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It was absolutely perfect
weather in Boston for the NCAA Lacrosse Championships at Gillette Stadium
during the weekend of May 24-26. Fans traveled
from near and far to celebrate the lacrosse finals and of course to be
part of the annual three-day tailgate. |
Fans
from all over the country converged on
Foxboro,
Massachusetts, to catch this annual celebration of the best of the best in
college lacrosse. It didn’t matter if you were there to see
teams from NCAA Division I, II or III, it was all about the game – and the
tailgating!
It was striking to see
the camaraderie between the tailgaters. It’s something we here at
TheTailgater.com talk about all the time. But at these lacrosse
championships, it was really something to see. There were big groups of
fans from the various schools who had planned a big tailgate and assembled
in a pre-selected lot. But then there were the folks who just came up and
planned to tailgater amongst their small group. And it was these fans who
really demonstrated the tailgating ethos – when tailgating, we’re all on
the same team!
That said, there was
still something that took place on Sunday morning that I never thought
that I would ever see. As the editor of
TheTailgater.com, I’ve seen lots of tailgating all over this great
land of ours but I have never seen
– ever –
New York
fans tailgating side-by-side with
Boston
fans, and getting along! Yet that is what was happening in Foxboro.
Both
tailgating teams had scouted the stadium parking lot the night before and
both liked the same spot. So when they showed up early the next morning,
they didn’t fight for this prime bit of tailgating real estate, they
shared the space! Only at a lacrosse meet would two tailgating groups
from the opposite sides of the sports galaxy reach détente and agree to
tailgate together. I swear the clouds opened and I saw doves fluttering
by. Mixed with the college fight songs I heard angles singing.
New York
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Mitch Lilien is a sales manager from
Long Island
who has been tailgating for 15 years. Son Jason graduated in 2003 from
Syracuse,
while Matthew played lacrosse for
Rutgers, graduating in 2005. They are all seasoned
tailgaters. “A few years ago most of |
Matt’s teammates and their parents came down
after a game to enjoy the tailgate,” says Mitch. “We had over 30
people with us that day.”
Mitch and family have grilled at Giants and Jets games, but not
like they do for lacrosse games. In the lot at
6:30 a.m.,
they start with egg, bacon and cheese wraps. Burgers, salads and beans
fill the afternoon air. “We bring plenty of everything to lacrosse
games,” says Mitch. “Once you are in the stadium you don’t want to leave,
so we eat a big lunch.” Later after the game, they finish off the day
with sausage and peppers. Sometimes steaks and chicken. Sometimes all
three. On some days, they’ll go until midnight!
Boston
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Two hundred and fifteen miles to the north, Fran Powers and Bob
Walsh’s sons played youth Lacrosse together along the south shore. Fran
is a dentist and Bob is a high school teacher where he also coaches
lacrosse. Bob’s youngest will play lacrosse at
Guilford
College this fall. They humbly started tailgating at the championships at
Rutgers in 2001 with a throw-away charcoal grill. A
Rutgers |
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fan saw them
and started laughing at their meager tailgate offerings. “At first
we were a little mad,” says Fran.
“But it turns
out he wasn’t laughing at us. Our set up just reminded him of where
they were 10 years earlier.
They actually
helped us get up to speed with our tailgating craft.” The team
quickly learned the tricks of the trade and was now grilling Italian
sausage, marinated beef tips and dry-rubbed chicken on a much larger
grill. They also do wings as well as steamers and corn on the cob,
which is a must if you come from New England.
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Set up along side these new friends was a ring toss where both
groups were enjoying cold, hopsy beverages and a good-natured game.
Together they were a group of about 15.
Fran says that every tailgate is different and the best tailgate
will be the next one. “Hooking up with the
New York
guys is great,” says Fran. “Everybody is so friendly. And that’s the
great thing about lacrosse – after the game everybody gets along. It
shows that
Boston
and New York can get along.”
And that is what we found as we went from tailgate to tailgate.
Fans as young as five whipping the ball back and forth as their parents
tended to the charcoal. Feasts |
were laid out all over the parking lot. Vendors were across
the street from the stadium, all along Route 1, hawking everything from
lacrosse equipment to shirts, hats, grilled foods and local beers (which
were pretty darn tasty).
Three Day
Party
Tailgaters from all over were represented with their team colors.
Most went into the stadium for the matches but some stayed back to eat and
drink some more. Many would go into the stadium later on in the game.
Upon leaving the stadium fans could get their hand stamped and enter back
in for the next game. The local stadium attendants and state cops where
extremely friendly and helpful.
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Fans from 44 states and five countries set record crowds while
watching the 2008 championship games with the Division I crown going to
Syracuse. Division II was won by the New York Institute of Technology
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and the Division III championship was captured by
Salisbury
University. All in all the 2008 NCAA Lacrosse championships was a
three-day party that did not disappoint. It was a festive atmosphere and a
wonderful thing to see!
The nations of the world could learn a thing or two from lacrosse
fans.
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