While our beloved Mountaineers don’t always make it into the Top 25 college football rankings, WVU tailgating does. The energetic ambience of tailgating in Morgantown is recognized as some of the best in college football by USA Today, Bleacher Report, Southern Living, Tailgater Monthly and Top Bet.
This blog is intended to give you a glimpse into the Wild and Wonderful Tailgating lifestyle of WVU and Mountaineer Nation.
Through this blog, we’ll share photos, videos and stories from our own tailgate, and invite you to share yours too – either in the comments or via an email to wvutailgating@gmail.com.
Andrea (Andy) Joliet
As you can tell from the blog’s name, my husband, Dave, and I love WVU football season, and especially tailgating. No matter what kind of season our football team has, we always have a winning tailgate.
There truly is no better place to be on game day than Morgantown, WV. The atmosphere is lively, friendly and always entertaining with plenty of good food, drink and conversation.
I grew up in West Virginia in a very rural community southeast of Parkersburg called Calhoun County. (One thing you’ll notice about most West Virginians is they always give their county when you ask them where they’re from.) Like many small towns in this Appalachian state, my hometown didn’t have a single stop light and the only real night life belonged exclusively to the crickets.
The Pit – Oct. 24, 1992. The last time WVU played Penn State.
I fell in love with WVU tailgating during college in the late 1980s to early 90s. Back then, students tailgated in a grassy area close to the stadium called the Pit. With kegs of Natty Boh and crowds of cavorting students, I’m convinced that this is where our #1 Party School designation was earned. In fact, since the Pit was covered in asphalt and turned into an alcohol-free zone, the university has slipped to the #4 spot.
Every football game weekend, we make the 3 hour drive to Morgantown.
We hope to share the ambience of a WVU football game weekend with you, so that if you’ve never had the pleasure of experiencing it for yourself, you’ll definitely want to add it to your bucket list. And, if you are fortunate enough to have experienced a WVU tailgate, I hope it sparks you to start planning your next one.
We’d also love to have you join our tailgate. Just find us in the Gold Lot (across from Lincoln Hall) under the PRT. We’re only about a 5-10 minute walk from the stadium. And we always set up early, regardless of game time.
Let’s goooo Mountaineers!
Dave Joliet
I was born and raised in Akron, Ohio, which is often referred to as the unofficial capitol of West Virginia. In fact, I consider myself an honorary West Virginian. A West Virginia woman named Elly helped raise me. Every time John Denver’s “Take Me Home, Country Roads” played, she would jump up and hold her chest as if she was in a stadium crowd saluting our national anthem.
As a child, I was puzzled by her intense reaction, but now I understand her reverence to this West Virginia anthem. I find a kinship in the people who make up that great state. They’re honest, hardworking and as friendly as Andy Griffith at a church picnic. They’ll always offer you a smile and a wave when you pass them along any of the winding, scenic, country roads. And wherever I go – around Ohio or elsewhere – when I see someone sporting the familiar flying WV, I always know I have a friend to chat with.
In mid August, when the UPS driver delivers our season tickets, I feel like a little kid on Christmas morning. I can’t wait for that first tailgate of the season. On game day, I’m usually the first person to arrive to set up in the gold lot. On these crisp mountain mornings, I love the anticipation of the day’s activities.
I was introduced to WVU tailgating by my wife in 2004. We parked in the green lot surrounded by fun-loving, rowdy groups of students and tailgaters. Everyone was so friendly and welcoming. It struck me right away that while a country road may take you home, a WVU tailgate will feed your soul.
Let’s go ‘Eers!