ATHENS — The Georgia football team has canceled its Holiday Inn reservations, and has been offered up an alternative in Columbia. The way it was described – a federal judicial facility that isn’t open to the public – a few people wondered if the Bulldogs would be staying in a jail.

No, that is not the case. It actually should work just fine.

The National Advocacy Center is a dorm-like structure located on the campus at the University of South Carolina, and is used throughout the year to house lawyers who come for training. Here’s a link to its site. 

“It’s basically like a decently nice hotel,” said Amy Tryon, a former Department of Justice attorney who now works at the Department of Labor, who stayed there on a 10-day trip about eight years ago. “There are individual rooms like at a hotel. There’s a nice front patio with rocking chairs so you know you’re in the South. The cafeteria food was pretty good — they have grits.”

The center is located a couple miles from Williams-Brice Stadium.

There isn’t official confirmation yet that Georgia will be staying at the center. Director of operations Josh Lee was checking out the facility on Friday morning. But if they do find it sufficient, it shouldn’t be much of a difference from the Holiday Inn.