Tailgate Rages Forth At Yale

With a roasted pig’s head from the Porcellian Club tailgate facing her, Alyssa N. Hill ’11, with a plateful of that same swine’s meat in-hand, said, “I’m not really that interested in going to the game.”

Indeed, for many Harvard and Yale students, Saturday’s football game was just an excuse for tailgating.

Yale’s less restrictive rules allowed for kegs at the tailgates, which were not required to shut down until the third quarter.

Last year, the Boston Police began enforcing stricter alcohol policies at the Harvard-hosted Game, irking many students and dampening festivities. Tailgates were required to end by kickoff, and kegs were prohibited.

“I love Harvard to death but Yale’s tailgate rules are amazing. This is the way a tailgate should be,” Sam W.K. Bonsey ’10 said. “It’s the greatest experience of my life.”

Each of Harvard’s 12 houses was allotted a space just 100 yards from some of the Yale tailgates, and many houses used this as an opportunity to display their creativity.

While Pforzheimer wooed students with buckets of steaming chili and cowbells, Mather House stole the show by sporting a 25-foot fabric Mather tower look-alike, which was held up by three helium balloons.

On the ground, students ate burgers in front of the Mather table, waiting for “Crunk Time.” Every fifteen minutes, students drank to the sounds of whistles and screams as the minute hand of the “Crunk Clock” reached Crunk Time. Although Crunk Time only occurred in fifteen minute intervals, students kept drinking throughout the morning.

“We push the hands forward,” said Julia E. Cain ’11, who helped organize the Mather tailgate.

Students freely walked through the parking lot holding bottles of André, handles of tequila, and cans of beer.

“I have never seen this many people this drunk, this early in the morning,” Steven W. Talbot ’13 said.

The bells and whistles of Mather house may have attracted quite a crowd but other houses sought to impress their clientele through more traditional means.

“We don’t have a giant cloth tower, but we wouldn’t want that kind of scar on Winthrop,” said Frank A. Myslicki ’12, a member of Winthrop HoCo, which served burgers and beer.At Eliot’s tailgate, things were slightly more formal.

“We have champagne. We do mimosas. We like to keep it classy,” said Eliot HoCo member Brett M. Giblin ’11. “It’s a reflection of our houses and our lives.”

About 100 yards from the sea of Crimson, members of Yale’s 12 colleges and various clubs had their own tailgate, incidentally located near the only source of music, a large set of speakers blasting everything from Miley Cyrus’ “Party in the USA” to Lil Jon’s “Shots.”

Not surprisingly, some Elis thought that their side of the tailgate was superior to Harvard’s.

“Practice makes perfect,” said Yale student Andrew A. Eberle, clearly jabbing at Harvard’s perceived lack of school spirt and game attendance. “We’re out here for every home game. It makes everything go a lot smoother.”

The Yale heavyweight crew team received a large round of applause from the crowd as its members returned to the Yale side of the parking lot with an inflatable palm tree it stole from the Mather tailgate.

“I just grabbed it and ran,” freshman Tom Lynam said. “Nobody said anything.”

As the clock neared game time, the enthusiasm was tangible. By the time the game reached the end of the first half, however, the kegs began to go dry, the ground became littered with discarded solo cups, and students started to make their way across the street to the Yale Bowl.

Though messy, the event never truly got out of hand.

“It’s pretty tame,” said Sergeant Jay Jones from the Yale University Police Department, adding, “It’s Ivy League.”