IHawks2044
Well-Known Member
I don't need to drink to enjoy a hawkeye game so this really isnt a huge deal to me. Tailgating is stilll fun regardless. Talk to people, eat alot of beef, good times. When I was going we would hit the bars and hoof if over anyways. From the ped mall to the stadium on foot is only a 10 minute walk.
If somebody wants to quit going to games because they can't get liquored up in the parking lot then so be it. Hopefully you have good seats so I can take them over.
Its not the opportunity to get liquored up that most people will miss, its the atmosphere. Let's face it, if people aren't able to drink around the stadium, you will have most of the younger crowd (40 and under) without kids moving further away so that they can enjoy a few drinks while grilling and tailgating. Thats going to leave the immediate area around Kinnick to those that want a nice, quiet, relaxing tailgate and you'll be able to hear crickets walking up and down Melrose. This is what makes Iowa games unique, the amount of people that are just swarmed around the stadium, drinking or not. Ask people that come in from out of the area and different schools about their experience at Iowa and most will say it is incredible how close and how many tailgating spots are around the stadium. Now if they start cracking down on drinking, some will go to the bars (which still hurts the Melrose atmosphere), some will move further away from the stadium (also hurts Melrose), and some might just stay home (hurts Melrose and Kinnick).