ATHENS, Ga. — Georgia officials had a message Friday for everyone planning to head to Athens and celebrate the national champion Bulldogs on Saturday: Get in and get out, or you'll be stuck there a couple days.
Winter weather is expected to descend onto northeast Georgia overnight between Saturday and Sunday, right as celebrations should be winding down in Athens (though given all the excitement over the Dawgs' big win, there will probably be more than a party or two still raging into the early hours of Sunday).
James C. Stallings, the director of Georgia's Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency, said if you're headed to the parade in Athens on Saturday and don't get out of town that night, you're liable to be stuck there through Monday.
"I would be remiss if I didn't mention there is an event going on in Athens this weekend. If you plan on attending that event... we'd encourage you to make every effort to get home Saturday night," Stallings said. "If you don't and you decide to hunker down in Athens, maybe plan to hunker down in Athens for Sunday and Monday, because there is gonna be some snow and ice in the area. The least amount of travel we can have on the road helps us."
The Bulldogs parade will begin Saturday at 12:30 p.m., running from Lumpkin Street to the stadium with a Dog Walk at 1 p.m. A formal ceremony inside Sanford Stadium will start at 2 p.m. Gates to the stadium open at Noon and the campus will be open to visitors starting at 7 a.m.