Making Trip to the Big House this Year Help Me.
April 23rd, 2023 at 10:01 PM ^
Homecoming should be fun, otherwise just pick tickets to the cheapest October conference game so you can dip in case it’s a blowout and check out more of Ann Arbor in fall.
April 23rd, 2023 at 10:05 PM ^
Thank you, currently looking at Purdue game. I wanted to talk the wife into making the drive to state college and take in a white out but. Not sure I want to be in that environment.
April 23rd, 2023 at 11:04 PM ^
Home schedule is pretty poor this year. Depending on your tolerance for cold, you may want to look at September / October games. For the record, I thoroughly enjoyed my trip to Happy Valley several years ago. It's a good place to see a game, just very tough to get to and finding a hotel isn't easy. We had to go quite a ways out of town.
I have been to PSU 3 times and I hate to say it but their fans might be the nicest fan base in football. It is a great venue. Rent an RV pull in Friday and leave Sunday. It’s a great road trip
I've been to the last two Michigan at PSU white out games and plan to go again this year. It's an incredible environment, especially on pure noise level. You will pay nearly as much as you would for The Game though. I would also say there was a significant minority, probably less than 10%, of crazy PSU fans yelling at us among the much larger number of very nice PSU fans. Great place to tailgate
Curious, what more of Ann Arbor requires you to leave an hour early from a football game?
The Hands On Museum? Gallup Park?
If you haven't been to Michigan Stadium in 5 years, why would you be in a hurry to leave it? You did all that work to get to one in the first place.
Does something close?
Also, if it's a 3:30pm kick and late enough in the year...it's going to be dark when you leave.
Ann Arbor is great, but noone should leave a football game early to see it. Walk around the day before or after
April 23rd, 2023 at 10:02 PM ^
Not a great slate outside of The Game. Purdue or Rutgers would probably be the most competitive of the remainders. The non-conference games would be high-scoring affairs with a happy ending.
April 23rd, 2023 at 10:06 PM ^
Last time we went it was SMU and it was like 108 degrees outside lol. It was a blast but definitely made me want to try to revisit later in the season.
Last time I went was Nebraska this past November and it was <30 degrees and snowing. It was a blast, but made me want to try to revisit earlier in the season.
I'm sure there's a happy medium ;)
Tickets were only about $25 + fees on stubhub (or maybe vivid? I forget) the day of. It was a last minute thing.
April 23rd, 2023 at 10:28 PM ^
If you are looking to save a few bucks, the early season games often yield fairly inexpensive tickets and warm weather. The band, cheerleaders, etc. do routines that don't vary much except for halftime shows. Accommodations are bit easier for these blowout games and if you are daring, you can find great deals a day or two before the game for ticket prices.
The OSU game is different - there is a tension and an excitement level that is hard to appreciate if you haven't experienced it but tickets are going to cost a fortune.
April 23rd, 2023 at 10:38 PM ^
Thanks for the heads up!
We like to plan ahead (hence the super early thread) we will be there for the whole experience since I only get to go every 3-4 years
I took in the infamous 62-39 game in the toilet. seat. Hated every minute of it but it was a way different feel than any game I went to before then.
April 23rd, 2023 at 10:09 PM ^
Wait until tickets are sent out. Prices now aren't realistic.
April 23rd, 2023 at 10:26 PM ^
I was curious if that would have a bearing on costs right now.
Prices for most games tend to drop as game day approaches, and there are always plenty available, so unless you are extra risk-averse you can save a lot of money by waiting until the night before or even the morning of the game to get your tickets.
One factor that is easy to overlook but that can have a big impact on your experience is sun/shade. If it's hot and sunny, it will make a huge difference whether you are facing the sun (visitors side), in the sun, or in the shade. At 3:30 games most of the Michigan side of the stadium will be shady for those, but the closer to the field the sunnier it will be.
April 23rd, 2023 at 10:23 PM ^
I've always viewed October as the best month for a game in Ann Arbor weather/colors wise. September is ok too if you have small kids and they won't last so you don't feel bad if you have to bail early. But - since it is with your beloved I'd do Indiana or Purdue and maybe VRBO something in/near Ann Arbor or perhaps a nearby town (we stayed out on Portage Lake once and that direction in/out of Ann Arbor was really easy but Chelsea/Dexter maybe could work). Just a thought. Hope it is a great time.
April 23rd, 2023 at 10:27 PM ^
Solid idea. I’m not super familiar with the area (only been a handful of times in my life) will look into portage lake.
If she's in to theatre you could always do a show at Jeff Daniel's "Purple Rose of Cairo" theater (small town theater) in Chelsea on Friday night; and of course there's always tons of stuff to do in Ann Arbor (comedy/improv, music, restaurants etc.) on a Friday as well. Sometimes broadening beyond just the main event of the game can make the weekend more memorable. Hope it is a great time no matter where you go and that UM delivers a soul-crushing victory over whoever you see them play.
April 23rd, 2023 at 10:28 PM ^
How many are going with you? If it’s a game that I’m not going to, I’ll give you my 2 tickets for free. I’m being serious. For games I didn’t go to, I used to try and sell them on StubHub, but it was hard to unload. So then I just donated them to Vettix.
So, if it’s a game that I’m not going to, and it’s just 2 people, they’re yours.
April 23rd, 2023 at 10:32 PM ^
It’s just the wife and I. Under that scenario I’d be willing to go to whatever you don’t feel like going to. Wife and I were hoping later in the season but I’m not gonna turn down free.
April 23rd, 2023 at 10:36 PM ^
Cool. Where are you coming in from?
EDIT: I won’t be going to UNLV or Bowling Green. Early games in the year, so the weather will be good (hopefully)
April 23rd, 2023 at 10:39 PM ^
Coming from Southeast Ohio.
April 23rd, 2023 at 10:44 PM ^
Well, will either UNLV or Bowling Green work for you? I know for sure I won’t be at those games
April 23rd, 2023 at 10:48 PM ^
Let me check with the wife. I’m think Bowling Green will work better but don’t want to commit until she tells me we don’t have something.
April 23rd, 2023 at 11:04 PM ^
Word. Take your time.
April 23rd, 2023 at 10:31 PM ^
Dump the wife, go solo, the game back in play.
April 23rd, 2023 at 10:34 PM ^
This made me actually laugh. Nice work.
April 24th, 2023 at 12:20 AM ^
I might suggest you would have a good time at pretty much any game, really. You can find good seats (to your price preference) pretty easily and I'd always advise waiting until the day before and, if you have the stones, until about 20 minutes before game time on StubHub or other secondary market vendors. You can really scoop the deals then.
That aside, I think more than the game (as opposed to t(tm)OSU or Sparty games) is some elements of the experience overall. This is particularly so if your wife is less intense about Michigan football than you. I would advise a tailgate and, if you have the time, a nice breakfast in downtown AA (many good choices, tbh). I might suggest considering attending the drum line and about 30 minutes before game time, the walk into the stadium with the band. In the meantime patronize the Hoover Turf Tailgate which supports the AA Cancer Support Community. Talk to some people, drink a bit, tell them you're from out of town. Good Times.
https://www.cancersupportannarbor.org/hooverturftailgate/
I'm not sure, outside The Game and Sparty that the other games differentiate that much vs. the overall experience.
If you can get Home Opener tickets, get them.
The campus is alive and literally "buzzing and high" with everyone returning for the Michigan Experience.
I agree with whoever said to go to homecoming. I always like watching the alumni band and alumni cheerleaders. The other thought is to see what else is going on in town and pair it up with a performance at Hill Auditorium or a volleyball, soccer or field hockey game.
April 24th, 2023 at 10:03 AM ^
101 - I completely agree with you. There's SO much going on in Ann Arbor all the time - and, my suggestion is to check out the UMich calendar and select the other activities to take part in. It could be art, music, theatre, a grad recital, symposium / discussion on interesting topics, etc.
Worksmithing "the wife"... MikeBIGMike, unrelated to your inquiry, and I hope you don't take this as a personal attack, but I've noticed on this site that when talking about their wives, many refer to them as "the wife." This feels odd to me. I know, I know. I'm overthinking it, (like everything). But to me it reads like a figure of speech that minimizes the value of marriage or even belittles our spouse. Maybe with a subtle or unconscious attempt at coming across with an emotional detached masculinity. It feels to me like the same phrase you would use if you were talking about "the dog" or "the car." I am no model of a perfect marriage, but I cannot imagine referring to my wife as "the wife." Thoughts, Mgobloggers?
Have to agree. And I'd literally walk out the door if my wife ever referred to me as "hubby" which she never would so all good.
April 24th, 2023 at 10:09 AM ^
You're completely overthinking it.
I sometimes refer to my significant other of a decade+ as 'the wife', in part to ironically tweak at the fact that we're not legally married. Suffice it to say that she is my universe and my colloquialism of 'the wife' does not in my mind connote a dimishment of that. I can't help what you or other people may think about it, but I suspect that our feeling is not a common one and at the risk of (similar) hypocrisy I think you doth project too much.
Definitely not taking at as a personal attack, my wife and I are extremely close and we both have a tendency to say "the" before husband or wife, I could see your point but, in our case, it is dialogue we openly use with each other, so I am comfortable saying it and there isn't any other meaning to it other than she is my wife, THE wife for me, No-one else can claim her so, to me she is the wife.
Now things I prefer not to say are the age-old things like, "The Ole' Ball and Chain" and other things that would for sure give off a sense of making something less or detaching the emotional side of things.
Thanks for responding. That makes sense. I'm glad that you and your wife have a strong relationship. Enjoy the game together!
April 24th, 2023 at 10:06 AM ^
The September games are usually "good" weather wise. My personal favorite is a September night game - like the UTL games. It gives you an entire day around campus - and tailgating. The only challenge with early September games is - you won't know the kickoff time (as with other games) until two weeks before, and - early September can be warm / hot.
Good luck planning your visit. I'm sure you & your bride will have a brilliant time.
Go Blue!
Depends what kind of weather you like. The September ones are sometimes super hot. Also that third non-conference home game in a row to start the season tends to be the weakest stadium atmosphere of the year - I guess that's Bowling Green this year. Some people take a week off instead of sitting out in the heat for a third straight Saturday, knowing they'll be doing it again for the conference opener the next week (I can't wait for the non-conference schedule to get better in 2024 year). On the flip side, last year the game against UCONN that fell in that third week had tickets going for literally like $10.
Do not look at ticket prices yet. Season and single game tickets aren't even out yet, so I have no idea where these tickets posted are coming from and they don't reflect the true price. If you monitor the website, you may even be able to buy tickets directly from the school with no markup. As far as which game to go to, I'd probably pick Purdue, or maybe Indiana
As an "out of towner" myself considering the amount of $ spent to make the trip to mecca you want to see a likely win. As much as I enjoy the ND game (make them all home and away) it sucks ASS to watch M lose. This year I targeted Rutgers as it is not only a likely win but it is also a conference game, not as expensive and the time of year should make for favorable weather.