It’s almost time for UGA fans to start tailgating … but where?
North Campus tailgating last year. (Photo by Bill King)
The Dogs scrimmaged Tuesday, my season tickets arrived, I sent off the check to reserve our spot at the church where we park and I made my reservation for the kickoff meeting of the Touchdown Club of Athens.
It’s starting to really feel like football season!
Aside from the annual shopping spree at the UGA Bookstore with my daughter next week, that pretty much takes care of my preseason preparations. But if you’re one of the folks who do tailgating in a major way (we don’t), you’ve got some issues to resolve thanks to the new restrictions, especially if you used to tailgate on the historic North Campus quads and Herty Field.
As you’ll recall, the university got fed up with the trashing of North Campus the past couple of seasons and decided to clamp down on tailgating there by issuing new rules that essentially allow nothing but low-key picnics in the area. Among the items no longer allowed are all the ingredients of first-class tailgating: tents, kegs, generators, televisions, amplified music, grills or cookers of any type, tables larger than 4 feet long and any furniture other than folding chairs. And you can’t set up more than four hours before game time.
For the purposes of these game day restrictions, North Campus is defined as the area bounded by Broad Street, Lumpkin Street, Baldwin Street and Jackson Street (including, but not limited to, the quadrangle between Broad Street and Old College, the quadrangle between Old College and the Main Library, and Herty Field).
Where will the folks who want to do more than spread a tablecloth on the ground go for their tailgating? I asked my nephew Al Skelton, whose tailgate party I wrote about last season. Al used to set up his tent near the UGA Chapel (and took his tailgating so seriously that he rarely bothered to actually go into the game, preferring to watch on one of the many big-screen TVs around him).
“That’s a good question,” Al said, “and I don’t think we’ve made a final decision yet. It’s disappointing that the spot we’ve been at for the last five years isn’t available anymore. It’s pretty much the only place I’ve tailgated. I think we’re torn pretty evenly between finding somewhere else on campus (although I don’t even know what the options are) or just tailgating in backyards here in Atlanta.”
What are the options? Well, they’re fairly limited. One of the reasons North Campus had become game day central was because the school banned sidewalk parking and built new buldings on some of the prime real estate where folks used to gather before a game. The fact that students are now into tailgating, formerly a pastime of alums, has added to the crunch.
But there are still places to tailgate in the old style. Once you get off North Campus, the Myers quadrangle has always had tailgating, sometimes getting pretty crowded, and that space will now be much more in demand. When my son lived in Reed Hall I was always surprised there wasn’t much tailgating in the quad there, and since that’s outside the North Campus restricted area, I’d expect that location will see more people setting up. The area along Lumpkin Street no doubt will be even more in demand than in the past. And East Campus already had a fair amount of tailgating and there’s probably room for more people there. It’s a bit out of the way and lacks the scenery of North Campus, but it’s not that bad a walk to the stadium.
It was obvious something needed to be done about tailgaters treating the university’s most historic area like a dump, and the crowding there last year had just about reached the gridlock level, but the case can be made that the UGA administration went too far in basically eliminating full-fledged tailgating on North Campus.
In fact, Athens resident Bruce Hendley did a pretty good job of laying out that case in an opinion piece in last Sunday’s Athens Banner-Herald, pointing out that moving the tailgating off North Campus won’t eliminate the littering problem and might just disperse the trash to other areas of campus. The shifting of folks off North Campus will probably hurt business in downtown Athens, he notes. And, he asks, why were tents and TVs banned from North Campus? How do they harm the area since they’re not left behind?
Said Hendley: “Here are things we know about tailgating: It’s only six days a year, and people come to Athens and spend money for the entire weekends surrounding those six days. The economy really needs those people right now. Why make it easier for alumni and fans to keep their tailgating and their money at home?”
He suggested allowing tailgating on North Campus and putting more police there to issue citations for littering.
My own take on all this: The new rules are probably an interim measure to clear the entrenched tailgaters out of North Campus. Eventually, tailgating will return to the area, but most likely on a paid basis, where you rent a space that’s already set up for you. Whatever company is hired to run the tailgating will ensure that no garbage is left behind, and UGA will make some money off the whole deal.
Sure, some of the charm of fan-run tailgating will be lost with a pay-to-play system. But the black eye that the garbage strewn everywhere after games was giving the university was anything but charming.
I’d love to hear from tailgaters about their plans for the coming season and your thoughts on the future of tailgating at UGA.
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139 comments Add your comment
The Ole Ball Coach
August 11th, 2010
10:19 pm
Tailgating from home or at UTC….I will not spend another dollar in Athens as long as Adams is there.
Bamadog
August 11th, 2010
10:45 pm
I got to tell you being from Athens and living in Tuscaloosa, you get to see how it should be done over at Bama. Their historic Quad where majoring tailgating takes place is rented for around 750.00 a spot for the season. You can have a tv out there, electric provided. UA does it right, Dr. Adams might want to get with the program, he needs to realize football down south is serious business.
NO LINDSEY SCOTT,NO 1980 TITLE MUTTS
August 11th, 2010
11:10 pm
TAILGATING ON CHURCH PROPERTY IS ONLY AT UGAG,DRINKING AND DOPING!
Ron
August 12th, 2010
1:30 am
Just remember– the bigger the “G” on the vehicle, the lower the edumacation.
Harmon
August 12th, 2010
1:31 am
Go Dawgs! And take Roy Barnes with you!
tony purvis
August 12th, 2010
5:44 am
Enter your comments here
WinderDawg
August 12th, 2010
7:04 am
Why not do like other university/towns and have the city go to every tailgater and give a trash bag?
Then when the tailgater leaves they just leave the trash bag for the city to pick up. Come on people other towns in the SEC have dealt with this issue the right way. UGA seems to be saying I do not care about the alumni or fans involvement in this issue. 6 Saturdays a year is becoming a nightmare for the university and city? Get Real!
fedup
August 12th, 2010
8:28 am
Blame it on the current generation who by their actions demonstrate they have no respect for anything or anyone. They only exist to satisify their hedonistic desires!
Orin
August 12th, 2010
8:35 am
Or perhaps dawgtard fans are just pigs who don’t care how much garbage they leave behind.
NESBITT ... for ... HEISMAN
August 12th, 2010
8:50 am
.
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Go Yellow Jackets
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Fair and Balanced
August 12th, 2010
9:23 am
I’m a GA Bulldog sports fan, but not a fan of the University of GA.
dagnabit
August 12th, 2010
10:03 am
Tents and big screen tv. I wish I could have seen that.
dagnabit
August 12th, 2010
10:04 am
I would have skiped the game also.
CALHOUN ALUM
August 12th, 2010
10:09 am
ga fans show so much respect for the university they leave all their trash! class!!
CMill
August 12th, 2010
10:21 am
Enter your comments here
CMill
August 12th, 2010
10:21 am
Tailgating on Milledge is pretty nice… a bit of a walk, but not too bad
Browning
August 12th, 2010
10:46 am
Great spot to tailgate.Corner of Broad and Newton. Few spots left.250.00 for year. call RAY 770 468-7117 Go DAWGS!!!!!!
ChambleeDawg
August 12th, 2010
10:51 am
For the past four years, my wife and I set up a tailgate with a bunch of our friends in front of the Chapel as well. We never got out of control, and we always broke it down and cleaned up before the game started. I saw what happen last year, and it was as bad as the media says. So, I agree with a little punishment, but this is too severe. And for some of you how think that it want hurt the local economy, before the game we allways ate somewhere downtown, got a drink somewhere downtown, and hell I even did a little shopping with the wifey.
North Ave Trade School Hater
August 12th, 2010
11:33 am
I guess I am the only one glad they did something. Many of the tailgaters were rude, we know of the pigs, and the sidewalks were often blocked. I’ll tailgate at the Golden Corral breakfast bar on the way over.
Dawgs Rule
August 12th, 2010
12:51 pm
teeheehee…”red panties”
You Nerds sure know how to show your maturity level!!
ugaclassof2004
August 12th, 2010
2:40 pm
Dawg Stephen,
Those are all very valid points you have made about Coach Richt,the good and the bad. I feel overall that Richt has elevated the program.
My concern with Richt is his apparent lack of hunger and his inability to effectively evaluate the talent on his coaching staff. To me this is where he comes up short in comparison to Saban or Meyer. Richt’s teams were hungry from 2001-2005, but 2006-2009 has not been good for Richt( 2007 was a bit of anomally).And the fact that he won’t make tough decisions until WAY too late is a problem. As a leader you’re only has good as the people around you. If you don’t hire quality people, bad things happen.It just kind seemed like Richt fell asleep at the wheel on the wrong guys which to me doesn’t bode well for his leadership style.
With that being said, Richt made the changes to his staff so we’ll have to see how this new defensive coaches pan out. I’m actually more concerned about QB position and a lack of depth on offense more than
the defense. Regardless, I’ll support the team but keep my expectations reasonable. UGA is what it is: a GOOD but not GREAT
football program capable of knocking off a top 10 team while equally as capable of choking to a team that isn’t even in the top 25. And unfortunately I think the days of UGA competing for a National Title are gone. 2002 and 2007 where Richt’s best shots. Expect 9-3 and 8-4 from here on out.
ugaclassof2004
August 12th, 2010
2:52 pm
Dawg Stephen,
Those are all very valid points you have made about Coach Richt,the good and the bad. I feel overall that Richt has elevated the program.
My concern with Richt is his apparent lack of hunger and his inability to effectively evaluate the talent on his coaching staff. To me this is where he comes up short in comparison to Saban or Meyer. Richt’s teams were hungry from 2001-2005, but 2006-2009 has not been good for Richt( 2007 was a bit of anomally).And the fact that he won’t make tough decisions until WAY too late is a problem. As a leader you’re only has good as the people around you. If you don’t hire quality people, bad things happen.It just kind of seemed like Richt fell asleep at the wheel on the wrong guys which to me doesn’t bode well for his leadership style.
With that being said, Richt made the changes to his staff so we’ll have to see how these new defensive coaches pan out. I’m actually more concerned about the QB position and a lack of depth on offense more than I am about the defense. Regardless, I’ll support the team but keep my expectations reasonable. UGA is what it is: a GOOD but not GREAT
football program capable of knocking off a top 10 team while equally as capable of choking to a team that isn’t in the top 25. And unfortunately I think the days of UGA competing for a National Title are gone. 2002 and 2007 where Richt’s best shots. That ship has sailed. As long as Richt is there, expect 9-3 and 8-4 from here on out.
boots
August 12th, 2010
3:39 pm
Michael Adams is a jerk. He over-reacted and took a knee-jerk response to the littering. It was very bad, yes, but it could have been handled differently. How, oh how, do we get rid of King Adams???
Dawg Tired
August 12th, 2010
5:40 pm
Testing 1….2…..3
GatorSet
August 12th, 2010
10:05 pm
Dawgtards love to return to 1980, but their memories are really short when it comes to remembering an earthshaking event that happened a few years later that showed the world what a joke UGA athletes were and what a scam artist their beloved Vince Dooley was (and is). So for all those dawgtards with short memories or who think their athletes are actually taking real courses and trying to graduate, here’s the quote that broke the trial wide open and showed what a sleezebag Dooley is:
O. Hale Almand Jr., a lawyer for the defense, offered a justification for the favorable treatment accorded the athletes, citing a hypothetical player. “We may not make a university student out of him,” he told the jury, “but if we can teach him to read and write, maybe he can work at the post office rather than as a garbageman when he gets through with his athletic career.”
Nothing has changed at UGA, they just do a slightly better job of keeping things quiet, but that’s hard to do when 42 of your player-thugs have been arrested, isn’t it? And let’s not forget Jim Harrick either.
Don’t you dawgtards just love those red panties!
Is it gameday yet?
August 13th, 2010
9:53 am
Let’s play
Bama in Atlanta
August 13th, 2010
10:12 am
(NOTE: Due to technical difficulties my entire comment is not posting so I will have to divide it up into sections)
I am a Bama grad and was lucky enough to marry a beautiful UGA coed. My father-in-law got his JD from UGA and is a rabid Dawg fan with six season tickets on the 40 yard line and a parking pass. I have enjoyed several games in Athens over the past few years and tailgating was a big part of the experience. I can sympathize that the school administration has to make difficult decisions on setting rules for PR sake in order to lessen the image of being the #1 Party School but on this issue I think they got it wrong.
Bama in Atlanta
August 13th, 2010
10:18 am
continued….
Tailgating is every bit a part of the gameday experience that should not only be allowed but embraced. The fallout from this covers several areas, such as:
Bama in Atlanta
August 13th, 2010
10:26 am
Money
If the administration thinks that it costs too much money to clean up the aftermath of gameday tailgating then I don’t think they are looking at the big picture. If you stroll down the rows of tents and chairs sitting in the shade you will see alot of alumni who send in donations over and above the price of season tickets. Take away the tailgating and I bet you see the level of donations drop faster than a Tiger Woods sponsor. Every penny you spend cleaning up the mess will come back to you wrapped in a dollar.
Bama in Atlanta
August 13th, 2010
10:28 am
Recruiting
Your average 17 and 18 year old high school football phenom is visually motivated…..you think colleges use hot coeds for recruiting just by coincidence?!? Part of the decision on where to play college ball is the support and excitement they see outside the stadium on gameday. With each tailgating tent taken down that’s one less reason a recruit has to commit.
Bama in Atlanta
August 13th, 2010
10:29 am
#1 Party School
If the administration’s intent on shutting down tailgating was to curb the image of UGA being the #1 Party School then they need to adjust their focus. The article gave the ranking based on the bars, clubs and party activities taking place on Thursday nights, not Saturday afternoons. If you really want to address the problem then focus on the underage drinking rather than the social drinking and camaraderie of 30-, 40- & 50+ year olds who are pumping money into the school.
Bama in Atlanta
August 13th, 2010
10:36 am
I hope a better solution is implemented before the first game because it would be a shame to reduce a great gameday experience to a non-event. However, if the policy still stands then all UGA alums are invited to Tuscaloosa on a weekend of your choice to sit on the Quad and tailgate like God intended…..the first round is on me.
Tech Fans Suck
August 13th, 2010
10:49 am
Leave it to Tech Fans to post all these crappy comments. You people need lives that take you in more directions than your obsession with all things UGA. And I’m not even a Georgia fan but I sure feel nothing but disdain for Tech fans.
War Eagle you dateless dorks.
ugaclassof2004
August 13th, 2010
11:04 am
GatorSet
I’m not going to dignify some of your childish insults about red panties with a response. But I think you’d be hard pressed to find any UGA fan of real substance claiming that the vast majority of the football team is actually working towards a real major. I mean they can’t all be like Tim Tebow who will no doubt put that phenomenal “family, youth, and community sciences” major to good use! And to be perfectly honest, I really don’t give a crap what classes they take. As long as they are pursuing some kind of degree, I really don’t care.
Also, need I remind you about Gator football in the 1980’s being on probation? Of course Gator fans tend to forget about the past because you’re a total bandwagon fanbase. If Florida ever has a down cycle, I’m sure you can just whip out your old Miami Hurrican gear from the 80’s like the rest of the Johnny Come Lately inhabitants of your state.
Bill King
August 13th, 2010
7:44 pm
Tom,
When I tailgated, it was on Lumpkin Street across from the track. But mostly now we walk down to Five Points and grab a meal there.
DawgVoiceofReason
August 13th, 2010
8:11 pm
Bill,
Why can’t a message be displayed that explains why a post wasn’t accepted?!!! It is so frustrating to type a well thought out message only to have it seemingly disappear. I was trying to pay you a complement in my last post and it’s just gone.
DawgVoiceofReason
August 13th, 2010
8:12 pm
2nd try:
Bill,
Another good blog. I almost always enjoy your blogs and appreciate the balanced perspective you generally have, with the always obvious love for the Dawgs.
If you can find out and blog about it later, it would be great to know the University’s (Dr. Adams’) thinking on the decision to put such seemingly arbitrary limits on the North Campus tailgating. I agree something major had to be done but it seems like they went too far. The only good thing that has been done by the University lately to help with tailgating and parking was the decision to open up the intramural fields. I generally can’t get to Atherns very early and it is nice to be assured I will have somewhere to park where I don’t have to worry about being towed.
The other thing that really needs fixing is the whole bus system after the game. They pack those buses so full and then just make people sit and sweat for twenty or thirty minutes sometimes. It is crazy! They need to have those buses going right away, as soon as any of them are loaded. They also need to start the buses well before the game ends so they can begin thinning out the crowds with the people who leave early.
Red Panties Rick
August 13th, 2010
11:04 pm
I guess Damon’s definition of “tailgating” and what’s being discussed here are two different things, hence the confusion about appropriate conduct at the games.
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