Boise State University
Home to the Boise State football team and up to 37,000 fans is the on-campus Albertsons
Stadium (formerly Bronco Stadium) in Boise, Idaho. Nationally known as “the Blue,” the
stadium is famous for its artificial blue turf. The “Smurf turf,” as it’s also called, is reported to be
the first non-green surface in football history. The university has gone so far as to trademark the
unusual color and enjoys the widespread attention it receives. Just seeing it on TV or in person is
a definite source of pride for Bronco fans.
Outside the stadium, tailgating is a staple for Bronco Nation fans and students of the state’s
largest university. Tailgating, the traditional way of turning a single game into a day-long event,
is popular in the parking lots directly outside the stadium and around campus. The grilled food is
hot and plentiful, and potatoes are a major tailgating food group. After all, it’s Idaho. There’s an
impressive posse of RVs, including an orange and blue painted one with a significant internet
presence called the “Bronco Bago.”
As the crisp fall days turn into some very cold fall days, Bronco fans are not deterred. The
weather even becomes a source of pride and tradition during the lead-up to the Famous Idaho
Potato Bowl (formerly the Humanitarian Bowl), which is held every December here. It is
reported to be the longest-running cold-weather bowl game in college football.
As for other traditions, in 2014 the head coach added a pregame walk, dubbed the Bronco Walk,
to the pregame rituals. The players take a fifteen minute walk to the stadium, interacting with
enthusiastic fans along the way.
Inside the stadium, the crowd belts out the fight song, “Orange and Blue.” The beloved mascot,
Buster the Bronco, makes his customary appearances. More recently, two famous “tee dogs”
have endeared themselves to fans. At every home game, one of two locally-trained
pudelpointers named Big Zee and Rox Zee energetically run onto the field after kickoff to
retrieve the tee. Their precision, speed and charm has quickly made them a lively part of BSU’s
game day traditions.
Old Dominion University
Traditions at ODU run from the deeply historical team name to the very modern (and arguably,
bizarre) Ice Cream and Cake dance. And that’s how ODU fans like it.
Foreman Field (official name: Foreman Field at S. Ballard Stadium) is home to ODU football at
this Norfolk, Virginia university. The ODU Monarchs got their name from the English “jointmonarchs” William III and Mary II who ruled the Virginia Colony in the 1600s. ODU’s beloved
mascot, Big Blue, is a big, furry lion character with a royal crown on his head. During tailgating
season, ODU even has an ever-present, unofficial tailgating dog with a historical flair: “Charles
the Monarch.” The dog, according to his own Facebook page, is “just your average party
animal.”
But history doesn’t dominate all of ODU’s traditions. Sure, the fans appreciate a roaring F-18
fly over during a home game, compliments of the U.S. Navy’s Oceana Master Jet Base. That’s a
perk of living in Hampton Roads, with its long naval history. The fans also loved it when the
U.S. Army provided a short-barreled howitzer canon to use to celebrate Monarch touchdowns
and field goals. But the historical nature of the ODU football traditions stop when the first few
notes of the Ice Cream and Cake Dance play over the speakers. Instantly, the crowd begins to
dance in unison to a hybrid chant/cheer/hip hop song that no one really understands. It’s
ridiculous, but no one seems to care. Every time a fan busts outs into the signature dance, this
weird and wonderful football fan moment become one step closer to becoming a tradition.
East Carolina University
Pirate football fans are a fierce bunch and the pregame traditions run deep in Greenville, North
Carolina. On the day before game day, the university uniform is all purple in support of “Paint It
Purple Fridays.” By Saturday morning in this southern college town, tailgaters start to set up outside of
ECU’s Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium, or “the Fick” for short. The grills and the cornhole boards come
out. The coolers are loaded with ice according to the tailgating truism: “you can never have too
much ice.” Villages of pop-up canopies and tents form, most decked out in purple and gold.
Students, alumni, proud Greenville residents, and entire families of fans mingle. And by “entire
families,” we mean intergenerational crews, from babies in purple onesies to great-grandparents.
All walks of life stand shoulder to shoulder this day, joined by their passion for ECU football.
A highly-valued pregame tradition here is the Pirate Walk. This is where the ECU football
players and cheerleaders parade through the outside crowds into the stadium, interacting with
cheering fans along the way. ECU joins the ranks of Notre Dame, Alabama, and Tennessee with
their pregame walk tradition.
Inside the stadium, the players get pumped up in the tunnel. People pour into the stands. Abruptly, the
stirring spectators are brought to attention by a shot blasting out a cloud of purple smoke. The first few
chords of Purple Haze by Jimi Hendrix rise above the noise of the crowd and the football players run onto
the field through the purple cloud. Pirate-style.
After the players on the field, the fans wait for another shot to ring out. A cannon, looking like it was
ripped off the deck of a pirate ship, is fired after the last note of the National Anthem. The cannon is one
of ECU’s most enduring traditions. It also has an unusual history. The university reports that the use of a
cannon goes back to at least 1967 when an old Confederate civil war canon was fired at the end of the
university’s fight song of the time, Dixie. From 1974 to 1999 the cannon was sidelined after a player
was injured. More specifically, a player collided with the canon in the end zone after scoring a
touchdown, causing it to spontaneously fire. The cannon was put out of commission for over
twenty years. Eventually, the school sought to revive the tradition and a search went out for a
suitable cannon. By 1999, the Pirates were once again armed and dangerous.
Currently, responsibility for the care of the cannon is vested in a group of ROTC student/cadets.
Proud to part of the “Cannon Team of the Pirate Battalion," this select group of cadets ensures
the cannon is properly fired after the National Anthem, after a Pirate score, and at the end of the
game. As a result, the booming sound of canon fire is once again part of ECU’s football
tradition.
Syracuse University
The Carrier Dome is home to the Syracuse Orange in Syracuse, New York. With seating for just
under 50,000, the on-campus domed stadium is a landmark on the compact, almost urban
campus. In fact, it’s the largest dome of its kind in the northeastern United States. On game day,
a sea of orange surrounds the dome and the multiple small parking lots around the stadium
become villages of tailgaters. Their grills offer up plenty of wings, brats, Italian sausages and
other fare. Snacks from Wegmans and beverages from the local Saranac Brewery round it out.
The tailgating lifestyle is in full-swing here and there are many faithful generations of fans in
attendance.
Inside, the crowd knows the rituals. They cheer the entrance of the Syracuse mascot, Otto the
Orange (like the citrus fruit). Although the team has had more traditional and fiercer mascots in
the past, the fans have fully committed to Otto. He is a solid tradition that isn’t going anywhere.
The only fruit mascot in the NCAA, the big fuzzy orange is hilariously acrobatic -- mainly
because he rolls around on his big, round head.
Syracuse fans know the drill. They belt out the traditional cheers: S-Y-R-A-C-U-S-E … GO!!!.
On third downs, fans take out and shake their keys, reportedly signifying a “key” play. Students
pound on the metal bleacher seats and the decibel level goes through the roof. Noise ricochets
off every surface of the stadium, which is aptly nicknamed “the Loud House.” The many
spirited traditions of the Dome play a central role to ‘Cuse football fans.
University of Mississippi (Ole Miss)
Every team has a distinctive fanbase, and many claim to be the most faithful, but the University
of Mississippi fosters a culture of football that makes home games some of the most unique in
the country. To start, there’s the legendary “Grove.” The Grove is ten acres of grass and shady
oak and maple trees in the middle of campus. On home games, it’s transformed into an
elaborate, tented, pedestrian-only party unlike any other. As the saying in Oxford: “We may not
win every game, but we ain’t ever lost a party.”
It’s tailgating without trucks. The tents are often fully-catered, decorated affairs – with
chandeliers, animal prints, expensive floral arrangements, and immense spreads of food. Signs
with the insider greeting (and game day chant) “Hot Toddy” are ubiquitous. Red and blue is the
prominent color of dress and that includes blazers, ties, and well-chosen game day dresses.
Fashion is one of the many traditions that light up this day.
The party is famously well-attended and organized. The New York Times reported that the
university had a 2014 budget of $750,000 to support the tailgaters’ use of the Grove. The
university takes care of the trash, the portable toilets, security, and other party costs. There are
companies that fans can pay to stake out spaces and set up tents. The result is both a both family
friendly atmosphere and a spectacle. All in all, many would agree with Sports Illustrated and the
Associated Press and the many other sources which perpetually rank Ole Miss as the number-one
spot for football tailgating.
A few hours before the game, the players and coaches begin the traditional “Walk of
Champions” and make their way from the Student Union, under the Walk of Champions arch,
through the Grove and to the stadium. The Ole Miss band plays fight songs from a stage and the
crowd is thoroughly entertained.
Another notable, but less famous, tradition happens off the field. It’s the honoring of Chucky
Mullins, a Rebel football player who was injured during a tackle and left paralyzed from the
neck down in 1989. The town of Oxford embraced Mullins, who later returned to the university
as a student. The school recognized the bravery and spirit of the former player by establishing an
award in his name, and erecting a statue in his likeness that the Rebels pass on their way onto the
field. The coaches award particularly courageous players with number 38 patches (his retired
number). The tradition of honoring this player who famously vowed to “Never Quit” is a
cherished one at Ole Miss.
Norfolk State University
NSU Spartan fans are fiercely proud to attend a home game at the 30,000-seat William “Dick”
Price Stadium, the largest sports venues in Hampton Roads, which includes Norfolk, Virginia
Beach, Portsmouth, Suffolk, Chesapeake, Virginia and more.
On game days outside the stadium, students, alumni, and local supporters get into the spirit with
the classic tailgating staples: food, music, friends, family. After kickoff, the cheerleading squad
leads the crowd in the chant, “Behold the Green and the Gold.” And Spartan fans oblige. The
beloved Spartan Calvary is present, an organized club of hundreds of students who have put
themselves in charge of revving up school pride and spirit for all NSU athletics. They may even
lead the Calvary Woodgie Dance, which is way better witnessed than described (there’s this
thing called YouTube …).
Then there’s the band. Locally, the Battle of the Bay (the annual game between rivals Hampton
University and Norfolk State), is known as one of the best battle of the bands in the area. The
musical talent and choreography is amazing. During halftime the two marching bands go headto-head against each other, performing their best pieces, taunting each other, and whipping the
crowd up into a frenzy. Historically black colleges are well-known for their excellent marching
bands and above-and-beyond showmanship … and Norfolk State’s is amongst the best.