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  • MU Tailgaters Get Early Start

JEFFERSON CITY- With Missouri's first Southeastern Conference game looming, organizers of a downtown pep rally did not cancel plans Friday evening, despite heavy rains and winds strong enough to knock over several tents.

Just a few minutes before the 5 p.m. pep rally, the inclement weather forced fans to take cover in local restaurants and stores. Still, even the pouring rain couldn't keep some fans from flocking downtown, including Georgia fans decked in red and white.

Joel Hanif and Brad Watt drove more than 12 hours from Georgia to Jefferson City in the middle of the night, arriving at 6 a.m. Friday. They've only been in mid-Missouri for a day, but so far, they haven't run into any trouble in enemy territory.

"Maybe on gameday in Columbia, things might get more heated, but so far all the Mizzou fans seem pretty good," Hanif said.

The two friends tried to find a hotel in Columbia but instead found a spot at a motel in Jefferson City, which saved them a little money after a long trek and hundreds of dollars in gas money.

"We were looking in Columbia, but they were few and far between in terms of vacancies," Hanif said. "And what we found in Columbia was probably three or four times more expensive than Jefferson City."

It wasn't all Georgia fans downtown, of course.

"Doesn't matter if it's raining, snowing, sleeting... we'll be here to support MU," Tiger fan Justin Craig said.

Jefferson City native Tony Grandison echoed that sentiment.

"True Mizzou fan in the rain," he called himself.

(Amanda Sohaney/KOMU)