This weekend homecoming festivities offer apprehensive sports fans like myself a chance to dive head-first into the saucy world of the buffalo wing.

Though my fanatical friends glaze over with glee when I mention buffalo wings – “”Dude, I love wings! I love wings!”” – I’m still at loss over this finger food phenomenon. They’re sometimes frightening in presentation as pile high, glossy, gobs of orange strewn across a plate. And yet, they’re so sticky and slippery that the best-suited mode of consumption has to be predatory in nature.

But, I do have taste buds, and without copious amounts of alcohol and half-times the buffalo wing can be understood.

Buffalo Wild Wings and Wingstop are two well-known franchises that specialize in the art of the buffalo wing. What separates the men from the boys at these establishments is the sauce. For the most part, sauce is all preference; how much, how thick, and taste all matter differently to each individual.

Buffalo Wild Wings touts over 14 different sauces ranging from the milder, classic “”Smilin’ Sweet BBQ”” to the super hot “”Mango Habanero.”” Whether delighting in the half-dozen or the 100 bucket of wings this extensive range of sauces makes the choosing nearly as exciting at the eating.

Wingstop takes a pure approach with hardly anything but wings on the menu. Their list of sauces isn’t nearly as extensive either, but nevertheless it offers a full range of flavors including the fiery “”Atomic”” and peppy “”Hawaiian.””

At each place I gave the mild, hot, and honey barbeque wings a try. Overall, the sauces at Buffalo Wild Wings are creamy, thick, and great for a dipping. Their “”Mild”” has a tangy zip and their “”Habanero Mango”” will put your mouth on fire, but there’s not much to hope for in the shallow tastes of these sauces.

At Wingstop the sauces stand on their own with differing textures, temperatures, and spice. Their mild sauce is characterized as thin, slick, and salty. Its saltiness is perfectly tame, and its relatively thin consistency introduces the fresh and rich flavor of the skin.

Their “”Atomic”” sauce isn’t winning for its heat, but rather its texture. Akin to a chunky paste this sauce will not drip at all.

Wingstop’s honey barbecue sauce is a barbecue sauce first and foremost, with overtones of honey. This same type of sauce at Buffalo Wild Wings is hardly anything but sweetness on the tongue.

If you read this and decide you’re not a sauce person, well, all I can say is enter a 12-step program. You may be overwhelmed when you find out that these spicy critters also come with bleu cheese and ranch sauce on the side.