road trip

Some of you got to meet friend of the blog Jared Cooper when he was in town sponsoring the Marlin Jackson meet-'n-greet. He's the guy who puts together those trip packages with a game ticket included for away games or in Ann Arbor with extra tours and stuff.

Jared emailed me this week to let me know the 2013 season's travel schedule is all set up. Highlights:

Notre Dame – Sept 7 in Ann Arbor

• Game ticket, two-night stay at Fairfield Inn or Hampton Inn
• Exclusive behind the scenes tour of Michigan Stadium on Friday Night (there will be an MGoEvent afterwards)
• OR an Autographed Denard photo (cheaper option if you don't want the tour)
• Special MGoShirt for this game
• M football media guide (on a 4GB USB drive)
• $10 MDen gift card

UConn – Sept 21 in Storrs, Conn. (for NYC people)

• Bus running on Gameday from New York City, will arrive 3 hours before kickoff.
• Can get your game ticket at the same time, or find one on your own.

Penn State – Oct 12 in State College, Pa.

• Game ticket, two-night stay at Fairfield Inn or Holiday Inn Express
• Tailgate (Brian and I plan to stop by)
• Special MGoshirt made for this game.
• Optional buses from D.C. and NYC.

MSU – Nov 2 in East Lansing

• Bus from Ann Arbor, arrives ~4 hours before kickoff (yes you can bring beverages)
• Tailgate
• Can get your game ticket too.

Nebraska – Nov 9 in Ann Arbor

• Game ticket, two-night stay at Fairfield Inn with breakfast included
• Special MGoShirt made for this game.
• Transportation to the game via The Ride

Northwestern – Nov 16 in Evanston

• Game ticket in Michigan section, two night stay at Renaissance Chicago Downtown
• All-you-can-eat-tailgate with booze before the game
• Friday night cocktails at Bar Novo
• $10 CTA card for transportation to the game
• Special MGoShirt made for this game

Iowa – Nov 23 in Iowa City

• Game ticket and two-night stay at Residence In Coralville
• All-you-can-eat tailgate with pulled pork and stuff (beer & wine available for purchase on this one)
• Special MGoShirt made for this game (what do you guys think of "Everybody GERGs"?

Ohio State – Nov 30 in Ann Arbor

• Game ticket and two-night stay at a hotel, and other stuff (still being planned, this one)

• Game ticket and two-night stay at Hyatt Regency Downtown
• Admission to the Big Ten Fan Fest
• Other stuff (Still being planned but you can put your deposit down now)

Anyone who books with him (on most programs) gets a reusable code for 20% off the MGoStore. Also if you want to put a group trip together for another game (like a bachelor party in Ann Arbor for Minnesota weekend or whatever) he can do that for you.

In the last 5 years, I've made it to every Big Ten school (and ND) for an away Michigan Football game.  As you’ll see, the Nebraska trip was quite unique.  I hope Nebraska fans that visit Ann Arbor leave with an equally positive experience when they visit us. 

Putting aside the Wolverines for a moment, the Nebraska football community is no doubt the most prideful, classy, hospitable and kind (in my observation anyway) of all B1G teams.  While they don't have a decades-long history of matchups with other B1G football programs, I don't think they would change much if they did.  They would still be a great example of how a fanbase is supposed to support its football program and welcome visiting fans.  

Below are examples of how they do things:

• Checking in to the hotel (Fairfield Inn – not fancy), the hotel manager offered to give us his number in case we got lost while exploring downtown Lincoln. (Come On Man, I Have A Smartphone)
• Friday night, while at dinner, several groups of people stopped at our table, welcoming us to Lincoln and wishing us luck the next day for the game.
• After dinner, at a campus bar, students went out of their way to welcome us to Lincoln and say "Good luck tomorrow" with a smile.  (This is when I start thinking Where Am I?)
• On the walk back to the hotel Friday night, a group of ladies stopped us on the sidewalk and said greeting visiting fans is always a highlight for them and it is "like seeing a celebrity".  (Now thinking: Is This Just A Well-Executed Prank?)
• Saturday before the game, we walked all around the stadium and nearby tailgates for about 7 hours.  This part deserves sub-bullets:

o     About 75% of tailgate parties we walked by asked us to stop and chat with them. 50% offered us food or beverage.

o     One tailgate we decided to stop at was run by Tommie Frazier.  Yes that Tommie Frazier.  His name is on the stadium.  Not knowing who he was (all he said was "I used to play here"), we talked to him for about 15 minutes, discussing the ongoing stadium renovations, where various campus/athletic buildings were located, where the best tailgates are, etc.  The only reason I know that he wasn't just another guy with a tailgate is because as we were saying goodbye, the Nebraska gymnastics coach walked up and said Tommie's name aloud.  

o     Another tailgate lot we walked through had all the party buses and RVs in it.  A converted school bus stood out as a great piece of fandom and as we were walking by, the door flung open and we were invited inside to drink beer and watch the early games.  We sat there for about an hour, totally spontaneously, and shared stories about how both teams think they would have demolished the other if they had played against each other in 1997.  

o     The last tailgate lot we walked through ended up being about a 3 hour stop.  Our plans to go to a bar for pregame dinner were abandoned.  One guy demanded we have a blue jello shot with him from the batch that he made in honor of Michigan.  A few parking spots away we did several shot-skis.  We accepted invitations to eat food from several different grills and slowcookers. All the discussions taking place in these three hours were about football and beer.  No taunting or yelling or animosity or complaining of any kind.  I never heard a negative remark about either team or their corresponding players.  I was in a sea of red and I wanted more. (Is This Real Life?)

• During the game, a Nebraska fan sitting opposite the aisle from us bought us a Runza (a baked pastry filled with meat) from the vendor walking the aisles (yes they have those). He didn't speak a word to us the whole game except when he said "Welcome to Lincoln, this [Runza] is for you" while indicating it was a local delicacy of sorts.  It was delicious.  (I Didn't Know I Wanted That, But He Did)
• After the game, our section was among the last to file out due to the gate location, and the Nebraska fans walking down the steps with us were interested to know if we enjoyed our time in their city despite the ugly game. We said yes, and they wished us safe travels home.

It got to the point where the sincerity and hospitality were equal parts overwhelming and humbling.  I highly recommend you visit this place.  I'm still wondering if everybody that visits has such a great experience or if I was just lucky.  Either way, this is how Football Saturday should be.  I'll likely cheer for Nebraska whenever doing so doesn't conflict with cheering interests that are advantageous for Michigan.

Just seeing if anyone is making the trip to Lincoln? Contemplating leaving Friday after work and scalping tickets. Any advice would be appreciated!

The show "Road Trip" is making it up to the the night game. Its a decent show that captures what the atmosphere is like leading up to kickoff and during the game. New espisode airs wednesday @ 7:30 on ESPNU.

http://www.facebook.com/pages/ESPN-Road-Trip/35371136795

Nothing better to do than getting the next road trip for next year planned out. In the past we have stayed in a hotel in Chicago then tailgated at Northwestern which was surprisingly great. Last year we went to Penn State with an RV and that seemed to be the best option overall. So for arguements sake there are only three true "road trip games" Northwestern, Iowa, and Illinois. Since we have already done the Northwestern thing it kind of leaves us down to Iowa or Illinois.

Which of the two places seems to offer a better experience? I have tried to read up on the rules and regulations and Iowa seems to be pretty lame and douchey. Where as Illinois seems pretty cool and relaxed about stuff.

Has anyone had any good or bad experiences? What would you do?  Info is appreciated!

First of all, let us all hold hands for a second and bask in the glory of a 5-0 start....

....

....

Okay, now that that's done, I wanted to comment on the amazing time my friends and I had in Bloomington yesterday. Apart from the douchey student section cheering Denard's injury (ARRRRRGH, STILL PISSED), the people at IU were friendly to us. Sure, we got the usual jeers from IU students (if I heard "Ann Arbor is a whore" once, I heard it 100 times), but it was very tame compared to Columbus (assumed) and East Lansing (experienced).

 

At one point, we were actually welcomed into an IU tailgate, given beer and food, and even invited to kick some IU student ass in flip cup (which we did). To be honest, we were actually treated worse by some MSU fans we ran into IN BLOOMINGTON than we were by any of the IU faithful.

 

Then, after an amazing tailgate, my friend and I were even further impressed by the maturity of (most of) the IU fans in the general seats. They were courteous and kind, and didn't throw any objects or verbal obscenities our way, even when we were at our "worst" (mostly cheering right behind their head on 3rd downs).

 

My point here is, the students may be douchey, but the overall fans were very kind and welcoming to opposing fans. I highly recommend a trip to IU in the future to anyone who may be considering going. IU is (mostly) classy. Go Blue!