Walking through the packed parking lot of a University smelling hotdogs and hamburgers has football game-day written all over it. It’s Iowa, so you’re almost guaranteed to see an empty can of beer roll past you as it gets carried with the wind. Everywhere you look you see maroon and black, the colors that Morningside fans wear with pride. Here, Saturdays get treated as a holiday as hundreds of fans swarm the bleachers to cheer on their hometown heroes.
Morningside University is in Sioux City, Iowa and it is the home of the Mustangs who are multiple time national football champions. Across America, going to, or watching, college football games on Saturdays is a tradition. Today, the Mustangs host conference rivals in Northwestern University so you’d bet that you want to be at the game feeling the catastrophic atmosphere as opposed to watching the game in the dorms on a twin bed.
As the Mustangs storm onto the field you can feel the bleachers vibrating as the crowd erupts in cheer for their home team. Screaming and cowbells overwhelm your eardrums every Saturday, but as college football fans you learn to get used to it. This is a rivalry, unlike any other game during the season where Morningside sweeps through their opponent with ease, so the stands are packed and full of family and friends ready to make some noise. Throughout the home crowd all you see maroon and black, and banners waving.
On game-day it always feels like the time is a bit sped up and before you know it it’s already halftime. The concession stands line full of intoxicated students and fans looking to put a quick snack on their stomach extends quickly as the other portion of fans leaving the stands swarm into the bathroom. Pregame tailgate makes a good pitstop during halftime as well in case you want a 2 hour old cold hotdog to hold you over until the game ends. The social environment on game-day is like no other, a sense of school spirit is spread throughout the community everyone feels like they belong.
With the Mustangs having a 7 point lead to start the second half, this is the most exciting game that the community has seen all season. The competition is fierce and every play leaves fans gripping onto their seats in anticipation. As the Mustangs inch closer and closer to scoring you can feel the tension in the stadium rising as the crowd prepares to explode. The intoxicating roar of the crowd could be heard from blocks away as the Mustangs score again nearing the last couple minutes of the game.
Shouting the Morningside Fight Song, the crowd gets ready to take the field and socialize with the players following a close Morningside win. Fans rumble down the stairs and onto the field as they congratulate, hug, and take pictures with the hometown heroes. The sweaty football players and the drunken fans will most likely make plans to party later that night, and once the night is over they’ll look forward to doing it all over again the coming Saturday. Leaving the parking lot, Jeep Grand Cherokees run over the same beer cans that were rolling around during tailgating; they may still even be there next Saturday!
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