re: 48 Hours - How to Spend It

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We have a house on Florida Ave

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Are you sure on that address? I don't know of a Florida Ave near LSU.

Florida St./Blvd is 4-5 miles north of campus.

Gotcha. If you are on Alaska, you pretty much cannot go wrong as far as route onto campus--just don't go any further north than you have to. That isn't the best area of town. Walk straight south down Alaska toward campus, and the road will curve to your left around behind the PMAC. At that point, you'll probably want to walk around/under the PMAC to see Mike's cage if your group has never been to BR before. Then you can walk up the hill toward the Indian Mounds and the Quad. There are alot of good tailgates in that area, and you can follow Dalrymple toward the Parade Ground and Chimes area.

As others have said, Chimes is good and all, but its packed to the brim on gamedays. I would hesitate to tie yourself up for 2 hours waiting on a table, food, etc.

So we have to bump threads like this one and others back up to the top. For one to make sure these people survived and two to see their reaction to the experience. Cheers!!

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BUMP

C’mon wafl, let’s hear it


How’d it go

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I promise I didn't need the bump to come back.

The short version:

It was literally unbelievable. When reviewing all the various options for our "Let's just pick a fun college football game and go" trip, there was a reason we picked LSU and Tiger Stadium. We knew it was considered one of, if not the, best atmospheres in sports.

But all of the reading and research in the world cannot represent what it truly is like for a game like that. I didn't know stadiums could get that loud.

Add in all the pageantry, and the hospitality of all the fans (including a couple here), and it's a trip we will never forget. I can't believe how lucky we are that of all the possible games, that was the one we picked.


The long version:

My research began months ago with many options: big games like Oregon vs Georgia or Notre Dame at Ohio State or Alabama at Texas, must see home atmospheres like LSU or Wisconsin or Texas A&M or Tennessee or Alabama or Georgia or Penn State or Notre Dame or Ole Miss or Colorado or Washington, or neutral site rivalry games like Florida vs Georgia or Texas vs Oklahoma or Army vs Navy, or the Rose Bowl. I think I had 28 options on my first list.

Based on availability, in July, we narrowed it down to Nov 5 Bama at LSU, Florida at Texas A&M, or Tennessee at Georgia, or the Nov 12 Alabama at Ole Miss. Let's be honest, even for us, LSU was the clear #1 there. Within a month or so, everything was booked.

The season started with tempered expectations, especially after FSU. "With a new coach, we'll see. This could be pretty one-sided, but you never know and I think an LSU vs. Bama game in Tiger Stadium will be fun regardless." And then TN beat Bama and it was clear we'd get a night game, and LSU kept winning and it was clear this would be a huge game. How lucky we were!

Then I came to this board and got a TON of great advice. Then I started checking the weather and checking the weather and checking the weather. See, I was ignorant. I didn't know it never rains in Tiger Stadium on Saturday nights.

We arrived on Friday, checked into our hotel, and went to Bengals and Bandits for some gear. We then popped over to the Chimes for a few beers before heading to Parrain's for dinner. Thank you for that suggestion. We all had alligator for the first time and everything was delicious.

For Saturday, we parked at Parker Coliseum and started walking around the RV lots about 11 as people were getting set up, still in the rain. There were SO MANY RVs. Now, every time I drive by an RV dealership, I'll say, "Must be an LSU game here tonight."

As the rain slowed, we went back to our car to drop our rain gear off. We asked someone to take our picture. That was "our in." Next time someone like me asks you how to tailgate with strangers, tell them, "Just ask them to take your picture." Upon hearing our story, we were in. We tailgated there for a bit and then thanked the group and made our way to the Parade Grounds and Indian Mounds to take in those scenes. My brother described the tailgating "Like Disney World - each themed land has it's own culture and feel." We then checked out PMAC and got a few pictures with Mike.

After that, we joined someone from this board (protecting privacy, but feel free to respond) and tailgated more there. This group was amazingly welcoming and we had a great time, met new friends, enjoyed some beverages and gumbo, and got game-ready. From there, we watched the band and team come down the hill, walked around a little more, and were inside the stadium in our section (211) about an hour before kickoff.

We were already huge Garth Brooks fans, so Callin' Baton Rouge was a highlight for us in the pre-game. Then the first drive was looking a little scary, but we got our first peak at how loud it can get with the interception. From there, the noise just built over the next three hours reaching unbelievable levels.

The fourth quarter and overtime we will never forgot. It took us a while to get down to the field, but we made it. We have an amazing group photo down in the madness that we've been sharing with everyone. I've been reading all your thoughts on where this game ranks in LSU history and it seems most are putting it in top 3-5 at worst. I mean, how lucky can we be that this was the game we picked?

Going in, of course we were going to root for LSU, the home team. But we didn't have any real affinity for the program. But given all the people we met, the welcome we received, and our sheer awe at what you all bring to your fandom, we now have that affinity. We are LSU fans for life.

Geaux Tigers!

Miwafl, thank you for this.

Had 8 guys from Boston next to me - their accent gave them away. I hope they had as much fun as you.

Never realized that Tiger Stadium was thought of like some of us down here may consider a trip to Fenway or the Garden. Awesome. The people are what make it special and there is nothing like Tiger Stadium at night against a big opponent when we are the underdog.

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miwafl

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Glad you had a great time! Everywhere I have gone I've done my best to get some converted Tiger fans. Sounds like the people you met up with did it right.

I am so happy for you and your friends. It truly is an unforgettable experience.

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I promise I didn't need the bump to come back.

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Wish I had more than one upvote.