11/17/18 – Cincinnati Bearcats @ UCF Knights
Going to change the format a bit on this post – rather than the general 3rd person overview, I (Mike) want to share some details about my history with UCF and the designated tailgate spot.
In 2009, the company that I was working for moved me to Orlando. While I regret never making it to Tallahasse or Gainesville for a game, it didn’t take long before I purchased UCF season tickets to get my college football fix (I was still a Bearcats season ticket holder, but only had a chance to make it to a handful of games each season).
At the time, the Bearcats were sitting comfortably in the Big East with UCF in Conference USA. It was my hope that one day UCF would be elevated to a “BCS conference”, but never would I have imagined the conference realignment fallout that would occur over the next several years (nor could I have envisioned the “Tuberville years” or UCF’s eventual claim to a National Championship).
Regardless, my time as a UCF season ticket holder (3 seasons) allowed me to make some friends, get some familiarity with the UCF campus and program, and become a fan* (a VERY distant second behind my beloved Bearcats). *I moved back to Cincinnati in 2012 and have been 100% Bearcat ever since.
That being said, I’m planning this tailgate in an area, with a group of UCF season ticket holders that I became friendly with, that I am very familiar with. Keep in mind that UCF is similar to Ohio State in some ways, primarily in that campus is very spread out, so the tailgate location is approximately a 1 mile walk through campus to get to the stadium. Otherwise, traditional tailgate lots don’t really exist – there are a lot of parking garages and the Memory Mall is similar to The Grid in that plots are rented and tailgating equipment is dropped off (read: not ideal for visitors).
Although our tailgate, as always, is open to ALL Bearcats fans, I wanted to write this post as a general reminder that we are guests and should be respectful to our hosts. The group that we’ll be joining is a passionate group of fans much like our own, with a diverse range of ages and backgrounds. Our tailgate will be adjacent to theirs, but since we’ll be traveling without our typical gameday gear, we’ll likely rely on them for assistance with grills, coolers, etc.
All in all, I expect a really fun game in a hostile environment and look forward to handing UCF their first loss in 2 seasons and bringing home a clear path to an AAC Championship Game at Nippert Stadium! Details below…
Tailgate info:
Updated 11/17 – look for us on Gameday and join us around 3pm.
What: Cincinnati Bearcats visit the UCF Knights.
When: Saturday, November 17, 2018. Kickoff time is 8pm – we plan to be tailgating by 3pm, but may not finalize our plans until Friday. Stay tuned to our twitter, where we will post updates as they become available. @RepOfCincinnati
Where: Next to the Reflecting Pond – park in lot B1 near Millican Hall (in the past, this lot has been $10, but we’ve managed to escape paying by arriving before the lot attendants). See maps below:
Who: All are welcome! This is a “community” style tailgate – BYOB & food. We’re taking a small group, so we’ll be coordinating for our own and encourage you to do the same.
Please help us spread the word and feel free to reach out to us with questions/comments via twitter, facebook, or the comment form below.