Welcome to the B1G, Nebraska.
Exhilarated, exhausted, impressed and disappointed, my weekend in Wisconsin was a whirlwind of emotion. Nearly a week late on this post, I am still in recovery from the brutal beating that was our official welcome to the Big Ten.
On Friday afternoon, I grabbed my bag and noticed that my boss had conveniently taped a Bucky Badger over my beloved “N”…the nerve! We loaded into my friend Trent’s car on the road to Madison just as rush hour traffic started to swell, and we buckled in for 4 hour journey to Madison. Two Huskers and three Badgers deep, Ranee and I were outnumbered and were welcomed with an “On Wisconsin” and a sing along to their fight song. This is what happens when you live in Big Ten country: you become friends with the enemy. To pass the time during our rush hour commute, we played the celebrity name game; every time someone could not come up with a name within a reasonable time, they had to begrudgingly cheer “On Wisconsin” or “Go Big Red”. To let the words “On Wisconsin” slip through my lips was treason! The road trip was a sure win for Nebraska, though, as “Go Big Red” rang throughout the car more than its share of times.
As we drove into Madison, the beauty of the night sky over the lake and the glow of the capitol finally made this dream a reality: we had entered Big Ten country. No turning back now!
We checked into the Hilton just a block from the capitol downtown and were greeted by Nebraska pride everywhere you turned. Nebraska fans travel better than ANY fans in the country, and our hotel was solid proof of that! A quick change into our Nebraska gear and a short walk down to State Street, and we were out for the night. Nebraskans FILLED the streets, and I cheered “Go Huskers” and threw the bones all the way down State Street.
Our excitement quickly diminished when we were greeted by rowdy and rude fans. I had heard from friend and foe alike that Wisconsin would treat us well, something that this Nebraska fan not only expects but to which I was looking forward on this trip. We were met with the opposite. Profanity, direct comments, and hand gestures from seemingly mature adults were the biggest disappointment of the trip. We expected a rough welcome, but not a mean one. We decided to meet it with smiles and appreciation for their “welcome,” a tactic that my mother taught me for dealing with bullies since grade school! J
Our night improved once we made it into KK and State Street Brats, two iconic bars. At State Street Brats, Nebraska fans had literally taken over. It was incredible! I even ran into Danny and Casey, two of my college buds who had also made the trip. Nothing like a football game to bring old friends back together.
The walk home and around the capitol was beautiful. It was a serene scene and the calm before the storm of game day. We hoped for better fans tomorrow and turned in for the night.
Saturday morning came all too soon, but we were on a mission to attend Game Day. As we trekked past the capitol, down State Street, and up Bascom Hill to a sea of red (Wisconsin) and black (Nebraska), I reminisced about the last Game Day I attended: Nebraska – USC when USC upset the Huskers at home. What an ominous thought looking back on it now. We walked up just as the crowd roared “Husker! Power!”
Game Day introduced me to Wisconsin’s cheers for the first time although I had been hearing about them all Friday night. “Eat Shit! F*** You!” the crowd chanted over and over again. We responded with our “Husker! Power” cheer, and I felt incredibly proud at that moment to be from Nebraska where respect and dignity is the most important part of our fan experience. Despite the difference in verbiage, I could not help but notice the similarities in the Badger and Husker fans: true passion, a love for their team, and tradition that outshined the mean fans from the night before. The crowd silenced when they told the heartbreaking story of Wisconsin’s most revered player: Russell Wilson. His father’s loss just after his transfer to Madison brought a silence over the crowd. This young man commands respect. What an incredible story and an incredible athlete. When Lee Corso put on the corn head, I thought for sure they would shut down Game Day, as the booing was deafening! Corso’s heart was in the right place, though, and the Husker fans on the hill were elated. The band marched us down the hill and back toward campus to start our real game day preparation.
In another small world experience, my college buddy, Geoff, spotted me from behind. Now several states apart, we reunited on the streets of Madison.
We visited Madison’s farmers market surrounding the capitol, and I tried every cheese curd imaginable! Squeaky cheese curds? Yes, they were at every stand, and the local farmers were so proud to tell you how they had made them and how fresh they were. I was not quite ready to take the squeaky curd plunge, so I purchased some spicy Colby Jack from a local farmer and headed back to the hotel (with an incredible view!) to drop off my loot. Can’t leave Wisconsin without some local cheese!
Our Badger hosts took us on the most incredible tour of one of the most incredible campuses I have ever seen. Lake Mendota was breathtaking, and the campus sitting between both sides of it seemed to sprawl for miles. When we visited the Campus Union, I quickly understood why it was ranked one of the Top 10 University Unions in the country: a BAR inside and a lake view to enjoy your brew! With all of the studying I did at Nebraska’s Union during college, I would have never graduated had I gone to Wisconsin, that is for sure.
Fraternity row was adorned with houses with a sunset view of the lake and huge party decks. Wow. Stopped by the Alpha Phi and Pi Beta Phi houses on our tour, and we decided that we would have partied nonstop if we went to school here!
The dorms were like apartment complexes, the schools were literally miles apart, and Observatory Point was truly breathtaking. I noticed mopeds parked all over campus and quickly understood why: UW is like a small city!
We ran into some Husker fans under the Camp Randall arch carrying the National Championship flag. “Since Wisconsin has never seen one of these before, we thought we would bring one along,” they said. Ha!!! I was out of breath after we made the tour, and the afternoon sun was at its peak. Tailgating time was upon us!
Our timing was perfect, as we walked right behind Brandi Peterson from Omaha’s Channel 7 news as she started her broadcast: we threw the bones and made it on the local news back in Nebraska! What a way to pump ourselves up just as we entered the stadium.
Our seats were in Section Z2 in the corner, and it was a perfect view. We even had cushioned seats waiting for us: what a nice surprise! For $280 a ticket, I decided we well paid for those. I spotted some more college friends, Reese and Chaaron, just a few rows in front of us, and I bumped into my high school boyfriend, Ben, in line for the bathroom. Only in Wisconsin…such a small world! Camp Randall reminded me so much of Memorial Stadium. Maybe it was the size? Maybe it was the sea of red? Whatever it was, it was obvious that this town loves their football just as much as we Nebraskans do.
The game itself was a rollercoaster. When Nebraska scored the first touchdown of the game and got a 3 and out, I was almost in shock. We were IN this, and we looked good! I expected a blowout, and the first 20 minutes of the game was neck and neck. Wisconsin’s defense and incredible talent at QB quickly got the best of our inexperience, though, and the penalties started racking up. Heading into the half, I knew we would have to turn it around, and quickly if we wanted to pull off an upset in our first B1G game ever. The second half led to even more disappointment, though, as our turnovers, mistakes, and inability to execute brought back memories of Fresno State and a reminder that we still have a long way to go to living up to our talent’s potential and becoming a national championship contender.
“On Wisconsin” was the theme of the night, though, and the entire stadium sang along when the band played the infamous and storied school song. The traditions continued to impress, as their fourth quarter “Jump Around” tradition seemed more like an early celebration than a fourth quarter kickoff. The student section was HUGE, and they absolutely rocked the stadium. INCREDIBLE! The wave was one of the most orchestrated and impressive coordination of a group I have ever seen. The student section, more specifically section P, begins the wave by sending it around the stadium once counter-clockwise, then once in slow-motion, then once at double the original speed, then reversed (clockwise), and finally, splitting it into two counter-rotational waves. The two waves met in the middle back at the student section, and the crowd erupted! Wisconsin fans are the nation’s top experts at the wave; hands down. “Fill me up, buttercup” brought Badger and Huskers together in a chorus of song. When we finished the entire verse long after the band stopped playing, my respect for the tradition at Wisconsin was solidified. These folks know how to do football.
We stayed until the fifth quarter to catch the band (another tradition), charged our phones in the stadium, and hit the town to drown our sorrows and dance the night away on State Street. At midnight, we celebrated Brooke's birthday, and our newfound Wisconsin fans celebrated right along with us.
Despite the 48-17 loss, this weekend proved witness to one of the best football programs in the country. Wisconsin deserves a shot at the National Championship after what I watched firsthand, and I can only hope we play well enough the rest of our season to meet them again at the Big 10 Championship.
It was so great to run into you! I love following your blog and I am so jealous you got to see the comeback vs. Ohio State in person. I bet Memorial Stadium was rocking! Reese and I will be at the Penn State and Iowa games. I hope our paths cross again!
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