Every Saturday in Autumn

I remember taking the Campus Connector bus from the student union to downtown Minneapolis for the first Gopher football game of the 2008 season at the Metrodome. I was a freshman at the University of Minnesota and had stayed up all night just a few weeks ago to ensure I could be the first to buy a season ticket. When the bus made its final stop just outside the Metrodome, I hoped off with my new found friends and wondered what next. There were parking lots filled with maroon and gold, smoke from brats, and beer as far as the eye could see. It was then I fell in love with tailgating, even before my first cold one. 

What followed next would be years of student tailgating the best we knew how. Undergrads huddled around a cooler full of beer in an alley behind the student housing complex. We didn't have money for a fancy grill or really even food, but the beer and company was enough. 

I was thrust into post-grad life in the spring of 2012. With a fresh outlook and a job that paid actual money, I was set on tailgating like a grown-up. Yes, I indeed still purchased student season ticket; but that was on the U for not deactivating my student campus ID card. Regardless, I had big boy tailgating tickets in a real parking with a working grill and fresh burgers. 

Flash forward to 2022: I'm married to my college sweetheart and we have 3 year old and a 6 month old. Indeed, tailgating looks differently now as compared to my roots, but the love remains. 

All of my past played into what the vision of Saturdays Tailgate is: a guide to get you outside and enjoy every Saturday in Autumn.