Polite opposing fans always generally make a good impression on their program for me. This effectively makes it harder for me to hate the Fuskies nowadays.

The fans were pretty good folks.
I just hope we can return the favor next year

was hell last year for my friend and I. I was pleasantly surprised at how polite the Purdue fans were. I was somewhat weary because I was taking my girlfriend (well she bought the tickets for me for my birthday) to her first big time football game.
I think the rudest things I heard during the game were…“Hey Ducks, what combination is your team wearing today” which was immediately followed by his friend saying “Dude they are wearing white helmets and jerseys and green pants, they just said it on the radio.”

Overall it was a much better experience than the Big House, polite crowd they had at Purdue. I also experienced an upgrade in seating, but mine was to the front row behind the South Endzone.

GO DUCKS

I made the trip as well…here’s a few casual observations:

• Overall I was impressed by the Purdue gameday experience. Nice stadium, lots of tailgating, everyone wearing black (except us Duckies), and some good traditions. I have that cheer stuck in my head today…“boiler UP! (clap clap) boiler UP! (clap clap)…”

• They play the “Shout” scene/song from Animal House at the end of the third quarter. All the Oregon fans looked at each other like, “Hey, Animal House is OUR movie!” So we were all singing along to “Shout” just like the Purdue crowd.

• I enjoyed the scoreboard clip of Mel Gibson in “Braveheart”, giving his big speech before the battle. They overdubbed an impersonator’s voice so Mel was telling his hordes to “BOILER UP!!!”

• The halftime marching band rendition of “Devil Went Down To Georgia” was, ah, not a good idea. The fiddlers were coming out the PA system a half-beat ahead of the rest of the band on the field, so not only did it sound bad, it sounded out of sync. Normally I would not bother to comment about the marching band, but it was truly an awful experience sitting through that song.

• I didn’t hear much smack from the Purdue fans, either before or during the game. A frat boy did throw a water balloon our way as we walked past the frat house after the game. Everyone else seemed pretty friendly.

• I almost feel bad for the Purdue crowd, as they spent all afternoon thinking they were finally going to notch a win over a Top 25 team, only to have their hearts ripped out at the end.

• I’m glad Purdue’s kicking game needs work.

• We had a great time on the Ducks bus from Chicago. It was comfortable, we had cold beers and snacks, and we watched last year’s Michigan and USC games on the bus TV as we rolled through Indiana. The UOAA tailgate party was also fun and well attended. Special guests included Pat Kilkenny and Dick Harter.

• Actual billboard spotted on a farm in Indiana: “HELL IS REAL”. Yeah, and we are driving through it right now.

• The Addicted to Quack community was well represented at the game — DavisDuck, jtlight, bradLL99, ntrebon, and JSchufelt were all in the house, as well as ChicagoQuack503 (were you wearing a yellow sport coat?).

At the end of halftime, I was able to watch the Oregon players file back into the stadium. There was a group of Oregon fans who were cheering them on and trying to get them pumped up for the second half. There were two Oregon players of note that seemed, in my opinion, completely disinterested by their body language. Of note, one of those two had a stellar second half and the other did not…