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Football Game Day is Saturday… Here’s What to Drink When You’re Not Drinking

College football game days are famously drunk occasions. 

At the University of Georgia, where I went to school, kids would hit the tailgate at 8AM with a screwdriver (or the cheap light beer they grabbed from the fridge). After six to eight beers, you move on to bourbon... then you throw some liquor in a ziploc and hide it in your pants, so you can mix a bourbon and coke in the stadium. 

After the game, if your team won, you head downtown to celebrate with drinks. If they lose, you drink with your buddies to heal the wounds. 

Then you wake up the next day half dead and grab a bloody mary and brunch with your friends to level back out. 

I don't drink anymore. But I still love to spend the day with friends watching college football. 

And while they're pounding beers, I want to have a few interesting options to keep me entertained. 

It's always smart to stock your fridge with non-alcoholic beer (maybe try an Enough Said lager from Two Roots Brewing Co. - it won the gold medal for best NA beer). 

But you may want to mix up a few zero proof cocktails to change things up. 

You can find some of my favorite recipes below. And you may be surprised... the first time I went to a football game and didn't drink, my friends took note. They slowed their drinking too.

It turns out, some working professionals are looking for an alternative to getting smashed every weekend. They just need a little direction. 

Here was my game plan for non alcoholic game day recipes. 

  1. Not So Spiked Arnold Palmer

  2. Virgin Habanero Hail Mary 

  3. Vanilla Pumpkin Mocktail

  4. Non Alcoholic Beer Margaritas 

  5. Tangerine, Grapefruit and Ginger Mocktail



Looking for a few more recipes for Sunday night game day, but want to keep it short and simple and use non alcoholic beer as a foundation? Check out these recipes here.