Scott Stadium, Montincello and the Ducks

This was a long trip. I chose to make it a short trip and flew in Thursday.

There were no rooms available in Richmond (NASCAR race this weekend) and none in Charlottesville for obvious reasons. We had a room for Friday and Saturday night, but after getting to Richmond at midnight and then driving to Charlottesville, I found myself staying at the airport!

Friday was my "vacation" day and we spent the day at Applebee's right next to the hotel. We had a great day, drank many, many cervezas and generally had fun.

As someone who is a "book hound" I felt it imperative that I make my way to Monticello. I got up early Saturday and was not disappointed with what I saw. It was incredible to be in the house where such brilliance originated.

From there we made our way to the press box where we had the most incredible comfort food spread we have experienced. Meat loaf, wrapped in bacon with bacon mashed potatoes! I could have eaten all day and not wanted to stop.

Unfortunately, my trip was marred by one big mistake; I forgot my power cord for the laptop... which died during the first half.

Oregon played about like I expected. Virginia has a big, physical and strong defensive line and it showed at times. There were some valuable lessons to be learned, but it was a good experience for this team to travel across country, struggle at times and yet come away with a convincing 49 point victory.

After the game, we got back to the room and drank some beer while watching Notre Dame and Texas lose.

I do have to say that Virginia was one of the most accommodating places we have travelled for football. The fans were gracious, the facilities, while not "brand new" were very nice for the most part and the staff really took care of all our needs.