includes Georgia, the Carolinas, Mississippi, Alabama, Texas, etc. The Civil War was fought between the Confederacy and the Union, which was most of the northern states.

The flag is still displayed all over the South to this day. People have it on their pick-up trucks, cars, homes, and some of the government buildings hoist them as well. The meaning of the flag comes from the effects the Civil War. Some people think this flag promotes racism, just because the South was in favor of slavery. There are reasons other than slavery for the Civil War. The South was dependent on agriculture and they needed people to work the fields. It was terribly wrong for them to use Black people to do it, but they only had one way to make money. The North on the other hand, had an industry. The issue of state's right versus federal rights is another reason why the South seceded.

The South was very bitter after its loss in the war. Confederate money was as good as toilet paper because none of it had much value due to inflation. The fact that Southerners still choose to display this flag on their stuff show that they respect their history. Even though the South was torn apart, it has made a major come back over the past century. The Battle Flag and the South are like rice and curry.

Posted by: Rajeev