Madison Experience

[Hammerhead]

Things escalated quickly in Madison, I mean it really got out of hand. There was a horse and a man on fire. In fact my friend Brick killed a guy.

 

I heard he pooped a Cornish game hen.

[knapplc]

At some point we're going to have to put this behind us. There's nothing wrong with discussing the game day atmosphere, but we're not breaking any new ground, and Madison isn't even close to the worst out there. There were unfortunate experiences and pretty good experiences, sounds like.

[manitobahusker]

Wisconsin has a NC Caliber team, its a shame there fan base sounds pretty bad, oh well best way to show them up is to treat them with respect when they come to lincoln

[buckytailgater]

I think Nebraska fans are overly sensitive. Come on guys these are words. I haven’t heard anything about any beating or murders. I lived in Omaha for five years until last fall, and I can say it’s really no different that growing up in Madison. There are mostly good and decent people, and a few aholes. I’m not too sure about Lincoln, but I don’t think there’s a line somewhere between Omaha and Lincoln where people change and become ultra moral. What I did hear while living there is that the blue hairs were ruining the experience at Memorial stadium, because they were complaining about the students at the games. I think the blue hairs are the ones complaining about their time in Madison, and to all the fans that are saying they will never come back because they were called names; that exactly what Madison fans want. It’s called home field advantage. Also don’t worry about the penalties. They will go away when the team gets better. They’re not the reason you lost last year or this year. Husker will get better. Everything is cyclical.

[knapplc]

I think we're hearing about the worst-case stuff because that's basically what's being asked about. I've cruised through this thread and I've read several positive things about Wiscy fans. I glanced at some threads about the Madison Experience from some of our competitor boards (weak competitors, of course) and the response is overwhelmingly positive, both from Husker fans and Badger fans. My takeaway from this weekend is that there are pockets of fans that are abrasive, but not abusive (depending on your take on language) and overall they're pretty darned good.

 

 

EDIT - and even the Badgers that are posting in this thread are good eggs, as eggs go. We've had probably the best overall visitors from Wisconsin of any team we've had all year to HuskerBoard. What we're seeing here isn't indicative of a fanbase that's filled with A'holes. It's just a couple of folks here and there (and the students) and you won't find a fanbase anywhere without their share of A'holes, Nebraska included.

 

So can we put this to rest now? It's gotten way more "press" here than it deserves, in my opinion.

[Hammerhead]

I think Nebraska fans are overly sensitive. Come on guys these are words. I haven’t heard anything about any beating or murders. I lived in Omaha for five years until last fall, and I can say it’s really no different that growing up in Madison. There are mostly good and decent people, and a few aholes. I’m not too sure about Lincoln, but I don’t think there’s a line somewhere between Omaha and Lincoln where people change and become ultra moral. What I did hear while living there is that the blue hairs were ruining the experience at Memorial stadium, because they were complaining about the students at the games. I think the blue hairs are the ones complaining about their time in Madison, and to all the fans that are saying they will never come back because they were called names; that exactly what Madison fans want. It’s called home field advantage. Also don’t worry about the penalties. They will go away when the team gets better. They’re not the reason you lost last year or this year. Husker will get better. Everything is cyclical.

 

I can understand why anyone who was insulted directly by certain people after the game would be offended, but as far as the whole ES-FU or a-hole chants, those wouldn't bother me. Hell, if I were the source of the a-hole chants, I'd think it was hilarious.

 

Like you said, I'm sure it's the same with any fan base. Get enough alcohol in your system and you turn into an ass no matter what team colors you wear.

[bigg10]

Things escalated quickly in Madison, I mean it really got out of hand. There was a horse and a man on fire. In fact my friend Brick killed a guy.

 

Thats funny.

[bringonUrban]

Hey all, first time post here.. as you can probably tell im a tOSU fan.

Let me just say.. Wisconsin fans are the worst fans in the BIG. Now, I know tOSU fans are bad too.. we are really bad... but Wisc fans are the worst. I saw them verbally attack elderly OSU fans as well as throw beer at them. They basically chased every tOSU fan out of the area after they beat us. My experience was so bad that for me personally its a mission for anytime we play them in Columbus that I go down there and give it back to them so Im sure you can imagine how this has snowballed over the years.

That being said, Camp Randall is a hornets nest and I do respect the environment...

As far as the Shoe, you will probably run into some fans that will act the same way here but the difference is post game is usually more amicable. In my experience.. tOSU fans act the worst towards other team fans when the other team fans expect to come in and roll us.. (a.k.a Texas fans). That being said, every tOSU fan I have talked to seemed to have much respect for NU so I don't think you will get the same reception here that you got in Camp Randall.

 

Well, let's be realistic about OSU fans--most of them are just bitter because they live in Ohio. Honestly, I'd probably hate myself, too, if I had to live there. Your fans are awful, though. I have never come across a more disrespectful, bitter, and angry fanbase than the one that visited last year. I'm always gracious to incoming fans (and found the vast majority of NU ones to be great), but the OSU fans were, on the whole, a bunch of pricks.

 

Also, to anyone at the game, this is pretty cool: http://www.uwbadgers.com/fancam

 

Hi pot, I'm kettle. Pretty funny post considering 90% of the posters on here are saying how bad Badger fans are. And im sure that elderly couple that I saw badger fans harrasing and pouring beer on were really being pricks...please. And quit acting like Wisconsin is paradise or something... please.

[BigRedPowerWagon]

I read through this as I was curious as to what the consensus was based on some incidents I saw... then I read some comments and I think some explaining needs to be done.

 

 

A few things I feel should be clarified before I lecture... First off, I am a student. A grad student, but a student. I'm on the older end. Second, I know nothing about your school's football culture (other than that you guys are big fans and have a long tradition with football).

 

 

A short story first: On friday night, I had to make a trip up and down state street several times. During these sober trips, I witness three intense NU/UW confrontations (only one of which devolved to a fist fight). And despite what you might be thinking, none of these were the fault of the UW student. All of them were the fault of the NU person (mind you, I was sober). However, I have no doubt that the NU person thought they were the victim of some travesty perpetrated by some drunk kid. I don't see this sh#t with Mich or tOSU, or even iowa or minny. And there are several reasons for it, which I hope I can shed some light on.

 

 

 

LESSON 1.) State street is not the place for pissed up adults. I know you hear all the time about how state street is a thing that defines Madison, and it's true, it is. But at 1am on a friday night, that is the COLLEGE STRIP. It's not a place to bring family values after 9pm. Also, don't bring Grandma to the KK. It's like a priest walking into a strip bar and being offended by nudity. Know what you're getting into. There are bars for older people further up state street by the capital. Go to the bars on the square or the near east side if you get offended by teenagers hurling insults. Please, on the same note, learn how to hold alcohol when you're over the age of 30. I saw an ungodly amount of you blackshirts unable to stand despite being upwards of 40. It seemed like everyone got the same tips for "places to go" and then proceeded to get wasted at them en masse on friday night. Also, drinking on state street is social until 11pm. You don't get wasted drunk before then. Because when you do, you irritate all the sober badger fans having a nice evening. Most importantly, friday night is not a football night for us, it's a get-drunk-and-find-girl-on-dancefloor night. We're not thinking football yet (for the most part). We're still on a college friday night, which you're ruining it by going to party bars and spouting your pride instead of facilitating our real desires (hint: it's meeting your daughters, not you). You irritate us when you break up our night, and because of that......

 

LESSON 2.) This is our house. And we WILL protect it. You were seriously up there with tOSU fans for obnoxious self aggrandizing behavior. I heard that stupid "goooooo biiiiiiiig reeeeeeeed" chant like every 15 seconds in the two hours i was out. It's fine that you have that, I applaud the spirit. But that sh#t does get obnoxious at some point. You can't come to our house and think we're just gonna sheep up when you basically are calling us out in our home every third storefront/commercial break. You're going to get it dealt back. You have to expect this. Maybe it wasn't you being the obnoxious one, but someone from your team pissed us off first. I'm not saying this as a generalization of your people, but I think it's necessary to make you aware of behavior that came from your side. In the big ten (or at least in madison), a guest should be humble. Fly your colors, but also remember that you are also the guest... and a generally unwanted one at that.

 

LESSON 3.) Loosen up. Our rude and vulgar humor IS our way of welcoming you. I understand that a lot of people find this tasteless and such, and we get crap from alumni/administration for it, but it's just the way it's done here. The part you need to understand is that it's not mean spirited. I can totally understand how it is taken the wrong way a lot of the time if you don't understand that it's a joke or light-hearted in nature. The correct response isn't to flip the bird. It's not to get up in their grill or initiate physical contact.... the correct response is to sheepishly take it or respond in similar banter (emphasis added for preferred response). When we're out, we're out to have fun. Not to start fights, not to simply be dicks. We are the same way if we are undefeated or using our season to do our best Minny impression. It's very tongue in cheek (as are most traditions due to our history). We just happen to be good now and I think you mistake this behavior for arrogance. Be a little looser and you'll find yourself having a hell of a lot more fun.

 

LESSON 4.) It's a party, with a football game happening. Now maybe you don't like the way we do things... I get that. But I think understanding what they are and where they come from is important to understand our football culture. Other B1G teams have been around enough to understand that this is just what we do and they at least understand the WHY. Our team used to be TERRRRRRIBLE, and the party was the reason students went to games. And despite our recent success, it still is. We wake up at 8am to start drinking. By gametime, most of us are in the bag. If you want nice polite sendoffs, you're not going to get one. Not because we're bad people, we're just waaaay to drunk to have sportsmanship cross our mind. Despite the alcohol ban, there is still an obscene amount of liquor in the student section during a game. We're not dropping below .2 the entire time (and I'm being generous). Now if you don't remember what it's like to be at a raging party when you're 20-21, I'll remind you. You can't see straight, you don't think, you live in the moment, you make plenty of questionable decisions, and anytime you're told to do something by authorities - you do the exact opposite. That's what the student section is. We're partying, and we don't give a damn about you, your kids, or your expectations of our behavior. From my limited knowledge of the Big 8/12, this is the biggest culture difference. We're not there for the game -- we're there for the party. Post game party will be the same, win or lose. Winning just means we get to taunt you for a bit, kind of like when you beat your little brother in your head to head fantasy football match.

 

LESSON 5.) Party with us. I think this one needs to be said, because I just didn't see it. On Friday OR Saturday night. You were doing your own things on friday night and just getting in our way, and you were all waaaay too serious about the football game on saturday. I understand that may be the way you do things, but if you're going to have fun visiting madison, you'll have to suspend that attitude for a weekend or you're going to have a lot less fun than you should be having.

 

 

 

Just a note from some horror stories: Yes, there will be the occasional kid who will take it to far. Just tell him straight up "that's not cool." and move on. They are doing it to rile you up, and they are drunk. And oftentimes, so drunk they aren't making it home on their own. Sometimes a line gets crossed, and they just need to be reminded that they crossed it. With 80k, you're going to have a few bad apples. I'm not condoning behavior such as homophobic slurs, racial slurs, or anything of that nature. I don't think any of us would, and if I ever heard someone using that in an inappropriate way I would stop them. Don't for a second think that's representative of us as a whole.

 

 

tl;dr version: We'd rather your tickets were going to badger fans, but since we have to deal with you... you might as well joing the f'ing party and have a good time without stepping on our toes.

 

 

When fans come into our house we dont treat them there like we dont want them. If all nebraska fans did was sit around and talk nebraska football and nebraska players while listening to nebraska songs while eating Runzas we would be pretty pathetic. You come to our house to enjoy watching the great game of football. Something that has been played by men beyond men. Not everyone can play at that level so its respected in Lincoln. Im not saying crap like that cant happen in lincoln, but when we hosted oklahoma and won. We were pretty level headed. Yea they were some annoying fans but they were hushed up pretty quickly by the others around them. We respect the game of football and that is why you dont hear to much of that happening in or around the stadium. Now down by the frat houses, well thats probally a different story.

[Chitown_Badger]

Sorry to those who did not have an enjoyable time in Madison. Obviously the outcome didn't help anything for you guys, but it's annoying to me to hear some of the stupid crap that UW were directing at Huskers. It perplexes me how some consider it "fun" to try to insult other people who are guests in Madison, and are there to have a good time like everyone else. Badger fans need to be more vocal at times about policing ourselves.

 

Good luck the rest of the way, and hopefully we see you guys again in December.

 

What's a bit weird, is that Packer fans are hands down the nicest fans I have the honor to be a part of. Incredibly fun, welcoming, and a joy to watch a game with. You would think the Badger and Packer fan bases would be more similar.

[buckytailgater]

I think Nebraska fans are overly sensitive. Come on guys these are words. I haven’t heard anything about any beating or murders. I lived in Omaha for five years until last fall, and I can say it’s really no different that growing up in Madison. There are mostly good and decent people, and a few aholes. I’m not too sure about Lincoln, but I don’t think there’s a line somewhere between Omaha and Lincoln where people change and become ultra moral. What I did hear while living there is that the blue hairs were ruining the experience at Memorial stadium, because they were complaining about the students at the games. I think the blue hairs are the ones complaining about their time in Madison, and to all the fans that are saying they will never come back because they were called names; that exactly what Madison fans want. It’s called home field advantage. Also don’t worry about the penalties. They will go away when the team gets better. They’re not the reason you lost last year or this year. Husker will get better. Everything is cyclical.

 

I can understand why anyone who was insulted directly by certain people after the game would be offended, but as far as the whole ES-FU or a-hole chants, those wouldn't bother me. Hell, if I were the source of the a-hole chants, I'd think it was hilarious.

 

Like you said, I'm sure it's the same with any fan base. Get enough alcohol in your system and you turn into an ass no matter what team colors you wear.

 

 

Yes I must admit it is stupid and childish, but when I bring my kids to the game I tell them they are saying (eat fish fondue)

 

Watch here if you want to see and hear what it's like. Don't watch if you'll be offended.

 

[bringonUrban]

I think Nebraska fans are overly sensitive. Come on guys these are words. I haven’t heard anything about any beating or murders. I lived in Omaha for five years until last fall, and I can say it’s really no different that growing up in Madison. There are mostly good and decent people, and a few aholes. I’m not too sure about Lincoln, but I don’t think there’s a line somewhere between Omaha and Lincoln where people change and become ultra moral. What I did hear while living there is that the blue hairs were ruining the experience at Memorial stadium, because they were complaining about the students at the games. I think the blue hairs are the ones complaining about their time in Madison, and to all the fans that are saying they will never come back because they were called names; that exactly what Madison fans want. It’s called home field advantage. Also don’t worry about the penalties. They will go away when the team gets better. They’re not the reason you lost last year or this year. Husker will get better. Everything is cyclical.

 

I can understand why anyone who was insulted directly by certain people after the game would be offended, but as far as the whole ES-FU or a-hole chants, those wouldn't bother me. Hell, if I were the source of the a-hole chants, I'd think it was hilarious.

 

Like you said, I'm sure it's the same with any fan base. Get enough alcohol in your system and you turn into an ass no matter what team colors you wear.

 

 

Yes I must admit it is stupid and childish, but when I bring my kids to the game I tell them they are saying (eat fish fondue)

 

Watch here if you want to see and hear what it's like. Don't watch if you'll be offended.

 

haha.. ya i think that pretty much says it all.

[buckytailgater]

I think Nebraska fans are overly sensitive. Come on guys these are words. I haven’t heard anything about any beating or murders. I lived in Omaha for five years until last fall, and I can say it’s really no different that growing up in Madison. There are mostly good and decent people, and a few aholes. I’m not too sure about Lincoln, but I don’t think there’s a line somewhere between Omaha and Lincoln where people change and become ultra moral. What I did hear while living there is that the blue hairs were ruining the experience at Memorial stadium, because they were complaining about the students at the games. I think the blue hairs are the ones complaining about their time in Madison, and to all the fans that are saying they will never come back because they were called names; that exactly what Madison fans want. It’s called home field advantage. Also don’t worry about the penalties. They will go away when the team gets better. They’re not the reason you lost last year or this year. Husker will get better. Everything is cyclical.

 

I can understand why anyone who was insulted directly by certain people after the game would be offended, but as far as the whole ES-FU or a-hole chants, those wouldn't bother me. Hell, if I were the source of the a-hole chants, I'd think it was hilarious.

 

Like you said, I'm sure it's the same with any fan base. Get enough alcohol in your system and you turn into an ass no matter what team colors you wear.

 

 

Yes I must admit it is stupid and childish, but when I bring my kids to the game I tell them they are saying (eat fish fondue)

 

Watch here if you want to see and hear what it's like. Don't watch if you'll be offended.

 

 

On the personal insults after the game, yes some that I’ve heard seem over the top. I would offend me too, but I wouldn’t let it ruin my experience either.

[hopittome]

 

Hi pot, I'm kettle. Pretty funny post considering 90% of the posters on here are saying how bad Badger fans are. And im sure that elderly couple that I saw badger fans harrasing and pouring beer on were really being pricks...please. And quit acting like Wisconsin is paradise or something... please.

 

I doubt that happened. If it did, it was probably the OSU fans provoking them. I remember we invited some OSU fans to tailgate with us, and they told us to "Go f**k ourselves." It happened multiple times, although the vitriol spewed by the Buckeyes' fans varied. Classy, OSU.

 

Wisconsin is a gorgeous state and Madison is a beautiful city. I'm sorry we all can't have the landfill that is Cleveland in our state. Like I said--bitter, bitter fans.

[Creed]

I am a Ohio State fan and I have been to games at the Horseshoe and some away games. It has gotten worse at these games over the last few years. People just drink to much, run their mouths and try to pick fights. Maybe I am just getting older but I just don't enjoy going to the games as much and would rather sit in the comfort of my own home. It is a matter of time before we see some real violence like the raiders-49ers fight or someone killed outside the stadium. Schools need to crack down on the drunkeness at these games.