Every year in Pasadena, California, New Year’s Day is typically a picture-perfect celebration highlighted by the notorious Rose Parade and Rose Bowl Game. However, this year, relentless rain soaked the streets and grandstands. Despite the downpour, thousands lined Colorado Boulevard to view the floats, and later the Rose Bowl was packed to witness the Alabama-Indiana game. With ponchos and puffers, the Rose Bowl showed that, despite the rain, the New Year’s tradition of college football would not be drowned out.
Before the famous game, known as “The Granddaddy of Them All,” celebrations began at dawn with the Rose Parade, which officially launched New Year’s Day in Pasadena. Rain fell throughout the morning as marching bands, floats decorated with thousands of flowers, and equestrian groups made their way down Colorado Boulevard. The weather did little to deter spectators. Thousands, geared up in ponchos and rain jackets, lined the sidewalks, cheering as each float and band passed.
Loyola student Paz Jesperson ‘29 attended the game and noted, “Although the rain may have impacted the tailgate, the atmosphere during the game was the same as it always was – loud.”
As the parade came to an end, the day’s focus shifted from Colorado Boulevard to the stadium and the 112th Rose Bowl Game. Like last year, this year’s game served as a quarterfinal in the 12-team College Football Playoff and was packed with a sea of red fans from the No. 1-seeded Indiana Hoosiers and the No. 9-seeded Alabama Crimson Tide. The highly anticipated matchup brought national attention to Pasadena, with Indiana looking to keep its undefeated season intact, Alabama seeking to reclaim its dominance that it has maintained over the last decade and both teams attempting to secure the national championship.
Although anticipated to be a fierce matchup, the game quickly turned into a blowout. Led by Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza, the Hoosiers clearly showed why they were gifted the No. 1 seed, dominating the Crimson Tide 38-3. Overall, despite the soaked stands and field, the Rose Bowl once again delivered a New Year’s Day defined by a historic atmosphere and college football tradition.
