(Video by Quincy Wilks)
The BYU student section brought a college football tradition to Cougar fans in need of excitement and a reason to cheer.
Prior to the game against Boise State, the ROC hosted its first ever tailgate on the field just north of Lavell Edwards Stadium.
Tailgating consists of bringing food and entertainment together to unite fans and create hype for a sporting event—in this case, football.
“We were trying to find a way to get everyone to come out and have a good time, and enjoy the football atmosphere,” said ROC board member Courtney Turner. “We thought tailgating was the best way to do that.”
After a rough start on the field for BYU football, and the ROC line card incident on Sept. 7, the student section wanted to find a way to get fans out to the games and excited about cheering on the team.
“Everything that you can think of that belongs in a tailgate—we got it,” Turner said.
The ROC set up several grills and provided hot dogs for any participant to cook their own food, and provided drinks as well, in the form the famous “Randall’s”.
ROC president Zach Hosman explained that the beverage is named after Cougar football fan George Randall, and consists of Code Red Mountain Dew, lime, and vanilla flavoring. It has now become a tradition to serve it at all pre-game festivities.
A chili cook-off was held towards the end of the tailgate, with BYU basketball player Payton Dastrup acting as the judge.
Other activities at the tailgate included a football toss, cornhole, giant pong, and a fan wear contest. Prizes for the challenges included 32-inch TVs and a football signed by coach Kalani Sitake.
The winner of the fan wear contest was BYU student Katelyn Carney.
“I wear these overalls all the time, so my friends kind of nominated me for it,” Carney said. “I’ve always been a school spirit type of person. I go here so that makes me a fan.”
The ROC hopes to continue this tradition for future home games after an impressive turnout and excitement surrounding the long-time college football tradition.
“It’s a blast,” said student Caleb Leming. “I actually feel like I’m finally in college for once.”
