How to choose a date during football season

(source)

This is the equation that we used to pick our wedding date:

• begin with 1 Year (2009)
• subtract late November through early March (it's cold in the desert)
• subtract mid-June through mid-September (it's hot in the desert)
• equals mid-March through mid-June and late September through mid-November

Still following?

• now subtact 6 Saturdays in the Fall (for home football games)
• subtract February through May (for my work schedule)
• equals NOT MUCH TO WORK WITH!

So we did the unthinkable in the college football world: we picked a home game weekend. I know, blasphemous. I actually ridicule people who do this. So why did I? I didn't have much choice. We got engaged in September, so trying to plan a June wedding would be really tough. Too tough if we wanted it to be 9 hours from home. So that essentially left football season.

In addition to being season ticket holders, I also need to be on campus for home games as part of my job description. This is incredibly awesome on any day other than wedding day. I knew I'd need the week off the weekend prior to the big day, and ideally I'd get to go on a honeymoon the week after. I know, selfish, right? :) If I chose October 10th, the week before and the week after would be away games. All I'd have to do is sacrafice one home game in order to have 3 weeks free. It made the most amount of sense. Plus, I really liked 10/10 because it will be easy to remember. Bonus!

We booked it and felt good about our decision. Sure, it wasn't a perfect date, but what else could we do? I tried not to think about it too much to avoid the remorse associated with knowing that I'd have to ask my friends to skip the game, and risk that the wedding and game would be happening on at the same time. I even had a list of friends that I know would get score updates on their phones, and was ready to reserve them aisle seats and create a series of hand signals so they could keep me posted. Nuts? Maybe. But I love me some USC football.

Fast forward 4 months. I got a text message from a co-worker that there had been an update to the football schedule: THE GAME HAD BEEN MOVED OFF OF OUR WEDDING DATE. Schedule changes like this don't happen everyday. The football gods had heard our prayers and had taken pity on Mr. D and me. Thank you, football gods. We will slaughter a keg every year in your honor. (In our best Wayne and Garth voices) "WE'RE NOT WORTHY, WE'RE NOT WORTHY!"

I know some bees have had a really hard time picking dates, too. What were your challenges?