PSU v south florida

It's the first game AND tailgate of the season! Penn State hosts the South Florida Rams on September 3rd at 3:30pm. Parking lots open at 8:00am and we're planning to be there, waiting in line when they open the gates!

We'll be serving a sampling of wines from the Shenandoah Valley (purchased during a trip to the region this summer) along with complimentary fare.

Colors to avoid this week are green and gold - so break out the silver accessories!

This year we will be parking in Lot 13 or Lot 12 (see map), as close to the front of the lot(s) as possible. Take note that football parking has been affected by the baseball park construction. Lot 13, according to the "plans", has not been altered as a result - but the traffic flow and volume may change.

As always, all are welcome. We just ask that you comment here or send us an email so we can prepare accordingly. We'll be sending out our "regular" email a little closer to gameday; if you'd like to be added to our email list, please email us at coach@2thelion.com - and check the Website (2theLion.com) for updates! Also, be sure to see our football analysis on the football blog (2thelionfootball.blogspot.com).

Hope to see you there - To the Lion!

Construction affects Football Parking

Check out the article in the CDT about the changes to football parking due to the construction of the new baseball stadium.

Centre Daily Times - PSU Parking Changes



I don't think that this affects our plans much - that is, lot 13 is still intact (thank goodness for the cows). I'll give the parking office a call a little closer to the season to confirm.

I can't believe that they are altering reserved (purple) parking again. Many of those folks were displaced in 1999 when they started the stadium expansion (the area affected is where they had originally displaced Mr. Hoover).

Welcome to Audioblogger!

Click above and listen to the inaugural "Audioblogger" post! With Audioblogger we can "blog" from any telephone and post audio messages directly to the blog.

This means we can capture moments directly from the tailgate and games!

Oh- I was walking home from work when I recorded the above message - so please excuse my delivery!

Diesel Tailgate

Diesel Tailgate

Check out link above for the Diesel Tailgate folks' planning page(s) for the Central Michigan Tailgate. They're a great bunch of kids and they have a fun website.

Pep Rally at Beaver Stadium

I always talk about going to these things, but never seem to make there. They're having a Pep Rally at Beaver Stadium September 2nd (Friday night), the day before the season opener.

According to gopsusports.com (where you can get the whole story), more than 20,000 fans attended last year's event, and they are expecting even more this year. The event is free (and so is parking) and will include a pep rally with Head Coach Joe Paterno and the squad, a Blue Band concert, cheerleaders, dance team and the Nittany Lion. Friday night's celebration will also feature some added surprises and prize give aways along Curtin Road and provide the community with the opportunity to meet the 2005 Nittany Lion Football team. The night will be capped off once again with a spectacular display of Zambelli's fireworks.

Festivities outside the stadium will start at 6:30 p.m. Events inside the stadium are scheduled to begin at 8:00 pm. Fans are directed to use Stadium Gates A & B to enter the stadium.

Website update

Well - we have a grand total of 2 signatures in our Guestbook! Thanks Jon & Dena!

I haven't had the time, sadly, to do much updating lately. If anyone has anything (pictures or text) that they want to contribute - please send it to me!!!

I hope to get some more work done on it this week - football season is going to be here before we know it - so it's time to start planning!!!

There are 3 (back to back to back) home games in September - The Central Michigan game is a joint Diesel Tailgate - you can check their website to keep up to date on the planning. http://dieseltailgate.no-ip.org

Aunt Madeline sent me an addition to the tailgating gear for my birthday - a handmade (by her) tiled trivet - blue and white, of course!

Potluck Party

I went to a Potluck dinner party this past weekend - that's like an indoor tailgate, with no football game.

The "theme", if you will, was "ethnic" - the idea was that each of the guests would bring a dish from their "ethnic background".

The guests brought a variety of dishes - from pulled pork (Carolina style) to basmati rice with spicy chickpeas.

It was a really friendly atmosphere and it was sort of an icebreaker for people to talk about themselves and their background(s).

I myself took cheese and crackers - the kitchen at home was sorta disabled - so I opted for "less" preparation. I took Fontina (Swedish), Kraft Old English spread, Cheddar, herbed Brie, Goat and a variation of Suzanne's "poorman's Boursin" (I used fresh thyme and parsley from the garden).

It was a lovely party - and the cheese did get eaten - to the point it was cut - just like the tailgate - if you cut it, they will eat it. (ha ha - cut the cheese).

2 months to go

Okay - It's July. The first games of the season are just 2 months away. It's a little early to start food preparation - but just a little.

This summer for Blue White we did a lot of baking ahead of time. We made a bizillion different desserts, froze them and then defrosted them for the game. So I'm thinking that if I start baking now, I can have a bunch of stuff ready for the season which we can then pick and choose to have for the different weeks. Plus it's a way to diffuse some of my "football energy" - I've been getting some emails from the football faithful - and folks are ready for some football!

Not that I want to wish the summer away - but - how I long for a crisp sunny autumn afternoon with the smell of charred animal flesh and decaying foliage in the air to spend with 106,000 of my closest friends!

Travel = tailgating ideas

Traveled down to the Shenandoah Valley this past weekend. It is such a beautiful part of the country - the Blue Ridge Mountains and Piedmont areas offer tons of "sites" from the wildlife to the wineries.

We spent a little more time at the wineries - but in Virginia you really have to interact with nature to get to most of their vineyards - crazy back-woods, gravel, twisty roads - so not like the Finger Lakes where the wineries are all along the Lake(s), close together, and very easy to get to.

But the journey was well worth it - we "tasted" many excellent wines - and many different varieties.

So now comes the planning... In 2003 we had a wine tasting tailgate - we offered a variety wines with food pairings. We even did a proper "tasting" - it was so much fun.

Perhaps we'll do it again this year! South Florida has a 3:30pm start - sounds good!

I bought myself a souvenir in the Shenandoah National Park (on Skyline Drive) - it's a GIANT blue totebag - water resistant with a top closing zipper. I can't wait to pack it up for tailgating!

We also got some Carolina Style BBQ sauce. Yes, we were in Virginia, but they don't really have their own style sauce - and the Carolina style is the vinegary type - yum yum -- So that, of course, makes me think of pulled pork- which would be another great tailgating food.

Kay Kustanbauter to retire

Kay Kustanbauter, who has been the head of the Nittany Lion Club, since, it would seem, the beginning of time, has announced that she will be retiring.

No word on who will be her replacement. She's been a great fund raiser for PSU.