JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The day before the Gator Bowl, one of the Virginia players said, “The hay’s in the barn.” What, did the Wahoos get Spike Dykes’ permission to use Texas Tech’s lines? 

At any rate, once the hay was in the barn, I checked off one of those things to do before you die: See the Atlantic Ocean. Tech’s trip to the Holiday Bowl three years ago in San Diego allowed me to get a glimpse of the Pacific and Coronado Island.

This time there was another motivation to see the sea. I like Jimmy Buffett music – there’s something wrong with people who don’t. One of Buffett’s early albums was “A1A,” and, being within 15 miles of it, I wasn’t going to miss the chance to drive down A1A, the beachfront highway the album title comes from.

Any Buffett fan within 15 miles of A1A who doesn’t point the car in that direction needs to be drummed out of the Parrotheads.

It wasn’t the perfect trip. The rental car’s not a convertible, and the sun’s barely been out the last two days. Across from a quick stop, we found a break in the trees, walked out onto the beach and listened to the waves crash for a while.

There was enough sunlight left for only about a 30-mile drive along the coast. Maybe we can make it a little farther south on Wednesday before it’s time to come back home.