Nut-husband and I were at the game on Friday to watch our Utah student work the game. For what it is worth - here are some of my thoughts on the game, the fans and the stadium:
*Conference was smart to move the game to Vegas. 51K plus fans in attendance and the town was teeming with fans (mostly Utah.) A woman working in the shop at Margaritaville was thrilled to have people back in the city.
*National Finals Radio started last weekend and it will coincide with the championship game every year. Hotel rates were insane - $600 a night on the strip IF you could even get one. I'd recommend making a reservation early if you ever plan on going. We stayed at the Westin which is behind the Flamingo. It was clean and the bed was good. But not much else to write home about. We did get the joy of seeing a trailer full of cows go by.
*Whoever decided the stadium needed no parking is an idiot. At least Hacienda road is closed during game days which helps with the foot traffic. We walked from the Westin to the stadium and back and it took 90 minutes each way. If you are going to the Vegas bowl and want to get to the game on foot, I'd recommend staying at the Mandalay end of the strip. There is one parking lot for ride-share. We had planned to Uber back to our hotel but due to other circumstances, decided to walk back so I can't give any commentary on that experience.
*ASU could learn a lot from Utah. They have created a culture of family there and the commitment to the team from the fans is great. (Yes, I know there isn't an NFL team in SLC but this isn't that discussion.) Their fans were there in droves, super spirited and I have found them to generally very nice. The Twitter trolls don't represent their fan base as a whole. What I did notice is that when the team makes a mistake, the fans don't automatically call for someone to be fired. Yes, they have had an amazing season. What I mean is that they don't turn on the team anytime someone makes a mistake. Cam didn't have a great game - he threw two interceptions and fumbled once. Missed some throws. When he turns the ball over, the fans respond with "We will get it back! Let's go defense!" It's been a LONG LONG time since I've heard those types of responses from Sun Devil fans. I'd love to see ASU fans support our players like that. I'm tired of the complaining.
*Vegas is weird.
*Conference was smart to move the game to Vegas. 51K plus fans in attendance and the town was teeming with fans (mostly Utah.) A woman working in the shop at Margaritaville was thrilled to have people back in the city.
*National Finals Radio started last weekend and it will coincide with the championship game every year. Hotel rates were insane - $600 a night on the strip IF you could even get one. I'd recommend making a reservation early if you ever plan on going. We stayed at the Westin which is behind the Flamingo. It was clean and the bed was good. But not much else to write home about. We did get the joy of seeing a trailer full of cows go by.
*Whoever decided the stadium needed no parking is an idiot. At least Hacienda road is closed during game days which helps with the foot traffic. We walked from the Westin to the stadium and back and it took 90 minutes each way. If you are going to the Vegas bowl and want to get to the game on foot, I'd recommend staying at the Mandalay end of the strip. There is one parking lot for ride-share. We had planned to Uber back to our hotel but due to other circumstances, decided to walk back so I can't give any commentary on that experience.
*ASU could learn a lot from Utah. They have created a culture of family there and the commitment to the team from the fans is great. (Yes, I know there isn't an NFL team in SLC but this isn't that discussion.) Their fans were there in droves, super spirited and I have found them to generally very nice. The Twitter trolls don't represent their fan base as a whole. What I did notice is that when the team makes a mistake, the fans don't automatically call for someone to be fired. Yes, they have had an amazing season. What I mean is that they don't turn on the team anytime someone makes a mistake. Cam didn't have a great game - he threw two interceptions and fumbled once. Missed some throws. When he turns the ball over, the fans respond with "We will get it back! Let's go defense!" It's been a LONG LONG time since I've heard those types of responses from Sun Devil fans. I'd love to see ASU fans support our players like that. I'm tired of the complaining.
*Vegas is weird.
