Rockwall, Texas residents and Baylor fans Dee Dee and Rick Flynt cook sausage under their tent Jan. 1, 2015, while tailgating before The Cotton Bowl Classic football game against Baylor at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. It was 34 degrees in Dallas with showers. Erin Hampton/The State News
The weather report was grim outside of the domed AT&T Stadium. A cold, wet 34 degrees that had tailgaters thinking of East Lansing instead of North Texas.
This still didn't stop tailgaters from heading to the lots for another session of burgers, beers and football. Although the early kickoff time and poor weather kept the parking lots from filling up entirely, but Spartans and Bears braved the cold to enjoy the pre-game festivities.
Last season elementary education sophomore Ryan Waisanen, elementary education sophomore Ryan McCumber and human bio junior Mike Sterner drove got to the Rose Bowl by taking a bus. The trip took 55 hours, both ways.
"We knew the weather would be bad today," McCumber said, "We didn't care."
If anything, Sterner said the group was thankful this time they got to take a plane.
"We were just happy to fly this time," he said. "This is nothing."
Alumna Taylor Flynt was born and raised in Dallas and said nothing would cause her to miss the game, even the fact that in her estimation the Baylor fans outnumbered the MSU fans.
"It's pretty close to here," she said, adding that MSU fans were outnumbering the Baylor fans in the parking lots. "People from Texas don't really like the cold."
Some Baylor fans that did brave the cold were alumnas and family members Krisit, Sunny and Davie Cox who came from Ft. Worth.
They said Baylor fans have come back from all over, and the reason is the importance of the Cotton Bowl to people in the state of Texas.
"The Cotton Bowl is a really big deal," Sunny said. "I know a lot of people were really upset that (Baylor) missed the top four, but this is still really important."
Support student media! Please consider donating to The State News and help fund the future of journalism.
