Five Things You Need to Know Today: Jan. 1, 2011
Here’s how to kick off your new year: college football, grocery and dining options for New Year's Day.
1. It may be a holiday weekend, but we're not taking a holiday. Dallas-Hiram Patch will be updating throughout the weekend.
2. If you're a college football fan, today is obviously your lucky day. The first of six bowl games begins at noon with Northwestern and Texas Tech, both with 7-5 records, squaring off in the TicketCity Bowl.
Two more 7-5 teams kick off an hour later, with Florida and Penn State meeting in the Outback Bowl. Also at 1 p.m. is a game yours truly will have on his TV — 15th-ranked Alabama, my alma mater, faces seventh-ranked Michigan State in the Capital One Bowl.
The last SEC team in a bowl game today, 21st-ranked Mississippi State, will face Michigan in the Gator Bowl at 1:30 p.m.
Perhaps the game to watch today will be the Rose Bowl, as fourth-ranked Wisconsin meets third-ranked and undefeated TCU at 5 p.m.
The final game of the day is the Fiesta Bowl, which pairs no. 25 Connecticut against ninth-ranked Oklahoma. Kickoff is set for 8:30 p.m.
3. For those who need provisions for their day of football watching, or for those needing more to keep it going, there will be plenty of grocery stores open across the county:
- Food Lion in Dallas, 7 am – 11 pm.
- Kroger, Hiram and Dallas Acworth Highway locations, 6 am – 1 am; Nathan Dean Boulevard location in Dallas open 24 hours.
- Ingles, Dallas, 24 hours.
- Publix stores, 7 am – 9 pm.
- Super Target, Hiram, 8 am – 10 pm.
- Walmart Supercenters, 24 hours.
4. Those seeking alternatives to staying at home to eat and watch the game have a few dining options available in Dallas and Hiram, such as:
- Applebee's, Hiram, 10:30 am – 1 am.
- Beef 'O'Brady's, Dallas, 10 am – 10 pm.
- Buffalo's Southwest Cafe, Hiram, noon – 11:30 pm.
- Buffalo Wild Wings, Hiram, 11 am – 2 am.
- Chili's Grill & Bar, Hiram, 11 am – 11:30 pm.
- Hooters, Hiram, 11 am – midnight.
Those looking for other food options may want to call ahead to find out if special holiday hours are in effect. Details and contact information for these and other businesses and service providers can be found through Patch's directory along the top menu of the page or by clicking here.
5. If you're looking for something to check out between football games, or just any time during the weekend, you can explore our site to see all the articles we've posted since we launched on Wednesday.
