A foul smell of stale beer and unfortunate nights fills the streets as lime-green hand grenades line the sidewalks next to call cards for the city’s classiest establishments.
Bourbon Street is the Mecca of sugary drinks and a perk of covering the Sugar Bowl.
Venture down Poydras Street toward I-10 and the site of Florida’s BCS bowl loss looms over the city.
The Sugar Bowl hosts the winner of the Southeastern Conference.
With the SEC and national champions seemingly synonymous, one lucky SEC team usually books a ticket to the Sugar Bowl.
Florida leapfrogged Georgia, which lost to Alabama in Atlanta.
There will be no Atlanta or New Orleans if No. 22 Florida can’t take care of business Saturday in Columbia, Mo.
No, that’s not a typo. No. 14 Missouri can now make or break Florida’s season.
As if playing against a team in Big 12 Country isn’t ironic enough, Missouri is referred to as the “Show-Me” state.
After a woeful performance against No. 6 LSU, Florida has to prove it can win with a depleted offensive line, defensive line, backfield and a quarterback who hasn’t beaten a team with a winning conference record.
This certainly is not the year Muschamp and the rest of the Gators expected after going 11-2 last season.
Death by a thousand season-ending injuries is a slow, painful decline that leaves a team gasping for air. A lack of depth spells trouble in a conference that regularly sends players to the NFL.
Senior quarterback Zach Mettenberger said he treated the win as a chance to remind Florida who LSU is — a physical team that dominates the trenches. Florida has that opportunity come Saturday.
Missouri shocked Georgia in enemy territory to improve to 6-0 and move a game up on UGA, Florida and South Carolina. A loss against the Tigers would leave the Gators trailing by two games with matchups against the No. 15 Bulldogs and the No. 11 Gamecocks still looming on the schedule.
Missouri, with its starting quarterback James Franklin out for 3-5 weeks, has South Carolina and seventh-ranked Texas A&M at home. The schedule gods smiled on Missouri, which went 2-6 in its first season in the SEC last year.
It isn’t as easy for the Gators. That’s why Saturday matters.
The message following the loss in Baton Rouge, La., was that the season’s goals remained intact. Everybody assumes the SEC East goes through Georgia. At this moment, for a down Florida team, the division goes through the “Show-Me” state.
Thinking back to New Year’s 2012, I remember peeing in a urinal when the clock struck 12.
I remember the late-night Krystal burger. I remember the beads, beer and Po-boys.
I remember the excitement in the streets from Florida fans because their team was in its first BCS bowl since 2010 and first without Tim Tebow and Urban Meyer.
The Gators had a flawed team in 2012 with a ridiculously good defense and an offense that did just enough.
A year later, the defense isn’t as automatic and the offense isn’t as productive. ‘Just enough’ won’t cut it this season.
Selfish me wants another trip to Bourbon Street. Rational me thinks perhaps this Saturday might be the kick in the pants these Gators need.
Follow Adam Pincus on Twitter @adamDpincus.
Tyler Murphy throws a pass during Florida’s 17-6 loss to LSU on Saturday at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge, La. The Gators will be tested on Saturday when No. 22 Florida travels to face No. 14 Missouri.
