Skip to Content, Navigation, or Footer.
A spirit that is not afraid

Auburn athletics helps turn game days into weekends

Fans at this year's games can watch with a shaker in one hand and an Ipad in the other. (Robert E. Lee / EDITOR-IN-CHIEF)
Fans at this year's games can watch with a shaker in one hand and an Ipad in the other. (Robert E. Lee / EDITOR-IN-CHIEF)

In Auburn, Saturdays in the fall are all about the game.

Now departments across campus have collaborated to ensure that the entire weekend centers on the best possible football experience for fans.

For Cassie Arner, assistant athletic director for public relations, the plan is as much about the fans who are here as they are about the fans who aren't.

"The people who are here may have their plans and their routines already, but they are still looking to improve their weekends," Arner said. "So it's to help them, but also to encourage other people who haven't come back in a while to make this part of their fall tradition."

For those who are out of town, a trip to Auburn may seem unnecessary for one day of football.

To combat this issue, Arner said the "game-day experience" is being extended to include the entire weekend.

On Fridays before home games this fall, fans can tour Jordan-Hare Stadium, the locker room and run out of the tunnel on to Pat Dye Field.

In addition, a designated number of fans will be selected to eat at Cafe Jordan-Hare, a restaurant dining experience that Arner said was created by Director of Athletics Jay Jacobs.

Jacobs was inspired by a concept he saw in a travel magazine about chefs who would go to one location for a night and cook for a group of guests, according to Arner.

At this "cafe," fans can purchase food on Pat Dye Field itself.

Even non-sporting events such as a lecture series have been planned for the day prior to home games to engage families in all areas of the campus.

"It's important to us to make sure they're having the best possible experience that they can have, and that they're getting the most out of their time spent on campus," Arner said.

As for Saturdays, improvements have been made to make the hustle and bustle of the Plains easier to navigate.

A game day app displays real-time information and provides maps and GPS functions for those not familiar with the campus.

The app also shows fans the places not to drive when rushing to find a parking spot to make getting to the game "convenient and less of a hassle."

"Once people are on campus they can navigate around a lot easier, understanding if we've got any traffic delays, if parking lots have filled up and things like that," Arner said.

Once on campus, the athletics department will hold a public tailgate in the parking lot of Plainsman Park.

The tailgate will feature a pre-game radio show, food, televisions and former letter winners from various Auburn sports to sign autographs.

Enjoy what you're reading? Get content from The Auburn Plainsman delivered to your inbox

All of these improvements were implemented to make the time surrounding the football game more enjoyable, but perhaps the most changes were made to the game experience itself.

The University's Office of Information and Technology has made Wi-Fi Internet access available in Jordan-Hare and fans can now bring in laptops or tablets.

Concessions at Jordan-Hare now accept Tiger cards for students present at the game and the lines will now be "snaked" to diminish the crowd size and make lines more orderly.

For fans who just want to get straight to their seats, an express lane will also be opened for those who have no bags to search.

"We know that our fans, the Auburn family, make a lot of sacrifices to come back and be season ticket holders and bring their families and for a lot of them this is the highlight that they look forward to," Arner said. "It's important to us to make sure that they're having the best possible experience that they can."

The day after the game, a brunch will also be held in the arena for fans to eat away a defeat or revel in a victory.

The brunch will also provide fans another opportunity to meet players and coaches of various sports.

While the athletics department created numerous events to attract and satisfy Auburn's voracious fan base, they also created the website aubgameday.com.

The site promotes the University's own events as well as others during the weekend, and also serves as a way to check hotel availability and plan a weekend trip start to finish.

"It's important that when people come back, they feel like it was an easy, smooth experience so they want to keep coming back," Arner said.


Share and discuss “Auburn athletics helps turn game days into weekends” on social media.