Yesterday we achieved the oft fantasized but rarely realized nirvana of attending two Top-25 football games in a single day. There aren't too many places where this is possible and scheduling eliminates most of the possibilities anyway, but the stars aligned and we saw Michigan v Wisconsin at the Big House in Ann Arbor at noon and Michigan State v Notre Dame at Spartan Stadium at eight. Here's the photojournalistic rundown:
Every football day starts in 409B with tickets, appropriate headgear, and a celebratory adult beverage.
No marathon football day would be complete without a tailgate or three, and corporate sponsored events are the best kind. We kicked off with a PRTM recruiting function under a tent
way in the back of the Golf & Outing Club. Zingerman's was there with burgers and brownies and bloody marys.
Every game day includes a zillion traditions. At Michigan the band, the stadium itself, and especially the wave are central to the experience.
We were part of the largest crowd watching a football game anywhere in America - 111,058 on hand for the 196
th straight game over 100,000 at Michigan Stadium.... the Big House.
After standing amongst 20,000 students for three hours we were pretty hungry. Luckily, Target was in town for the mother of all tailgates. Everybody got a beach bag with a long sleeve shirt and pilsner glasses, there were bins of snack food, and Zingerman's was back on the scene with gourmet sandwiches for the hungry fan. We stayed long enough not to miss any swag, but hit the highway to get to East Lansing.
Our Sandy & Mark Spartan Gameday Experience® included parking at Jennison Fieldhouse, which finds itself in the shadow of Spartan Stadium these days. You can see the stadium from the expressway into town, lending an air of excitement to the day.
One of the most amazing parts of seeing four great football teams is seeing four great marching bands, with State's foremost among them. The blazing brass sound and 80,158 chants of "Go State!" fill the stadium, which sings "On the banks of the Red Cedar..." as the block S marches past.
Michigan bested Wisconsin but State couldn't hang on against Notre Dame, though we enjoyed all of it and were happy to spend a fall day on our favorite campuses.
Special thanks to title and presenting sponsors Sandy & Mark for enabling the second half of our day of football!
Sunday, September 24, 2006