Tailgaters bask in beers, cheers

In Memorial Stadium's parking lots, a campus community convened for a traditional pregame breakfast of kegs and eggs; the pigskin's date with the kicker's foot was set for a little after 11 a.m.\n"Are we actually going to the game?" one student said to another, while walking down 17th Street carrying a case of $8 beer.\n"No way, we are only here to drink," was the response.\nWith the noise of radio rock 'n' roll and live music polluting the air around 9:12 a.m., pregame tailgating parties unofficially began in the parking lots and grass fields circling the stadium. \nThe Michigan State Spartans are listed as that day's gridiron opponent. \nMSU graduate accounting student Scott Greemur seems to correlate the cause of ticket demand and the effects of winning for many college football fans.\n"The main reason my friends and I are down here from East Lansing, is for the victory," he said in between gulps of beer, while rubbing his unclothed belly. "We need a little early season pick-me up. Both teams aren't looking so good, and a State win over IU seems assured."\nThe tailgate ritual, often associated with loose interpretations of alcohol laws and underage binge drinking, incorporates several key factors as the day unfolds. Most tailgaters collect in packs of three or more friends and family members. The student tailgate scene, in particular, is compacted away in the woods, caged-in by parked cars and accompanied by the occasional hoot, howler and scream. \nInstead of spending money on game tickets, many tailgaters arrive armed with Frisbees, footballs, alcohol and raw meat of all shapes and colors to grill. MSU senior Jason Knaffle offered his own assessment of IU-MSU football fan perceptions and the link to empty stadium seats.\n"Everybody has been very friendly; everybody is really cool. It's a southern hospitality thing I suppose," he said while ducking to avoid a football thrown near his head. "Everybody here is about getting drunk and having a good time. It's because you know you suck at football."\nHowever, not all tailgaters are students. Some early morning revelers are alumni, University corporate sponsors and very important people from the University. Hence, the buffet breakfast and lunch lines, uniformed alongside gigantic tubs of free beer underneath circus-like domes with parking reserved for golf carts. The silverware is not plastic and the napkins need washing.\nOther alumni tailgate closer to the students on the outskirts of the corporate village. Former IU football player and 1976 graduate Jim Hudson said he believes his tailgating mission is the continuation of a legendary college football tradition.\n"Fans need to turn these games into the event; make a day of this. Come and appreciate the Hoosiers," Hudson said. "We support the Hoosiers in many ways besides playing corn-hole on game day. My father-in-law has been a season ticket holder for 38 years."\nThe National Anthem trumpeted at 11:10 a.m. Many tailgaters not sitting in stadium seats prefer the possibility of winning at the game corn-hole instead of risking the time investment and feelings of loss often associated with the football team, they say. \n With empty seats in the corners of the grandstands visible in the distant landscape, the radio broadcast of the football game blared from the speakers of many parked cars. \nSenior Eric Hurd believes he found the best tailgating seat on campus. He prefers standing outside the black grated fence on the south side of the stadium so he can watch occasional glimpses of whistle blowing and padded tackling, while drinking warm cans of beer out of a plastic grocery sack.\n"As long as they're winning, I'll watch IU football from anywhere," Hurd said.\nWin or lose, many alumni are proud just to be a part of Hoosier football hysteria and look forward to sitting in stadium seats during game-time. Therefore, they purchase tickets so students do not have to keep shouldering the burden of the athletics department financial woes. \n"IU is a great university. The education I received has provided many opportunities for my family and it has opened many doors for me personally," Hudson said. "We are going with a pork theme for the Michigan game. You should stop by about halftime for food and drink."\n-- Contact staff writer David A. Nosko at dnosko@indiana.edu.