ATHENS — The two former football players took the stage hours before the biggest showdown in Sanford Stadium history to talk politics to a crowd of supporters that briefly took a break from tailgating.
First, Burt Jones pleaded with Republicans who hadn’t already voted to cast a ballot on Tuesday to back his bid for lieutenant governor and support others on the GOP ticket. Then Herschel Walker promoted his U.S. Senate campaign with a nod to his Heisman Trophy winning past.
“This is where I started,” Walker said, bringing up the legacy of the late Vince Dooley, the famed coach who died Oct. 28. “I remember coming to my first meeting with Coach Dooley: He said if we stay together as a team, we’ll win a championship.”
Football has always been a theme for Georgia contenders, who have been all too willing to tie themselves to the national champs. But top-ranked Georgia’s showdown with Tennessee — which ended in a resounding Bulldog win — brought their efforts to a new level.
More: Georgia football is part of the political playbook this fall
Many of the fans who swarmed Athens couldn’t avoid political messages, whether it be the “Run Herschel Run” stickers distributed around campus or the mobile billboard affixed with the image of Georgia’s top Democrats.
“Game day has never been more expensive thanks to Joe Biden, Raphael Warnock and Stacey Abrams,” it read.
Walker took other steps on Saturday to tie himself to the reigning college football champions — and remind voters of his starring role in the team’s title run 40 years ago. His campaign sent texts to thousands of voters of a picture of Walker and his coach from the 1980s.
“It’s hard to put in words what it meant to have Coach Dooley’s support and endorsement before his passing,” the text said, “and I am honored by the continued support of Mrs. Dooley and the entire Dooley family now.”
Warnock was campaigning elsewhere, but his adsmiths came up with a 30-second spot that served as a response to Walker’s football-themed closing message. It featured a series of Georgia fans — including one wearing the Republican’s jersey — saying he wasn’t fit for office.
“I’m going to keep Herschel up there,” said one Warnock backer, pointing at a faded black-and-white photo of the candidate hanging on his wall, “and keep Raphael Warnock in the Senate.”
Amid neck-and-neck polls, Warnock has recently escalated efforts to bring up the Republican’s history of violent behavior and recent reports, which Walker has denied, that accuse him of pressuring two ex-girlfriends to get abortions despite his opposition to the procedure.
The jabbing went beyond the Senate race. Gov. Brian Kemp, an Athens native and diehard football fan, watched the game with his family from a SkySuite. His campaign, meanwhile, needled Abrams for donning Tennessee’s colors.
At Walker’s rally, the crowd that piled into the Classic Center was a mix of hardcore GOP voters and others eager for a glimpse of the candidate. Like his other events, many wore replicas of Walker’s red-and-black jerseys and stood in lengthy lines after his stump speech for a selfie with the Republican.
Among them was Ben Arquit, a 24-year-old who has never seen Walker play but grew up hearing stories of his football background.
“He doesn’t need to do this, but he cares about the country,” said Arquit. “Putting yourself out there isn’t easy these days, but he’s doing it.”
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