What makes Iowa State tailgating great?

[jdoggivjc]

YouTube - ‪Iowa State postgame lockeroom celebration vs. Nebraska (10-24-09)‬‏

Not sure what this has to do with tailgating, especially when that took place in Lincoln. However, it's still an awesome video...

[CyDude16]

YouTube - ‪Iowa State postgame lockeroom celebration vs. Nebraska (10-24-09)‬‏

Hows a postgame locker room video relevant to tailgating....? Try again.

[Cycsk]

Our mascot really shows up!

Can anyone tell the story from personal experience about the time we had a real cyclone (tornado) show up in Ames right before the game (I think it was Colorado)? Emptying the stadium, moving people into Hilton Colesium, and listening to the entire marching band play in Hilton must have been one of the most incredible tailgating experiences ever.

[Ms3r4ISU]

Can anyone tell the story from personal experience about the time we had a real cyclone (tornado) show up in Ames right before the game (I think it was Colorado)? Emptying the stadium, moving people into Hilton Colesium, and listening to the entire marching band play in Hilton must have been one of the most incredible tailgating experiences ever.

Hah! Especially, "overheard as we headed toward Hilton, 'Wait a minute for me to lock the doors. Our tickets are in here and I don't want anybody to steal them while we're gone!'"

[Cyclonestate78]

Oh... and you have to throw in a picture of that blonde...

[rebecacy]

I'm not sure if any of you have heard of the author Jonah Keri (@jonahkeri), but he asked this on twitter this afternoon:

"Crowdsourcing: Most UNDERRATED 1) college football stadium 2) college football tailgate ...you've ever attended? (ie not LSU, Michigan etc)"

I responded with Iowa State for the tailgate and he sent me an email asking for more details. Specifically his email said this:

"I've got more obscure ones on the list, but willing to consider Iowa St. Email me with more details, please?"

To make sure I didn't miss anything, I thought I'd come to you guys to help fill Jonah in.

I have no idea what he is going to do with this information. If he plans on soming to a tailgate or writing a book. Either way, could be a fun game.

Dave Larson!!!!

[ribsnwhiskey]

Can anyone tell the story from personal experience about the time we had a real cyclone (tornado) show up in Ames right before the game (I think it was Colorado)? Emptying the stadium, moving people into Hilton Colesium, and listening to the entire marching band play in Hilton must have been one of the most incredible tailgating experiences ever.

We were in S-2 (dad is handicapped). Watched as the sky turned pitch black and followed the tornado as it moved north and east, just around JTS and the IState Center area. Game delayed for half an hour I think. Tornado sirens going off and being in the south lots, we really couldn't do much for shelter so we just stayed where we were. Then of course, the game, we ***** slapped CU on our way to what should've been a Big12 North title.....pretty good times during that game though. And of course, the game was in November--a big tornado month!

[cstrunk]

Just helpin' out.

Food: Scrambled eggs, bacon, breakfast casserole, breakfast sausage, chili, beef burgers, bison burgers (when we played CU and NDSU), hot dogs, brats, homemade deer sausage, chicken gizzards, jalepeno poppers, shish kabobs, steak, and more.

Games: Bags, ladder golf, washers, polish horseshoes, flippee/tippy cup, beer pong, and more.

Drinking: Screwdrivers (for early morning tailgates), beer, hot apple cider (for the colder weather), jello shots, regular shots, slap the bag, and more. Did I mention beer?

Fans: Win or lose, we still booze! Hot or cold, good or bad, early or late. 80,000+ tailgating. Can't forget drunk college girls... LOL

[ISUAgronomist]

Those with custom bags/cornhole boards need to post them up.

[19210]

Lets see when we played the Hawks and the stadium was overflowing and the police thought there were close to 70,000 plus still outside the stadium during the game. That's a lot of people that wouldn't show up if the tailgating wasn't as good as it is.

[Cyclonestate78]

[terryk]

We've had tons of stuff at ours, from simple burgers\dogs\brats to great early breakfasts (pancakes, eggs, bacon, omelets, scotch eggs), to ribeyes, pulled pork, wings, shrimp, or even clam chowder and shrimp etouffee.

Gotta have stuff for morning to night, especially for night games.

you forgot my egg mcmuffins, we have also done grilled pizzas and anything chocolate for the woman. Plus Bubba is there.

[Al_4_State]

Another testimonial:

-Back in '07, my buddy had been down in Dallas for the summer. He dated a girl down there and kept in touch with her after he got back to Ames for school. He was talking to her after the Texas game that year, and her mom's friend was a big Longhorn fan who had come up to the game with her husband. She just gushed about it saying "we got up there about 5 hrs before kick off and the sun was just coming up, but they had all these parking lots full of buses and vans all painted up and everybody was drinking and grilling and partying and this is 6AM!" Her and her husband had never seen anything like it. All the Longhorn fans I ran into that day pretty much said the same.

I've been to Austin, and the tailgating is a good time, but the stadium is kinda wedged between downtown, the campus, and I-35. Everything is cramped like Iowa City, but its a very different feel. It's a good time, but its not like Ames.

[flander1649]

Drinking at 4-4:30 in the morning waiting IN LINE to get into the student lots when they open 5 A.M. for the 11:00 AM kick off. Hell yea...

Yeah ISU tailgates to tailgate. A few buddies and I would get of work at the bars at 3 am go get the tailgating truck and be in line at 4 drinking beers to tailgate for a 6 pm game it was great.

Plus if you can tailgate and pre-party at tip top! PBR, Chilli, and prairie fires at 6 am.

[Stumpy]

Most schools' public lots 3 hours before kickoff:

Point taken, although that particular corner of Athens, OH is a good 15 minute walk from Peden Stadium.