I know RTLH and Gorki are jealous of my trip to see ND, even in a hurricane. Note to anyone, it really is not fun to go to a game in a Hurricane. I can only imagine what it is like to play in one.
Weather - This was simply the worst weather I have seen a game played in, bar none. I was at the Snow bowl with PSU - ND in South Bend and I was at the PSU- Iowa game (6-4) in 2004. It began pouring about 4 am and never let up. We parked about a 10 minute walk to the stadium, had north face jackets with a clear poncho on top, and were completely soaked before we got to our seats. Just before halftime, the winds started gusting. The field had inches of water on it.
To be fair, the weather totally controlled the game. 10 turnovers, multiple muffed snaps, multiple missed field goals, the game really should not count. It was the same for both teams, but it was not much of a game. NC State ran more but could not get it in the end zone. ND could not do anything period. The lone touchdown was on a blocked punt.
Setting - NC State is thought of as an urban campus, it is somewhat, but there is also lots of green. There are some very pretty areas which are classic college campus, and there are some areas with buildings which just do not fit. I am mostly talking about the main campus, but NC State actually has 3 campuses, the main area which covers most majors, the Centennial Campus which is about a mile or two off the main campus and houses the Engineering School and some corporate research facilities, and the Vet school which is about 3 miles from the main campus and adjacent to the State Fair Grounds and the Stadium. The stadium itself was redone in the past 5 years, has decent parking and good sight lines. I like on campus stadiums, so that is a bit of a negative to me, but the stadium is nice sized and there was a good amount of tailgating despite the 12 inches of rain which were falling. One thing I did not like is that NC State uses a recorded wolf howl similar to our lion roar. The wolf howl just sounds hokie and is not intimidating nor does it get you fired up.
Crowd - The stadium was about 2/3rds full and far fewer ND fans than I expected. Perhaps they were in the Backyard Bistro (Bar adjacent to fairgrounds and stadium) or maybe they just cancelled when the forecast for a Hurricane appeared. The NC State Student section was also far from full, but NC State is currently on break. The crowd that was there and stayed was loud. The band was good and performed before the game despite the few inches of water that were sitting on the turf. The crowd began leaving in the first quarter, but those that stayed kept the place rocking. NC State allows you to leave at halftime and re-enter. Lots of folks left to get some more anti-freeze. Fortunately, the referees delayed the start of the second half for "weather", and many of the fans who left at halftime returned.
Game- The game was fun for awhile, playing in the rain after a morning of drinking, not so bad. NC State was fired up through the entire game. Notre Dame just never had anything. They tried to pass all day, it did not work in the first quarter and did not work in the last. Notre Dame's running game was inferior to NC States, makes me wonder about how good Notre Dame's offensive line really is? NC State ran the ball effectively at times, but anytime they got in the red zone, fumbles and bad snaps abounded. It is not easy to say much about either defense, except a rediculous taunting penalty was called on NC State after a crucial 4th down stop of ND. The NC State Defensive End held his hands up in the air over the ND offensive lineman's head who had actually turned around and may not even have seen it. In the end it meant nothing, but could have been crucial.
In summary, I have heard that NC State is one of the better ACC game day environments, it was hard for me to judge that. I do like the stadium and setting, just wish it was on campus. I doubt I will ever sit through a game in those conditions again, not sure why the game was not delayed for one day as Sunday is 78 and not a cloud in the sky.
For all the ND haters (I think there are 2 other threads started in the last 24 hours) I was attending this game with two ND players parents and sitting with a friend who has a building on the South Bend campus named after his father. None of them like Kelly, but they also think that their is very little chance that he is on a hot seat at all. He just signed a new, long contract and he was hired by the current AD and President. Unless there is some drastic incident or a total collapse, Kelly will be there in 2017.
Weather - This was simply the worst weather I have seen a game played in, bar none. I was at the Snow bowl with PSU - ND in South Bend and I was at the PSU- Iowa game (6-4) in 2004. It began pouring about 4 am and never let up. We parked about a 10 minute walk to the stadium, had north face jackets with a clear poncho on top, and were completely soaked before we got to our seats. Just before halftime, the winds started gusting. The field had inches of water on it.
To be fair, the weather totally controlled the game. 10 turnovers, multiple muffed snaps, multiple missed field goals, the game really should not count. It was the same for both teams, but it was not much of a game. NC State ran more but could not get it in the end zone. ND could not do anything period. The lone touchdown was on a blocked punt.
Setting - NC State is thought of as an urban campus, it is somewhat, but there is also lots of green. There are some very pretty areas which are classic college campus, and there are some areas with buildings which just do not fit. I am mostly talking about the main campus, but NC State actually has 3 campuses, the main area which covers most majors, the Centennial Campus which is about a mile or two off the main campus and houses the Engineering School and some corporate research facilities, and the Vet school which is about 3 miles from the main campus and adjacent to the State Fair Grounds and the Stadium. The stadium itself was redone in the past 5 years, has decent parking and good sight lines. I like on campus stadiums, so that is a bit of a negative to me, but the stadium is nice sized and there was a good amount of tailgating despite the 12 inches of rain which were falling. One thing I did not like is that NC State uses a recorded wolf howl similar to our lion roar. The wolf howl just sounds hokie and is not intimidating nor does it get you fired up.
Crowd - The stadium was about 2/3rds full and far fewer ND fans than I expected. Perhaps they were in the Backyard Bistro (Bar adjacent to fairgrounds and stadium) or maybe they just cancelled when the forecast for a Hurricane appeared. The NC State Student section was also far from full, but NC State is currently on break. The crowd that was there and stayed was loud. The band was good and performed before the game despite the few inches of water that were sitting on the turf. The crowd began leaving in the first quarter, but those that stayed kept the place rocking. NC State allows you to leave at halftime and re-enter. Lots of folks left to get some more anti-freeze. Fortunately, the referees delayed the start of the second half for "weather", and many of the fans who left at halftime returned.
Game- The game was fun for awhile, playing in the rain after a morning of drinking, not so bad. NC State was fired up through the entire game. Notre Dame just never had anything. They tried to pass all day, it did not work in the first quarter and did not work in the last. Notre Dame's running game was inferior to NC States, makes me wonder about how good Notre Dame's offensive line really is? NC State ran the ball effectively at times, but anytime they got in the red zone, fumbles and bad snaps abounded. It is not easy to say much about either defense, except a rediculous taunting penalty was called on NC State after a crucial 4th down stop of ND. The NC State Defensive End held his hands up in the air over the ND offensive lineman's head who had actually turned around and may not even have seen it. In the end it meant nothing, but could have been crucial.
In summary, I have heard that NC State is one of the better ACC game day environments, it was hard for me to judge that. I do like the stadium and setting, just wish it was on campus. I doubt I will ever sit through a game in those conditions again, not sure why the game was not delayed for one day as Sunday is 78 and not a cloud in the sky.
For all the ND haters (I think there are 2 other threads started in the last 24 hours) I was attending this game with two ND players parents and sitting with a friend who has a building on the South Bend campus named after his father. None of them like Kelly, but they also think that their is very little chance that he is on a hot seat at all. He just signed a new, long contract and he was hired by the current AD and President. Unless there is some drastic incident or a total collapse, Kelly will be there in 2017.
