I write to all freshman, transfers and newbs to the Auburn football life. As someone who has only gone to one (amazing) game, and didn’t stay the whole time because Auburn was creaming the other team, I can only give so much information. However, that one game taught me quite a bit. So listed below is an amalgamation of what my one experience at an Auburn football game taught me.
1.) WEAR COMFORTABLE SHOES
I cannot express this point enough. My thought as I went into Jordan-Hare Stadium was that, “Oh, there are seats; I will sit for most of this thing, except for maybe a chant or a touchdown or two.” I was so naïve, so innocent back then. You will stand, the ENTIRE time. You will sit only five times: before the game, between first and second quarter, halftime, between third and fourth quarter and afterwards. The rest of the time, haha, you guessed it, you’ll be standing. So wear your comfortable shoes. You will see some girls walking around in heels. You may think, “Oh, this girl online was wrong, you totally can wear heels to these.” Ignore that voice, that voice tells lies. Those girls are either ballet dancers and can no longer feel their feet or are very good at hiding emotions. My friend wore her comfy heels to this. She ended the night in blisters and we had to take turns carrying her back to our cars. Wear your comfy shoes.
2.) Bring a Water Bottle and Sunglasses (In a Clear Bag)
The sun will be out, the stadium will be crammed and water will be expensive. Save time, money and energy by bringing a water bottle and sunglasses. I double checked and there is no ban specifically against water bottles according to the official game day site. However, they do say no against outside food or drink, so I would recommend bringing an empty water bottle you do not care about, just in case they say no. There are water stations spread throughout the stadium, so you can fill up your water bottle after the check point. However, I would bring wet wipes, as I did see a girl stick her mouth on one of the spouts to drink. As for the clear bag rule, there is no getting around that. If you plan on carrying anything more than your phone, a small wallet, a water bottle and your keys, you’ll need a clear bag. Fortunately, after a quick search on Amazon, I found a giant, clear tote for $8 with free Prime shipping.
3.) Take an Uber
Okay, so if you are living off campus or far and away from the stadium, I highly recommend getting an Uber. It was $9 for me to get a ride to almost exactly at Jordan-Hare. The barricade for tailgating was why I couldn’t get closer. This is a far better option than paying $20-$40 for parking and then having to walk 20 minutes to the stadium.
4.) Arrive Early
This one is directed at students only, because you can sit wherever you want in the Student section. However, that doesn’t mean seats won’t be taken. If you are going with a group of people larger than three, you need to get to the stadium early. They usually open the gates 2 hours before the game is set to start, so you’ll want to be outside the gates 45 minutes to an hour ahead of that to make sure you get those good seats. (This also where the water can come in handy.) Unfortunately, I had to work before hand, so I couldn’t make the gate time. Fortunately, I have wonderful friends who saved me a seat.
5.) Make Sure Your Phone is Charged
Now, it would be a great shame if you went all this way to not be able to take pictures of the kickoff or videos of Aubie getting up to his shenanigans because your phone dies. Make sure your phone is on battery saver mode, brightness is down and you stay off it as much as possible. I would also recommend bringing your charger on the off chance you see a wall socket.
6.) Eat Beforehand
Games are almost guaranteed to last over 3 hours, which is a long time to be standing and cheering without food. I would recommend eating beforehand, as the food inside the stadium is very expensive. However, they do accept Tigercard, which may give you a bit more breathing room on your decision over whether or not to get those stadium Chick-Fil-A nuggets.
7.) Bring a Roll of Toilet Paper
This is my fun advice for all you Auburn football newbs. As some of you may or may not have heard, we here at Auburn University have a very weird tradition. See, whenever we win a game, we like to make it snow. No, this does not involve a snow machine out on Samford Lawn. It involves toilet paper. That’s right folks, we here in the town of Auburn TP our own oak trees across from Toomer’s Corner when we win a football game. It’s called making it snow, because by the time everyone has “rolled the trees,” it looks like a winter wonderland. So bring your own roll, or some kid will try to sell you a half unrolled one for a $1 (not even joking, a kid tried to sell me a half-used roll).
Hope this helped and gave you some insider tips. Remember, have fun! I promise, you ain’t seen nothing like an Auburn game. Enjoy the moment. War Eagle!