"Better to have died as a small boy than to fumble this football." -John Heisman Obsessed, fanatical, crazed - you bet! The Midwest may love college football, but Tony Barnhart, 1999 Georgia Sportswriter of the Year, reveals that in the South, love just ain"t good enough. Southern Fried Football proves that when it comes to college football in the South, the operative word is passion. The 2000 season marks the 120th year of college football in the South, and the fever hasn"t lost a degree of its pitch. This book celebrates Southern college football at its finest with: * Stories of regional rivalry-when Alabama and Auburn square off on a Saturday afternoon, families divide and marriages dissolve * The grand traditions of the South"s most celebrated dynasties-the Bourbon Barrel of the Kentucky-Indiana game, the Gator Growl, the cowbells of Mississippi State, and, of course, UGA, the mascot with a face only a Georgia fan could love * Profiles of the greatest players, teams, and coaches in southern college football-from the 1898 Immortals of Kentucky to the young stars of today * And, of course, the real center of the action, the avid, flag-flying fans who bring their southern passion for life to the grandstands every Saturday afternoon, but live Southern football seven days a week. Southern Fried Football is a devoted celebration of the people, places, and moments that make college football in the South more than just a game, or a show of school spirit. South of the Mason-Dixon line, football becomes without question a passion as bold and as heated as good barbecue. TONY BARNHART is an acclaimed sportswriter for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and was recently voted 1999 Georgia Sportswriter of the Year. He has covered college football for ESPN for over six years and has been nominated for an Emmy for his screenplay "The Southern Game," a documentary on Southern college football produced by Georgia Public Television.