Carbon Copy

Boilermakers Vs. Hoosiers: My One and Only Football Game

Apparently people go to football games all the time, but so far in my college career, I have not attended. That all changed last Saturday. Erica, Cristen, and I gussied up in our boiler gear, fought the crowds, and cheered along with the best of them.

I splurged for my birthday and bought a brand new Purdue sweatshirt just for the game.

Cristen and I met up with Erica on campus and went to the Purdue Research Foundation tailgate tent for a deliciously catered meal. Then we followed the crowd into Ross Ade Stadium, picking up some pom-poms along the way.

We scrambled for some seats on the bleachers. We ended up in the midst of IU fans and mixed families. Here was the problem. I know nothing about football. The only way I know when to cheer is by following the crowd, so by sitting in such close proximity to Hoosier fans, I was completely confused. I couldn't just cheer, I had to see what color sweatshirt the people cheering were wearing.

Here comes the team!

Yay!

We all know that the real reason Erica, Cristen, and I went to the game was for this:

The World's Biggest Drum!

We got all caught up in the excitement.

Back to the game.

If you're a really rich alum (or a fanatic fan), you can buy expensive skybox seats.

It's not a football game without a foam finger. Luckily, Erica gave me one for my birthday. She's so thoughful.

Oh look! Touchdown!!

We were ahead the whole game. That's because Hoosiers suck.

Ok, sometimes I would look over and see Cristen texting.

And then turn to my right, and there's Erica texting!

What is this world coming to when we can't even go to a football game without texting. (I totally did it, too.) I can assure you, though, that we all put our phones away during the halftime show. The marching band did a tribute to cartoon theme songs.

Oooh, there's Purdue Pete! He's so dreamy!

As much fun as the game was, the temperature left a little something to be desired. The double layers and hoodies, gloves and hats were fun at first, but slowly the chill crept in.

Another touchdown!

Yellow pom-poms ripple across the stadium.

And the sound is deafening. Here's a video.

Go Boilers!

Throughout the whole game, every maternal instinct the three of us possess was evoked by the sight of this little boy and his dad. First of all, how can you resist those adorable cheeks! Then, the way the dad would lean over and explain the game to his son and point out what was happening was just too adorable. We felt a little creepy taking so many covert pictures, but we just couldn't help it.

We left after the third quarter. It was just so cold, boilers were ahead, and we wanted to beat traffic. Plus, Erica had some more tailgating to do. Just so you know, Boilers won. And the oaken bucket stays at Purdue where it belongs.

Here are some pictures I stole from Erica:

Posted by kea at November 18, 2006 08:29 AM