JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The Florida-Georgia game brings fans from all over to the First Coast and with it comes a huge economic boost for the city.
Hours before the sun rose Saturday morning, cars stretched around EverBank Stadium as college football fans waited to start the party in Lot J.
“I’ve been here since 1 in the morning. I’m here because I’m a die-hard Florida fan. Florida Gators by a million.”
Across the street fans were waking up in RV City, many spent nights parting in the makeshift city waiting for game day.
“We make gator friends all the time, they come by here they stop by, they eat with us, were friends, but come game time, everybody’s on there side, go dogs.”
By 9am grills were fire up, and ice had been packed into coolers as kickoff inched closed.
The city of Jacksonville reported a $35million economic impact from last year’s game and businesses around the bank are expecting to see the same boost this year.
“This is the best tailgate party in town, this is the party."
"And it’s convenient for both Florida and Georgia, It’s suppose to be a neutral site, it’s not Gainesville so Georgia fans can come down Florida fans can come over, it’s great," Patrick Purser, a Georgia Fan, said.