Re: BCS 2013-14: This space for rent
Returned today from LA.
Ended up staying downtown LA at the Historic Mayfair, which turned out to be a pretty good idea because it was about a 10 minute walk from the team hotel at the Marriott and about a third of the price so I was still able to hit up a lot of the events. Did some sight seeing, but more importantly indulged my inner foodie. In-n-out, Roscoe's Chicken and Waffles, along with a bunch of local places.
Our spot was in downtown near Union Station. FlyAway was easy to use to/from LAX and was only $8, and the ride was only 30 minutes. And the Gold Line, while slightly crowded, got us where we needed to for only $5 for the day. Definitely worth it, beats the hell out of cabs, if I was doing it again I would go this way. The area around the hotel wasn't amazing, but I wasn't planning on doing much other than sleep and go to the game. We did a nice bit of walking once we got to Pasadena, from the Memorial stop to the pancakes, from the pancakes to our seats (1500 E Colorado), and then from there all of the way to the stadium.
Gameday was perfect in every way. Parade was cool, not sure if I would want to do it again though because even though my height allowed me to see everything the ever-growing push from the back of the group got old and eventually I left before it ended because it was getting obnoxious. Funny thing was the weather was mid 50s, maybe it got up to 60, but all Stanford fans had jackets on, while those wearing green sported shorts and t shirts. Didn't find where the shuttles were on the way to the stadium, so my friend and I ended up walking all the way from the train station to the stadium. It was a great walk but man, that was long.
I liked the parade too. We had bleacher seats, so that was nice as we didn't have to stand and fight the pushback. I might do it again, but I also doubt it changes so much year to year so maybe it's not a must-do, especially since sleeping in for the game one of these years would be nice. I agree the walk was looong, longer than it seemed it should be. But hey, exercise is nice and all, and it's mostly downhill, so no big deal ultimately. How did you get back out of the ravine?
The stadium itself was incredible. Thanks to me not coming in until NYE we didn't pick up our tickets for the student section until then. The people we roomed with got their's the day before and were in row L, the second row of the endzone. Great seats if you like simulating having a field pass and looking at a flag pole, goal post, and camera man. We ended up with row 13, which actually was row 20 or something like that. Not the best view but certainly manageable. From overhead pictures it looks like there might've been 70% MSU fans there, I've seen estimates up to 75%. Great game, better ending, and celebrating with 60k+ other Spartans was an incredible experience that unfortunately may never be matched again. One, because hopefully it won't take 26 years, but two, because now it's part of the playoff so it either won't be the final step, or it means the team is out of the NC game.
Definitely a cool looking stadium and definitely great views of the area around there. As with any bowl stadium you're not on top of the action, but if you want that, watch TV I say. I'd say it was more 60% to 65%, they had the majority for sure, but not an overwhelming one; a lot of sections were well mixed and it was hard to get a good count.
As for the game, you're a great team and beat us straight up. Both Ds were able to lock down the run and dare the other teams to pass, and you did that while we kept thinking we could force the run. Teams like Oregon want your D, with the size and number to actually stop the run, rather than their attempt to go small and fast.
Can we agree the reffing sucked for both sides though?
Some more thoughts:
Stanford band: Was really looking foward to it. The burning couch was a nice troll job but overall it seemed too forced.
Programs: On a mission to uncover the mass program conspiracy occurring at stadiums across the country. The 100th edition Rose Bowl program is the nicest one I've ever seen. I went in fully expecting to pay $20 and was even willing to pay $30, yet it was only $10. Obviously we're all being overcharged at other events.
Stadium: Amazing. The open concourse is great, the tunnels are great. The only things I didn't like were that there was just the single video board, so I always had to look backwards and that noise from the other side dies down. Reminded me of Michigan Stadium, where it's big but the bowl shape makes it too open.
- One of our better halftime shows in a few years, as it was more coherent than they've been in recent memory. I found it funny how bent out of shape the couch gag got the MSU fans, especially since you guys ended up burning more after the win.
- Do you guys have some cheer where you mention your colors?? If so, you should consider using it more, instead of relying on such a diverse group of other cheers.
Overall, fun experience except for the part where we lost, but we lost to the best, and it gives us ideas on what we can do better and need to work on. And nothing too wrong with losing the Rose Bowl, by a mere 4 points, as it means you made it to the Rose Bowl.
