BeastOwl said

Cheap Booze
Free Food
Live Music…I believe Otis Day & The Nights are available  ;D

Haha nice Animal House reference

SigEp77 said

^^^
Some really great ideas in there and I will most certainly bring them back.  The Game Day idea is interesting and maybe we can work up to that as the crowds increase.

The one thing I failed to mention in response to boozie, the timing of allowing people in to tailgate in the parking lots is controlled by the University and most likely costs.  They will not allow earlier tailgating for safety reasons, don't want people drinking all day, and also they need to pay the police and parking attendants those additional hours, I don't think that is fiscally responsible when we just got hit with a $25MM budget reduction.

Keep the ideas coming!  I looked to all of you first as you are the TRUE BLUE FAU Faithful that makes the game day experience and we need to get more of you out!

Then thank God FAU PD don't break down every door in the dorms before the tailgates start.

I thought about stopping in there last year, but it appeared to be a private, invitation-only event. I would suggest setting up more of an inviting entry point with signs, etc. - maybe even people saying hello and welcoming in alumni.

I think now that you have the Rat's Mouth across the street, that entire area will look much more the tailgate central that NAA wants it to be.

With all of the unknowns of planning a tailgate where 10 or 1,000 could show up, I think FAU Alumni Relations did a great job planning it.

1. Security
2. Food
3. Drinks
4. Staff needed

Are all variables based on how many people will show up. And people usually don't RSVP in enough time (usually needed a week or two in advance to the outside companies providing the service) for FAU Alumni Relations to put down deposits and pay for the services.

This isn't UF, UT, or big schools that know they will "sell out" of their space every game. BUT EVENTUALLY WE WILL GET THERE.

FAU Alumni Relations, in my opinion, did a great job managing the risk of the "unknowns." And let's face it - most of the alumni on this board talk about their own tailgates. There's nothing wrong with doing your own tailgating, but the more people who do their own tailgating, the fewer people who will plan to go to the FAU Alumni Relations tailgate.

I thought the Alumni Relations tailgate served it's purpose for me (an out-of-towner): it allowed me to come-and-go as I please, it provided me air conditioning and restrooms for a few hours, it gave me the opportunity to be "part of it" on a bigger scale, it was next to the "action" of the entrance of players and coaches, it had music, games on TV, food, drinks, etc.

I look forward to attending it again this year.

I'm sure they do great work and I'm sure they work hard given their budget. The thing is, for ppl like me who technically aren't alumni, it's cheaper to plan my own tailgate than to pay to get in to the alumni tailgate.

I don't expect them to let ppl in for free. They deserve to make money too, I'm just saying that's why I do my own thing

Jab979 said

or ppl like me who technically aren't alumni

Are they really that strict about it? I'm sure you could plead your case if you wanted to get an alumni membership. It's not like they hate money over there.

There is ABSOLUTELY a friend of the univeristy alumni membership, same price as the regular one, you get all the same local discounts and now you get free grub at the alumni house!  ;D not bad for $45 bucks