First home game of season produces pure magic

For the first time since we’ve had season tickets, Dave and I didn’t have to travel from Stow, Ohio, and check into a hotel for game weekend.

This past summer, I accepted a great job opportunity at Mon Health system and we moved to Morgantown. (Living in Touchdown City definitely has its perks.)

Even with a noon start time, the tailgating scene for the season’s first home game hummed with high-octane energy. We all had been anxiously awaiting the start of college football, and that pent-up excitement was palpable.

Tailgates were springing up like meadows of goldenrod in the fall. And it was a glorious site to behold.

You see, West Virginia fans live and breathe Mountaineer pride, so tailgating isn’t just a casual affair. It is an art form.

And there really is no better way to pump yourself up for the day’s game.

One thing I love about the first tailgate of the season is catching up with friends you haven’t seen since last season.

I was especially looking forward to seeing WVU student Lauren Melansen. She had done a summer internship with the Washington, D.C., major case and narcotics investigative unit, and I couldn’t wait to hear the stories.

On her first day, she was given a bulletproof vest and ordered to come along for a drug raid. She had an exciting summer and learned a lot – and she loved every minute of it.

The game was especially extraordinary because Jamie Hall, the director of donor relations and special events for WVU’s Mountaineer Athletic Club, had invited us to the South Suites.

I’m so thankful for her generous hospitality. Dave and I have been fortunate enough to experience the “suite” life at a number of Cleveland Indians (Go Tribe!) and Cavaliers games, but this was my first time in the Puskar Center suites.

It made for a grand and memorable game. We even got to walk onto the field, where we partook in the time-honored tradition of singing “Take Me Home, Country Roads” at the end of the game. We beat ECU 56-20.

Afterwards, we made our way to the west side of the field to watch the players come in, high-fiving fans along the way.