Going to the ND vs Stanford game.......any suggestions?

• KR1245

  

  I've never been to South Bend. My girlfriends grandpa is a huge ND fan but he hasnt been to a game in over a decade. His health is starting to deteriorate so we thought we should get him to a game while hes still physically able to go.
  
  Looking for some advice on......
  
  Where to eat?
  Where to park?
  Places to scalp tickets?
• karen lotz

  

  White Field is the best place to park, there is a shuttle to the stadium but its only a 5 or so minute walk. Big open field with a lot of tailgating. There is also a tent set up that sells all the Notre Dame apparel, etc. As far as eating goes, if you aren't going to tailgate, there are actually some really good burgers and brats on campus that different student groups set up. If you walk around campus you will see them. Other than that, I haven't really eaten anywhere before a game. I haven't scalped tickets, have always had them before heading to South Bend, but their are usually people selling them outside the stadium. Since you have a couple weeks, I would look at craigslist, maybe the Chicago and Indianapolis sites. Do you plan on walking around before the game and doing a little sight seeing?
• karen lotz

  

  Some other gameday information along with the different events and activities:
  
  http://gameday.nd.edu/
• TODD_PACKER

  Campus walk and grotto Saturday morning.
• KR1245

  

  karen lotz;483676 wrote:White Field is the best place to park, there is a shuttle to the stadium but its only a 5 or so minute walk. Big open field with a lot of tailgating. There is also a tent set up that sells all the Notre Dame apparel, etc. As far as eating goes, if you aren't going to tailgate, there are actually some really good burgers and brats on campus that different student groups set up. If you walk around campus you will see them. Other than that, I haven't really eaten anywhere before a game. I haven't scalped tickets, have always had them before heading to South Bend, but their are usually people selling them outside the stadium. Since you have a couple weeks, I would look at craigslist, maybe the Chicago and Indianapolis sites. Do you plan on walking around before the game and doing a little sight seeing?

  
  Thanks for the info. We plan on arriving in South Bend on Friday afternoon and are looking for a decent place to eat that night. We will be tailgating before the game on Saturday, just need to figure out where to eat on Friday. Somebody mentioned Dandinos.
  
  I dont know how much sight seeing we are going to do. Her grandpa cant get around too well.
  
  I've looked on craigslist. Are tickets usually pretty expensive? I'd like to keep it under 100 bucks per ticket. Some of the asking prices on craigslist seem a bit high. I've bought tickets off of craigslist for Buckeye games and have been able to get face value or close to it. I havent see alot of that for ND games.
• karen lotz

  

  hmmm Dandinos? Is that an Italian place in or near Elkhart? I have eaten at such a place after a game but I think its like 19 miles east of campus? If it is the place I went to it is very good. I really don't know of many restaurants in South Bend, just haven't ever eaten there.
  
  As far as tickets go, there is an unwritten rule among alums not to sell their tickets for more than face value. The guy I usually get tickets from said if he found out that I sold them to someone else and made any money off of it, I would no longer be getting tickets from him. I believe tickets this year are $75 at face value. You'd have to look around a little bit on some other cities craigslist. Obviously there aren't many ND tickets for sale in Columbus.
• KR1245

  

  karen lotz;483732 wrote:hmmm Dandinos? Is that an Italian place in or near Elkhart? I have eaten at such a place after a game but I think its like 19 miles east of campus? If it is the place I went to it is very good. I really don't know of many restaurants in South Bend, just haven't ever eaten there.
  
  As far as tickets go, there is an unwritten rule among alums not to sell their tickets for more than face value. The guy I usually get tickets from said if he found out that I sold them to someone else and made any money off of it, I would no longer be getting tickets from him. I believe tickets this year are $75 at face value. You'd have to look around a little bit on some other cities craigslist. Obviously there aren't many ND tickets for sale in Columbus.

  
  Elkhart sounds familiar, I think thats where it is. Its like a seafood/italian place from what I hear.
  
  Good to know about ticket prices. I've looked at Ciagslist South Bend as well as a few other local areas. I'm considerring stub hub as well.
  
  Anyways, thanks for the info.
• karen lotz

  

  No problem, just continue to check back on the different craigslists, there will be more tickets available as next Saturday gets closer. I would stay away from stub hub if you are trying to stay under $100 a ticket. They don't sell them for face at all and then you'll have service charges on top of that.
• karen lotz

  

  http://cgi.ebay.com/Notre-Dame-vs-Stanford-4-tix-2-pair-Good-Seats-9-25-/250696039437?pt=US_Tickets_all_in_one&hash=item3a5ea5fc0d
  
  
  watch this one, ends tomorrow maybe no one will bid and you can swoop in.
• vball10set

  TODD_PACKER;483698 wrote:Campus walk and grotto Saturday morning.

  this, plus the bookstore (get there EARLY) and The Morris Inn
• sjmvsfscs08

  I stood around with two buddies before kickoff and only paid $80 ($70 is face value) for this view for Purdue:
  
  
  
  
  
  Personally I thought it was an incredible deal, I was in row 32 in section 4, I was high enough to see the strategy of the game/plays develop and low enough to see the action. Armando's touchdown was right in front of us.
  
  My two buddies bought their tickets for $70 (row THREE...some alumna's little boy went home sick) and $100 (row six), respectively. However we went this route because three tickets together would have been impossible in our judgment.
• sjmvsfscs08

  On a side note and completely unrelated but this made me think of it for some reason, I found a ticket in my grandmother's belongings after she died in 2001 of a Notre Dame-Southern California ticket from 1931. Naturally, I stole it form my aunts/uncles before they could take it. but according to wikipedia:
  

  1931 - USC 16, Notre Dame 14
  
  More than 300,000 fans welcomed the Trojans home from this thrilling victory in South Bend—a victory clinched by what sportswriter Maxwell Stiles called "Johnny Baker’s 10 little toes and three BIG points.” After trailing 14-0, USC won the game with a Johnny Baker 33-yard field goal with one minute remaining. The win snapped Notre Dame’s 26-game unbeaten string and was the Trojans’ first win in South Bend. Called "...the biggest upset since Mrs. O’Leary’s cow knocked over that lantern" by El Rodeo, USC’s student yearbook, it clinched USC’s second national title. Sports historians cite this come from behind victory with Jones as coach that prompted the school from the West to catapult into the same elite circle with ND.

  Pretty neat my grandmother had a ticket to it hahah I have to surreptitiously inquire about who exactly it was, I assume my great-grandfather since he was a business owner through the depression and thus had a job and fork out the cash.
  
  Anywho, it is now one of my short-term goals in life (after getting into Cornell or Cal for their Master's in CRP haha) to watch a Notre Dame-Southern Cal game from exactly section 21 row 52 seat 12. hahaha I'd be pretty cool to sit in that seat exactly 80 years after my great-grandfather did to watch the Irish win and propel them back into the elite status of USC and co.
• sleeper

  

  sjmvsfscs08;483845 wrote:
  Anywho, it is now one of my short-term goals in life (after getting into Cornell or Cal for their Master's in CRP haha) to watch a Notre Dame-Southern Cal game from exactly section 21 row 52 seat 12. hahaha I'd be pretty cool to sit in that seat exactly 80 years after my great-grandfather did to watch the Irish win and propel them back into the elite status of USC and co.

  
  Yeah, because nothing screams "elite status" like losing to a depleted and rebuilding Michigan team.
• krambman

  

  I've never been to a game, but my sister went to school in Mishawaka, so I have spent a considerable amount of time in South Bend. Because I've never been to a game I can't really answer any of the specific questions you asked.
  
  I will however tell you not to eat at Legends on Notre Dame's campus. The food isn't very good (frozen burgers, cheap fries, etc) and is pretty overpriced for what it is. Right across from campus there is a pretty new little strip with some shops and food. Make sure you get to campus early to walk around and see the sights if you've never been there before. The campus is easily the most beautiful college setting I've ever been too, and I would often stop and walk around when I was leaving from a visit to my sister's. Make sure you walk all the way around the stadium and check out the statues outside of the gates named for the great coaches in ND's history. The campus is pretty big, so make sure you give yourself some time. Make sure you go inside the cathedral, visit the grotto, and go up in the library for a great aerial view of the campus. I would also suggest just driving through South Bend, check out the St. Joseph River, and stop at the College Football Hall of Fame if you have time. Make sure you stop at the South Bend Chocolate Company. They have great coffee (I recommend their white mocha called the Lake Effect) and some really good chocolate (their toffee crunch popcorn is great). Basically just get their early to explore the campus and discover some of the local culture South Bend has to offer. It's a beautiful campus and city.
• sjmvsfscs08

  sleeper;483851 wrote:Yeah, because nothing screams "elite status" like losing to a depleted and rebuilding Michigan team.

  
  Well you see 80 years after 1931 would be 2011, which is the next time Southern Cal plays at Notre Dame. And the whole "back into" implies they aren't elite at the moment. Sooooooo pardon my french but WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?!??
• sleeper

  

  sjmvsfscs08;483889 wrote:Well you see 80 years after 1931 would be 2011, which is the next time Southern Cal plays at Notre Dame. And the whole "back into" implies they aren't elite at the moment. Sooooooo pardon my french but WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?!??

  
  ND and the word "elite" should never be used in the same sentence, unless we are talking about most overrated and delusional fan base of all time. If that's the criteria, might as well replace "elite" in the dictionary with Notre Dame.
• FatHobbit

  

  sjmvsfscs08;483889 wrote:Well you see 80 years after 1931 would be 2011, which is the next time Southern Cal plays at Notre Dame. And the whole "back into" implies they aren't elite at the moment. Sooooooo pardon my french but WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?!??

  
  I suggest not feeding the trolls...
• adog

  KR..when I saw the title to this thread that you were looking for suggestions, I was gonna get on here and be a smart-ass and say yes...my advise...sell your ticket and go to a real game..BUT..after seeing what you are doing by taking your gf Granddad..well I feel like, not a smart ass...just an ass.. That so cool what you are doing and I hope you give ole Gramps some great memories. Hope you all have a great time....
• KR1245

  

  Thanks adog.....I'm not a ND fan, not even close. My woman is very close with her gradfather and her dad, I figured it would mean alot to all of them..
  
  Anyways, have any of you guys been to the "Linebacker"? I was told it was sort of ND's version of the VC.
• vball10set

  like the VC, the atmoshere and libation is great, and the food is so-so....but you should stop there for at least one cocktail
• Zombaypirate

  Any suggestions? Tissues.......after getting trounced by Stanford? J/K I couldn't help it Good luck
• krambman

  

  KR1245;484121 wrote:Thanks adog.....I'm not a ND fan, not even close. My woman is very close with her gradfather and her dad, I figured it would mean alot to all of them..
  
  Anyways, have any of you guys been to the "Linebacker"? I was told it was sort of ND's version of the VC.

  
  I went to the Linebacker one night this summer when I was up there for my sister's wedding. It's just off campus. It's a tiny bar with a crappy pool table in the back room. There was a $5 cover, but it included a free drink. Honestly the place was a pretty run down dive bar. Definitely nothing like the Varsity Club.
• sleeper

  

  My only advice for the game is to bring a Stanford jersey so you don't have to root for the losing team.
• vball10set

  okay, sleeper--enough...your routine is getting old, and it's not funny anymore, so please---go away.
• Tiernan

  On the contrary I find Sleeper's comments point on with just a hint of humor sprinkled in. Keep up the good work.