The wife and I headed to the stadium a couple hours before the game, hopping on the El (Purple Line) and exiting at the Central St stop. It's about a 5 minute walk from the train so traveling to the stadium from basically anywhere in Chicago is a cinch.
As we're walking around the stadium after arriving, I look immediately to my left and stare at this woman about 6 feet from me as she walks by. The wife had gotten a bit ahead of me because I stopped so she turned around and asked what I was doing. My answer (to paraphrase): "Is that Meredith Viera? I mean, it looks EXACTLY like her... but nothing like her at the same time. This woman is rail-thin (probably 110 lbs), tiny (maybe 5'2"), and her face looks like a catcher's mitt (seriously, old)." We looked at this woman for probably 10 straight seconds, coming away 95% sure it was her, but could not figure out why in the hell she was at the game (we googled her on the blackberry and could not find any connection she had to either school). Turns out, it WAS her because her son goes to NU. And to add to it, she shared a luxury box that game with Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson (not seen in person, but shown on the replay board during the game). Why I did not get a picture of Meredith Viera/Meredith Viera's doppelganger, I will never know, but to this second I regret it. I actually wish I had pulled a "Meredith!..... (did she look?)" thing like Stewie and Brian did with Tom Bosley (sorry for the video quality. Tough one to find).
(Now imagine her 5'2, 110 lbs, and not caked in TV makeup and soft-lighting. I'm not saying she reminds me of one of my hillbilly aunts, but she's certainly a weeeeeee bit different than this in person)
We got there early because the Northwestern Athletic Facebook page had a promotion in the couple weeks leading up called "Purple Party" or something crazy like that, where if they gained 5,000 fans on Facebook, legendary northwestern running back Darnell Autry would allow his entire body to be painted in purple for the game. When I signed up just a few days before, they were only around 2300 or so fans. But the group ended up getting their 5,000th fan on Thursday I believe, so Darnell Autry (a man of his word) allowed himself to be painted for the masses:
(The 5,000th fan was supposed to have the right to do the actual painting, but I think they said that fan actually lived in like Arizona or some foreign land, so they allowed the 5,001st fan to do the painting)
(Incase you're curious, Darnell Autry is in his mid-30's, probably hasn't played a down of football in nearly 10 years, and could still kick the ass of 95% of people I claim as friends. There's a little front porch developing there, no doubt about that, but he's still rocking the athlete body. If only second-rate, midget high school athletes could look like that when they hit their 30's....)
The actual painting portion took place in this area called "Wildcat Alley," which NU sets up before every home game. It takes place on this grassy area between the football stadium, the softball field, the baseball field, and the football practice field. In this area, fans mingle, athletes from other sports walk around and chat with fans, the Big Ten title trophys and other awards are on display to be photographed with, lots of games and things for kids, etc.... Oh.... and.... Free Mother F'ing Beer. Free. Complete, no-strings-attached, glorious, local, FREE beer. Goose Island Brewery, one of Chicago's biggest and best, sponsors a huge tent where you literally walk up, show your ID, and then you are given 2 tickets to go into the tent and sample 2 beers. They have 3 or 4 varieties there to choose from and you can drink any two that you like (or 2 of the same, doesn't matter. I prefer either 312 or Honker's Ale. But it doesn't matter because they're all good because it's not cheap, shitty beer, and, because again, it's hump-tastically FREE. And it's not those shitty little mini-plastic cups that allegedly hold 12 oz but they end up holding like 8-10oz. No, folks, this is the real shit. Like 16 oz cups. And if you get one with too much head, they'll top it for you. And the great thing is, if you get there within like the final 30ish minutes before kickoff, it's such a clusterfuck and people milling about and the vendors are trying to just get rid of the beer that nobody realllllly watches how much you take. Anyone with half a sense of slyness could swipe 20 beers if they wanted. It's an immaculate scene. I'm shocked that homeless drunkards don't just come to get a buzz on before going back to sleeping under the tracks. If you go to a Northwestern game sometime, Wildcat Alley and the Goose Island Beer Sampler MUST be your #1 priority. No questions.
On our way into the stadium after developing a solid 30oz beer buzz, we realize we're standing right behind the men's and women's basketball teams. Another cool thing about NU football games. It's such a small-community atmosphere that all the players and coaches (Bill Carmody was just chilling, looking skinnier than normal, rocking some aviator glasses, which I am disappointed I did not photograph) for sports are so accessible at games. If you're an NU fan, you absolutely get more access to players and coaches than any other school I've come across. They're really on the right track about catering to the fans at NU... Now if they could just come up with ways to gain MORE fans....
Since it was Halloween, we got to see lots of little kids running around with their costumes on. Very cute. Almost makes me want to have kids. Almost. But I'd rather not be forced to continue to work a shitty job I hate to support a family. Yes, I come first. Me. When I get a job that tickles me pink, we'll start pumping out the Camerons, Daytons, ZJs, Phelans, Ellas, etcs of the world.... Anywhooooooooo. None of the children could match the obvious winner of every costume contest in the world:
(Purple Man!!!!)
Our seats were quite nice for the game. Right in the dead heart of NU superfans (they exist! For reals!!). I like Northwestern. Always have had a soft spot for them. The fans are a wide variety of breeds, though. You'll find your occasional serious, self-respecting fan who knows their shit, and since they're of NU descent, they're obviously non-football intelligent too, so listening to them during games isn't too bad. But a vast number of fans at NU games are like these people:
(Won't wear school colors to save their lives. Gotta wear long coats, button-down shirts, isotoner gloves, khaki pants...... khaki-fucking-pants... at a college football game.... Come ON!!! Also, if you look closely at the area with the Gatorade containers, you'll see a kid wearing a purple windbreaker. That's Coach Fitz's kid. He dressed up like his dad for Halloween and stood by the Gatorade buckets during the game. He had the windbreaker, headseat, sunglasses, play chart dangling from his hip... the works. Well done. Also, Coach Fitz is probably my favorite NCAA coach in America. When he talks, you can't help but want to jump out of your seat and play some football and go to battle for the man ... and I'm just a nothing. Once he really starts getting his players in there and establishes a track record of more than 3ish years, they could be a perennial 8-10 win team. Since I mentioned it, my favorite NCAA football head coaches, in no particular order at the moment: Fitz, Lane Kiffin, Pete Carroll, Danny Hope, Steve Sarkisian.... Not at the top of the list: This guy. Anyway, sorry about writing for such a long time in italics. I hate reading long passages in italics, so I can only imagine others do too. You'd think I'd just stop. I guess I could now. I mean, I've said what I needed to say, and I've already apologized for the italics so there's no need to continue writing with them. So, enough.)
(Obligatory shot of game action from the seats)
(Little-known fact: the building behind the stands is the first place the wife and I lived together. Lived there for one year after moving to the Chicago area. Cost far more than it should have, but the environment was pretty sweet)
The game itself was about what we expected and I didn't bother to take notes. NU kept it reasonably close, but Penn State was far too much to overcome late. Once Mike Kafka got knocked out of the game and was replaced by Dan "I'm listed at 6'1" only because I came in wearing cowboy boots on measuring day" Persa, the offense for NU couldn't do a lick. Penn State was who we thought they were, and I cannot believe they did not roll through the season. Pretty disappointing, actually. All the weapons were there, but they didn't show up in the games that mattered.
One quick thing about Ryan Field: The vantage points are great and there's not a bad seat in the house, but they need to do some serious renovations and updating for that place. At halftime the lines for the bathrooms (Men's!!!) were each about 100+ guys deep. This is ridiculous. There's no excuse for a stadium that seats 40-50K to have like 8 total men's bathrooms, each holding no more than 8-10 urinals. It's really unacceptable. Updating restrooms is one of the easiest things you can do to a stadium. Spend the money. Fix it up. Make the place more accessible. There, I've said my peace. And no, this has nothing to do with the fact that I had to hold my pee so long at halftime waiting in line that I basically killed any chance of having a child in the next 10 years.
One quick thing about Ryan Field: The vantage points are great and there's not a bad seat in the house, but they need to do some serious renovations and updating for that place. At halftime the lines for the bathrooms (Men's!!!) were each about 100+ guys deep. This is ridiculous. There's no excuse for a stadium that seats 40-50K to have like 8 total men's bathrooms, each holding no more than 8-10 urinals. It's really unacceptable. Updating restrooms is one of the easiest things you can do to a stadium. Spend the money. Fix it up. Make the place more accessible. There, I've said my peace. And no, this has nothing to do with the fact that I had to hold my pee so long at halftime waiting in line that I basically killed any chance of having a child in the next 10 years.
Not much else to really say about the game, but this is the lasting image I have from the game:
(NU's kicker/punter Stefan Demos, just chilling, talking to anyone who will hold a conversation. Here, it's with a security officer. Other times we spotted him chatting up their football S.I.D., Fitz's kid, the sideline reporter, a leprechaun, 2 porn stars, a hot dog vendor, and a horse. *Note, not all of those are the truth*)
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