With the statute of limitations expired, care to enlighten us as to how that is possible in this day of maximum security, etc.?
Well I’m still kinda shocked how it happened myself. This is going to be a little long so bare with me.
To start off I was a student at the time and for the playoffs you get to put in your preference between the semi and National championship. I was going to the NOLA anyways so I chose the Sugar bowl. But I didn’t get it, I got the NC which was a $540 ticket (or $450 to be honest I have forgotten because the same thing happened to me the previous year and one was $450 and the other was $540). But to the point it was more than I was willing to spend. Well my friend’s daughter (well they are all my friends) didn’t have a ticket for the NC and the prices were outrageous for that game since Georgia was in it. So they agreed to buy mine. My only job was to go to the Congress center to pick it up since UA is totally paranoid at students making money that they are one of the few programs that won’t allow you to pick up bowl tickets at the ticket office.
So the plan is to meet them on my way back and their way to the game halfway. Well they all of sudden want me to try to find a ticket for their son. I did and it’s too much money for me to feel comfortable passing off in Atlanta even if it’s to another UA student that I know has a legitimate ticket. So I my friends (son and daughter of my friend) ride up there with me. I had every intention of driving back after we acquired the ticket because a certain orange man would be in attendance that night and I didn’t want to be stuck in Atlanta outside the stadium because of it. But they convinced me to stay and have lunch with them and off course my luck the Secret Service blocked me in. And the frigid rain started so it was now “ let’s find me a ticket”. Well they were going for way more than what was reasonable and they were a lot of seats without people in them in the game.
Well we found a guy that goes to every big sporting event (SBs, NCs, WS, and NBA Finals) who scouts the area and gets in with one or two of the ticket handlers to come up with a system. Well I’m not going to tell what was paid, but it was less than 25% of the average getting in price that night. So Louie , the guy getting me in, took me and a Georgia fan in together through security. All the time I’m thinking is this guy legit, is Secret Service going to see that I don’t belong here, and is there going to be a hitch somewhere in this craziness. Well we are going through thousands of angry Alabama and Georgia fans suffering through the freezing rain since tickets were mobile tickets and WiFi sucked down there and the fact Secret Service kinda limited how you could get in. After 30 minutes of fighting through what seemed to be a Metallica mash pit we get to the Secret Service check and all I remember is this secret service chick that really didn’t want to be there and couldn’t care less if a gun went through her line. There were people dinging like crazy on the metal detector and would say “oh it’s my belt” and she would just let them through. The Georgia guy with me had a flask of whiskey and just blamed it on a belt and got through. I was shocked how lackadaisical they were. Then after another 10 minutes we got to his hook up and all he said was pull out your phone and don’t look suspicious for the cameras. The guy put the barrier behind him and let us through. I just couldn’t believe how easy it was.
Call me liar if you want and I can understand because I still can’t believe it. I ended up sitting behind my friend and his wife on the 50 of the upper deck.