Bama vs A&M tailgate wrap up
By Andrea Alford
This is a compilation of the best (and worst) moments in College Station, Texas for the epic Texas A&M vs Alabama game - from an Aggie's perspective with direct insight from Bama fans.
For those of you who have never made the trip to College Station before, it is a small college town with the student body making up most of the population. Random fact for you: Kyle Field has a record attendance of 90,000+ (Nebraska game, 2011) which is only 7,000 less than the population of the entire town. So you can imagine what might happen when you try to fit a couple hundred thousand football fanatics in such a small area. I couldn't tell you the exact number of bodies that were on or near campus on Saturday, but I can tell you that I have never seen that many people celebrating college football in one place in my entire life.
And y'all, it was beautiful.
If you read the OKTC write-up last week on what to expect from your visit in College Station, you learned that Northgate has a high density of bars and a higher density of adventure. Game weekends are my absolute favorite at Northgate because the energy is always full force. Friday night was no exception. The party actually started on Thursday, but in order to keep this post shorter than the list of dudes Mark May has blown, we will move right along to Friday. Every bar was packed with football fans from all over the country, no doubt having some friendly debates on game predictions while introducing newcomers to the Johnny Football shot and Antonio's Pizza, known for its late night eats. And by eats, I mean pizza. The optimism of both teams' fans was apparent and it made for one of the greatest nights I think Northgate has ever seen.
Sidenote: Apparently the concept of a shot bar was unknown to several Bama fans. It definitely made for an interesting end of the night, as it was obvious which fans spent most of their night at Dry Bean and Tipsy Turtle. I wouldn't be surprised to see one pop up in Tuscaloosa in the next few years. You're welcome, Bama fans. Just… you’re welcome.
Saturday. One of the best days our Texas A&M campus has ever seen. Yes, Aggie fans had a tough loss. But not even a blowout beating from Bama could have taken away the pride that every single Aggie had to be feeling that day. Visiting fans were dumbfounded at the kindness and hospitality shown by Aggies this weekend. Our tailgate would offer every passing Bama fan a beer and you wouldn't believe how many initially turned it down with a look of suspicion and the expectation of poison or a dick kick. I think they finally realized that we just have tremendous respect for our visitors and that we weren't trying to murder them before kickoff. Essentially, we aren’t LSU.
As the music was pumping from tent to tent, the alcohol was definitely flowing. It was one of the hotter gamedays we've had so the drinking and the sweating turned out to be a bad combination for some. Crimson and Maroon did little to hide the sweat. By the end of the tailgates, there was no shame to our game (tailgate game, that is). Everyone was dripping and showing sweat stains in places that should never be seen in public.
It was rumored that several Bama fans, one named Lontavius, watched the 4th quarter from a drunk tank cell. Roll Incarceration, Roll. They are the official Bama Fans of the weekend.
Don’t worry, the Aggies were out to party too. One Aggie friend got separated from her group while walking to Northgate at halftime. She decided she would get on a TAMU campus bus with hopes that it would have a stop closer to the bars than her current location, which at the time was the center of campus and about a 7 minute walk to Northgate. Next thing she knew, she was being told by the bus driver that she had been sleeping for an hour and his shift was ending. He was nice enough to offer to drop her off wherever she needed to go, which was of course Northgate.
One Bama fan told me his most memorable encounter with an Aggie was the drunk fan sitting next to him at the game who passed out for an entire quarter, but not before showing an absurd amount of concern with how his Bama neighbor was being treated in Aggieland. This same Bama fan said, "This was the most enjoyable away game I have been to as a Crimson Tide fan...and I can't wait for 2015 when the tide returns to town."
As disappointed as Aggies were with the loss, they were still ready to rage Saturday night. While the mood was not as optimistic, it was still rowdy and wild everywhere you went, and I didn't see one fight all weekend. Those who showed up to Northgate on Saturday night were ready to do the darn thing. Each and every person was just there to celebrate the end of something that was close to perfect. While drowning our sorrows about the unfortunate result of such an exciting game, Aggies put on their maroon-colored party panties and continued to host the best college football weekend of 2013.
Several Bama fans mentioned how grateful they were for our friendly and welcoming attitudes and said they can't wait to show us the same hospitality when we head to Tuscaloosa next year. Congrats on a great win, Alabama, and thanks for giving Aggies one of the most memorable gamedays in A&M football history! Now let’s see what you’ve got… 2014 here we come!