We have spent the past few days talking about upcoming games and various traditions in college football but I wanted to talk about a topic everyone can enjoy. Tailgating is arguably one of the best parts of college football. The culture around tailgating on a Saturday before a big game is one which has no comparison. Think about your favorite tailgates you have ever experienced and the memories are sure to bring a smile to your face. I want to bring up a few of my favorite aspects of the tailgate and I want to hear yours as well.
One of my personal favorite parts of the tailgates are the yard games. What better way to spend an afternoon than playing some cornhole while listening to College Gameday in the background? Maybe the cornhole boards are taken so you go play Kan Jam, beer pong or Hillbilly Golf/Ladder Golf. You could be at a tailgate where you do not know anyone but playing these social games will have you best friends with strangers in just minutes. In a few hours you may never see these people again but the memory of beating them 21 to 4 in cornhole will live in your mind the rest of the weekend.
After you win a few games of cornhole you head over the food table and are overwhelmed because you have no idea where to start. Each part of the country does their food a little different so I cannot pick just one dish to call out. We know a good tailgate is going to have a variety of dips including buffalo chicken dip, guacamole, spinach artichoke dip, taco dip, and a variety of salsa. Personally, I stick to the finger foods because I avoid ever holding a plate. The only time I make an exception is when the tailgate has desirable mac and cheese. A tailgate can never go wrong with good barbeque either. We all know the tailgate food is important due to the sheer amount of alcohol which will be consumed during the day. Drinking all day on an empty stomach is a recipe for disaster and we are old enough to know better (most of the times).
If the kickoff of our game is not until the later afternoon or evening, a television is vital to the tailgate. How are we supposed to be college football degenerates if we cannot keep up with every bit of the action? Yes, I do need to watch South Carolina vs Kentucky at Noon and on commercials you better be switching to the Boston College vs Wake Forest game. While we may not watch the television all afternoon, I need it to be accessible when I am ready to watch the afternoon slate of games. If Gus Johnson is calling the game the sound must also be up.
The final and arguably the most important part of a good tailgate is the accessibility of adult beverages. Everyone knows I will be the person drinking Pabst Blue Ribbon and thoroughly enjoying it. When I am tailgating games at the stadium I am making sure I indulge in enough beverages to help be a noise factor in the games. As long as the tailgate has a light beer in some fashion I will never complain. One of my pet peeves is a person who is too picky about their light beer and will only drink a Coors light or Miller Light. Free beer is always the best beer. Let’s cheers to fall tailgates and how we wish they would never end. Soon enough we will all be tailgating once again.
