Notes from Camp Randall

Submitted by unWavering on

I had my first experience at Camp Randall yesterday, and thought I would share a few notes/observations.  Overall it was a great experience and I'd highly recommend that anyone interested make the trip.

  • The game day atmosphere at UW is pretty amazing - Madison and the UW campus essentially remind me of a larger version of Ann Arbor/UM.  The blend of city and campus is nice and UM fans/students should feel right at home here.
  • The university sells beer in the student unions, which in turn makes them a great hangout spot the day of the game.  This is something that I found to be a unique and welcome difference from UM.
  • Wisconsin fans were extremely friendly overall, with negative experiences limited to one drunk frat bro hanging out the passenger side of a car yelling "MICHIGAN TRIED" at me.  Whatever bro, Wisconsin "tried" last year too.
  • Camp Randall is a great place to watch a game.  We had nosebleed seats near the goal line but the view was still great at all points on the field.  The fans around us were friendly and joking the entire time. 
  • People say that Michigan Stadium is quiet, but I honestly thought Camp Randall was quieter (and it's not even close), especially for a big game.  This could be due to the fact that we were high up in the stadium, however.
  • Jump Around was fun, but not a life changing experience as some would lead you to believe.

Overall, I'd say Wisconsin has been my favorite B1G away game experience thus far (having been to roughly half of the other stadiums in the league).  Madison is a ton of fun, and the fans and campus are great.  

/coolstorybro

And while I have my soap box, a minor aside and some notes about the team:

I'm kind of shocked that the response to losing this game seems to be more negative than losing to MSU.  Playing at Camp Randall is always tough, and this time we were playing agaisnt a top 5 team.  We outclassed them on offense and defense while Peters was still playing the game.  I don't really find this loss that disappointing given the context.

This year is more or less playing out like most reasonable fans expected.  The only thing thus far that upsets me is the MSU loss.  I know a lot of people want coaching changes on the offensive side of the ball, but I don't really see the point.  I see our offensive struggles more as a result of the young personnel rather than coaching, and I feel that hitting the reset button on offense for 2018 will do more harm than good.  I look forward to next year - this team has the bones of a competitor and just needs another year of maturity.  

 

MGoBoard

Slamdo

November 19th, 2017 at 10:32 AM ^

First experience for me in camp randall and first stay at Madison. Agree with the poster. Great game day experience and great game crowd traditions. Jump around was cool. Sing a long was extraordinary (Buttercup). Fans very cordial and welcoming. Highly recommend the trip for those who haven’t made it yet.

Joined: 04/26/2011

MGoPoints: 384

robbyt003

November 19th, 2017 at 10:35 AM ^

I️ was lower bowl, and camp Randall seemed very loud in comparison to Michigan. Place was rocking.
Also, Jump Around was definitely not as cool as people make it out to be.

Joined: 10/25/2010

MGoPoints: 11828

bluepow

November 19th, 2017 at 10:41 AM ^

I was in the third row of the upper deck and loved the seat perspective.  Jump around was ok (yes the whole deck sways), but is much better down by the students (experienced that at a night game in September).  Crowded councourses, cheesy endzone to endzone GET LOUD light bars, general architecture, and ugly advertisements keep the place a couple of notches below Michigan Stadium.  

Very impressed with the Buttercup sing-a-long, media break dance cam, and general friendly passion for Midwest football.

Joined: 11/11/2009

MGoPoints: 3931

jbrandimore

November 19th, 2017 at 10:40 AM ^

I have seen several posts on here with the incorrect idea that Michigan was on track to win before Peters was hurt. This is false. We were down 14-10 and it was 4th down and the subsequent Wisconsin possession made it 21-10. Wisconsin has already taken the game over at the time Peters was injured. Don’t fool yourself.

Joined: 01/06/2015

MGoPoints: 13706

unWavering

November 19th, 2017 at 10:44 AM ^

I'm not revising history - you'll notice I didn't include special teams in that statement. Michigan got screwed out of a TD, and should have at least had another FG if not for a fumble at the end zone. We were out gaining them in yardage and it wasn't close. So yes, I think Michigan was on track to win the game before Peters went out. The injury just completely changed the game for the worse.

Joined: 01/13/2011

MGoPoints: 22437

Flying Dutchman

November 19th, 2017 at 10:43 AM ^

If that Wisconsin team is really in the top 5 teams in college football, then I'm a fuzzy little gerbil.    They are the 3rd or 4th best in the Big Ten.   They have proven to be better than Michigan, but not by a lot.     Play that game on a level playing field and it's very different.

If the hits that have taken out Wilton Speight and Brandon Peters are "legal" plays and not roughing the passer, then there doesn't need to even be a roughing the passer penalty.  Just let defenders have open season on defenseless quarterbacks that don't even have the fucking ball.  Because that's what's happening to Michigan quarterbacks this year. 

What the hell happens next if OSU blows a hole in JOK in the first half next Saturday?  Is Malzone dressed?

Joined: 09/16/2009

MGoPoints: 11454

uofmfan_13

November 19th, 2017 at 11:37 AM ^

Wisconsin at a top 4 team in the country makes no sense. They are consistent IOWA essentially. They beat bad programs like they should. An elite team defense makes them very one dimensional. We were dominating for about 2.5 qtrs until our offense stalled and defense was on field every 2 minutes. Hit on QB looked so unnecessary. You don't like drive a guy into the ground like that.

Joined: 01/27/2011

MGoPoints: 2975

Ramblin

November 19th, 2017 at 11:02 AM ^

Yeah, I'm pissed about Peters, but the overeaction in every other regard is a bit much.  Changing coaches every few years if we don't win the BIG is probably not a good idea? Amazing that people still don't see that.

Joined: 01/09/2011

MGoPoints: 1275

wile_e8

November 19th, 2017 at 11:14 AM ^

Yeah, Jump Around was underwhelming compared to what I was expecting due to the legend. But it was unnerving to feel the upper deck shake while it was happening. I liked Madison and would recommend it to anyone thinking about a road trip in the future. I didn't enjoy Camp Randall that much though because of the weather and seats. We were in the far corner of the upper deck on the side the wind was coming from. What was cold but reasonable at ground level turned into bone-chilling up in the jet stream where we were. Plus the upper concourse was an insanely crowded mess at half time. So I'd try hard for lower level seats if I was ever here again for any game in November.

Joined: 06/30/2008

MGoPoints: 7381

ThatGuyCeci

November 19th, 2017 at 11:29 AM ^

Good post, but I disagree wrt the offensive coaching. The playcalling has been consistenly puzzling all year. It's like the staff is overthinking everything. There is little to no creativity with the play calling either.  The one time we swapped it up with a reverse to DPJ yesterday, it worked beautifully. Same for Wisconsin (they scored on a similar play).  Its one thing to lose to a better team, its another to get outcoached most weeks. Just my thoughts.

Joined: 12/30/2015

MGoPoints: 4767

tybert

November 19th, 2017 at 11:49 AM ^

Iowa is not as intimidating as Madison appears, but still an impressive atmosphere at night. Iowa always plays up/down to competition in game - beat OSU and lose at home to Purdon't. 

Same kinds of fans, knowledgeable, generally friendly (minus the few drunks), and a great experience. 

Joined: 11/17/2008

MGoPoints: 8451

arrowhead

November 19th, 2017 at 11:57 AM ^

admit so here i go (did you stay for the 5th quarter?)

JH believes in overwhelming a specific territory on every play (same as many other coaches). But when it becomes a 10-man game (specified earlier) then the concept blows up. For example, if a puller misses his block or doesn't aim the defender in the right direction the play blows up. Whisky used a 7-8 man front in the first half. Sorry to disagree with many of you but Peters had just the cuffs removed and was passing okay until the 10-man team took over. I don't know what happened to Perry but the loss of Black was a big loss. So was Ty yesterday.

OL is a very difficult thing to coordinate on the college. Lou's last NC featured not so famous OLt took down USC so after their big game in the Coliseum years ago the Trojan DL said "wse know what was coming we couldn't get off their blocks." Execution. It hasn't existed under JH. Whom to blame? Youth? Coaching? Play calling? 

 

 

 

 

 

Joined: 04/21/2017

MGoPoints: 560

MIdocHI

November 19th, 2017 at 11:59 AM ^

Madison is a fun town. When the weather is nicer, you can sit on the patio at the Union on the shores of Lake Mendota and drink beer, enjoying the sights. I do not know if the farmers market around the Capitol is still going this late in the year, but it is great. It is not just vegetables-cheese curds (of course), meats, honey and even gallons of "single-tree" maple syrup (it must be a big tree). It is a great game day atmosphere. It would be nice to move the Wisconsin game to early in the season to enjoy these opportunities when the weather is good.

Joined: 11/08/2009

MGoPoints: 1323

bo_lives

November 19th, 2017 at 2:05 PM ^

I have been to 7/14 Big Ten Stadiums (Michigan, MSU, OSU, PSU, Wisconsin, Iowa, Illinois). The stadium's atmosphwere was fine but incredibly tame compared to other places I've been. Iowa, PSU, and OSU are by far the loudest. Wisconsin was about as quiet or quieter than any Michigan game I've ever been to. They have vitually no coordinated chants. The fans were very nice though and it was a fun time despite Michigan's football woes.

Quietest stadium: Illinois (go figure)

Loudest Stadium: Iowa (Literally so loud I had to plug my ears, which I have never done anywhere else)

Shittiest Stadium: MSU. Ugly piece of shit block of concrete.

Shittiest fans: OSU (go figure)

Most aesthetically pleasing stadium: Iowa, then Michigan

Nicest fans: Wisconsin/Iowa. Illinois fans are actually worse, which I find pretty funny

 

 

Joined: 04/10/2011

MGoPoints: 7867

Kevin14

November 19th, 2017 at 2:39 PM ^

Probably sitting near you, actually.  I agree wtih everything you said with one qualifier.

I went to a Wisco/NW game a few years ago and sat in the student section (my sister went to school there).  It was wayyy louder when you're sitting in the lower, and Jump Around was super epic in the student section.  In general, being in the lower level makes the venue feel much more intimiate.  

I've been to every Big Ten stadium except Minnesota and Camp Randell is 1A with Kinnick being 1B.  Jump Around in the student section is still my favorite moment from a gameday-experience perspective (non-Michigan).  Being in the upper level was still awesome but not quite on the same level.    

Joined: 03/07/2017

MGoPoints: 2447

go16blue

November 19th, 2017 at 2:44 PM ^

This was my first away game and I agree 100%. Madison is super cool and tailgating was a blast. The stadium itself is decent and the atmosphere a notch below the big house (if the big house is "quiet" as I've been told by some folks, then Camp Randall is a church - I was lower level row 60 fwiw). Jump around was also cool but not breathtaking. I expected more because of how many people talk it up and talk the big house down. My take-aways were a) very cool place, and b) the big house gets a lot of shit it doesn't deserve.

Joined: 04/28/2010

MGoPoints: 6755

stephenrjking

November 19th, 2017 at 4:52 PM ^

I'm late to this but I took my daughter down from Duluth and we had a blast. Between the hockey game and the football game (and time spent on campus in the morning) I didn't hear a single negative thing from Wisconsin fans at all. Having my daughter nearby probably helped, but she wasn't always clearly with me and I think people were just generally classy. Wisconsin fans are just there to enjoy themselves.

It's a nice place. The upper deck concourse is insanely crowded but other than that I had no complaints about my seats, even in the corner. I think the noise suffered a bit from being an early game (the student section took a looooong time to fill up and was less than half full at kick) but I think that the stadium is just ok loud. 

But what fun! Since leaving A2 in summer of 2005 I haven't been able to attend a lot of major college football games. And this was one and it reminds me, again, that college football is the greatest sport on the planet. Jump around might not have been life-changing, but it was fun. The crowd chants were fun. Marching bands are fun. Getting excited with fellow Michigan fans on the road after a great drive by Peters (!) is fun. 

What a great road trip. Memories forever.

Joined: 03/15/2012

MGoPoints: 20143524