Best College Football Tailgates

Central to American college football are the tailgates. Tailgating for college football games is a tradition for everyone to enjoy, but some schools have a national reputation for going all out. While NFL tailgates are fun, there is nothing like a college football tailgate.

While the game is the main event, there is essentially no game without a good tailgate. Parking-lot festivities begin several hours before kick-off. There is likely no bad place to tailgate if you’re with friends or family or fans of the same team, you’re bound to have a fun time. Every school has their own way of doing tailgates and, more than likely, fans will think theirs is the ultimate best.

Despite their current season, the South Carolina Gamecocks aren’t a surefire in the playoffs. What is the best way to cope with the disappointment of the season? Tailgating. South Carolina fans take tailgating to a whole new level with the repurposed Cockabooses stationed on an abandoned railroad track near the stadium. Fans can tailgate on one of the 22 high-end train cars right across from the stadium — this is what your tailgating dreams are made of. The stadium is located off campus, so game days consist of rowdy fans taking to the streets feasting on Bojangles.

Roll Tide tailgates at University of Alabama are quite an affair. Game day celebrations begin early with grills cooking barbecue brisket, hamburgers and more. Make sure you don’t miss the Elephant Stomp pep rally; the Million Dollar Band, who plays before and during the game, meets an hour before game time on the stairs of the Gorgas Library and then marches to the president’s mansion to perform.

The Rebels take their tailgates seriously. The Grove at Ole Miss is filled with fans decked out in red, white and blue, many of which hang chandeliers and dress in bow ties, jackets and pearls. Fans dress up for games like they are headed to a fancy dinner party, eating classic Southern fare off fancy china dinnerware. The tailgate party is a build-up to the Walk of Champions, where players walk to the stadium through the fans.

Louisiana State University tailgates channel the Baton Rouge spirit, filled with boiled crawfish, gumbo, alligators and pigs. The tailgate setups are just as elaborate as the food. The fans get riled up by the LSU band, as it marches down the hill to the stadium.