4C
HOMECOMING
PREGAME
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 1, 2007
Jayhawk fans gather to tailgate before the home football games. Fans have been forced to improvise a little this season, with the construction of the new Anderson Family Football Complex. The construction process closed off many popular tailgating areas, causing frustration for many students and alumni.
Despite the hassle, they still loaded up their gear and found new places to keep the Kansas tailgating tradition going.
Fans keep tailgating despite construction
Fans got resourceful with their tailgating spots because of the Campanile hill construction. Tailgateers, moved to other areas such as lot 10.
Jayhawks find new places to set up their grills
BY JASON BAKER
As Jayhawk fans prepare to bring the grill, the food and the old pigskin to throw around on game day, one concern is on their minds this season: "Where am I going to tailgate?"
This year, tailgating has been different and more difficult for fans to carry out on the areas surrounding the stadium because of the construction of the new Anderson Family Football Complex on the Campanile hill.
Dave Moore, field operations manager at the University of Kansas Parking and Transportation Department, is hoping that the project will take only 14 months to complete.
"We knew that it was going to be a pain, but we didn't want to drag it out for two years," he said. "We want to have enough (parking) to accommodate KU students."
Moore said that the department had complaints about the construction, but there had always been complaints about the parking lots by the
stadium. University alumni have had a difficult time adjusting to not tailgating on the Campanile hill.
"It's harder to get into the stadium through that one little path," said Jan Denning, a 1976 graduate. "It's not as fun with the number of people there. I don't get to see as many of my friends. I don't know if it's a hassle, but it isn't the same."
Jan and her husband Gary, who is also a 1976 graduate, have been tailgating at Kansas football games for more than 15 years. In the past, they tailgated under the trees near
KANSAN FILE PHOTO
the Campanile. Now, they tailgate at the Adams Alumni Center.
"It is a hassle when you're picking people up and their gear," he said. "A friend of mine that tailgates with me has a daughter who's pregnant and comes to the games. It's been tough for her to be able to move around."
Gary, however, is more frustrated by the construction than his wife.
The University has been attempting to better accommodate tailgaters by opening up other parking lots
"We have 610 Sports come in and do their show, and we also set up a couple tents outside," said Danny Lewis, assistant director of Alumni Programs and director of national alumni programs and athletic events. "We're trying to create a beer garden atmosphere. Indoors, we have about four or five big screens or flat screen TVs so people can watch other games."
for tailgating Donna Hultine, director of the KU Parking Department, said that along with the parking lots near the stadium, lots 36 and 39 on Memorial Drive, the Mississippi Street parking garage, parts of
Lewis also said that he thought that the construction was for the bgt-
"The transition went smoothly, and we still had some epic tailgates and feel that we are a shoe-in for 'tailgate of the week' one of these days."
TOM LARKIN
Garden City senior
the lot behind Strong Hall, lot 2 near Budig Hall, lot 33 near Lindley Hall, lot 54 near Murphy Hall and lot 72 of the Burge Union were available for Jayhawk fans to tailgate.
Along with these additions, the Alumni Center, east of the Kansas Union parking garage, made some changes this year to provide fans with a better tailgating experience, mainly by turning the parking lot into an outdoor lot.
ter and that fans thought so, too.
"I've talked to people, and a lot of people are ecstatic about the changes," he said. "They are committed to the football team, but are upset about the parking. But people understand that
it's a necessary evil to get the football program to where it needs to be."
Although the construction has been an inconvenience, one student doesn't mind it.
Before the construction Jack Hannah, Olathe senior, and his friends parked his truck directly on the Hill.
"It was, without a doubt, the best spot to tailgate in," Hannah said. "We could sit in the bed of the truck and
watch the game and still feel like we were in the stadium."
But Hannah said he thought that the new buildings would make the football program a lot stronger and was excited about the direction that the program was taking.
Tom Larkin, Garden City senior, said he had been tailgating since he was 12 or 13 years old. He said he, too, thought the construction would turn out well despite all the inconveniences it had caused.
"It's definitely a hassle at this point, but when it's all said and done, it'll be a great addition for the football team next year." Larkin said. "But right now, it's hard to see the positive to it."
Larkin and his family used to tailgate on the bottom of the Campanile hill. Since the start of construction, they've bounced around areas such as lot 90.
Even though they may not be able to watch the game from their favorite spots, Jayhawk fans still are attending games and continuing the tradition that is tailgating. Jayhawk fans are also slowly but surely adjusting to the big cranes next to the stadium at every home football game.
"The transition went smoothly, and we have still had some epic tailgates and feel that we are a shoe-in for 'Tailgate of the Week' one of these days," Hannah said.
— Edited by Kaitlyn Syring
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