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Rich Derrick was a distance swimmer for Colgate in the mid-2000s, something his two other friends on the team — Emily and Brad Oastler — would never touch. While the three are devout Colgate followers, Brad met a Syracuse fan through the Liverpool Fire Department that the trio would let tailgate with them, though only if the Orange fan set up outside of the tent.

The group’s setup at Skytop Parking lot at Syracuse University’s South Campus began around 10 a.m., with Derrick and the Oastlers finding a spot next to the tree line left of the main driveway. They stared down a sea of Orange flags, stuffed Ottos and a mobile home commissioned for SU tailgates.

Despite saying he was done driving bigger cars, the group unloaded a wide variety of beer — from Shiner Bock and Saranac to Samuel Adams — chairs, tables and whatever else they’d need from Brad’s new SUV.

“I picked a car for tailgating,” Brad said.

They stood under a Maroon tent with three tables and a flag — hand sewn by Brad’s mother, Marie — displaying the patented “go ‘Gate.” Below it sat a black flag with a skull and crossbones, marking their territory for the Raiders. One table had a decommissioned Colgate helmet that Brad bought a few years ago for $25 at an alumni rummage sale.

Inside the helmet sat Hoodoo the Owl, a stuffed animal Brad named after the Curse of the Hoodoo. As legend goes, a Colgate student snuck into the construction site of Archbold Stadium, where Syracuse football called home prior to the JMA Wireless Dome, and buried a Maroon ‘C’ sweater somewhere in the cement. The Raiders won the next five meetings at Syracuse before getting shut out 38-0 in 1915. He stared off from the sheltered post as he watched Emily’s sister come with her infant son in an Otto the Orange outfit.

“It’s how we met each other. It’s everything. We love the school,” Emily said.

Seven Colgate fans pose with a cake at a tailgate before Colgate took on the Orange on Sept. 2 Griffin Uribe Brown | Contributing Photographer

The nine-person setup was one of dozens scattered across Skytop Parking Lot dedicated to Colgate fans and parents from as far as Arizona. Some rented Airbnb’s a year in advance, some drove up the night before and others completed four or five-hour drives to get to Syracuse.

The tailgate gave families a first look at the 2023 Colgate football team while helping centralize an expected 300 fans coming in from around New York state. Kate Sager, an employee of Colgate University, organized the event in conjunction with REVELxp, SU’s new hospitality company contracted to handle visiting fans’ tailgates.

She set up her staples at each tailgate on a table at the front of the large tent, getting to SU’s campus around noon. Spread out on the “swag table” were koozies, pom poms and two sets of Colgate rally towels. They try to go to each game, and are planning on going to every game except when the Raiders play Lafayette in November. Her husband, Eric, went to Hartwick College but now proudly bleeds maroon as he helps at the tailgate.

“Our alumni and families are super passionate,” Sager said. “It’s a wonderful atmosphere that we’re able to bring together.”

Next to Sager’s tents were two set up by Jacki Hutchison, the mother of Brady Hutchison, a wide receiver who caught a pass later that day. Originally from Connecticut, Hutchison drove in on Thursday to make a weekend out of her time in central New York, going to the Great New York State Fair with her family on Friday. Between her and her husband, Thomas, someone is at each one of Brady’s games every year. The opportunity to see him play at the Dome made the trip a no-brainer.

Rounding out the grassy patch was a group of parents that had seniors on the Raiders. Glenn Parker, a former offensive lineman for the Buffalo Bills as part of a 12-year NFL career, flew in from Tucson, Arizona on Friday night to see his son, Will, play. Parker usually only makes two or three of Will’s games, but his boss gave him the weekend to watch his son play in the first game of his senior year.

“We all came in together. We were here for recruiting trips,” Parker said. “We were here for games. We stay in communication.”

Other fans like Katie and Steve Flick stood over a Nexgrill on the back of their white truck sipping on beer. When their friends arrived, Steve began cooking filet mignon.

They drove from Lancaster, Pennsylvania, to Hamilton Friday night and stayed at an apartment their friends rent out. It’s the same pregame location they’ve been using for the past four years. On Thursday before a game, Steve goes to Hummers Meats butcher shop in Mount Joy, Pennsylvania. This time he went with a filet mignon cubed up and marinated in dragon sauce as he expected a smaller crowd.

“Once you get it going it’s like popcorn,” Steve said.

Fans brought sandwiches from local delis and rolled in Blackstone grills for sausage, peppers and onions. The grandmother of one player’s girlfriend whipped up 40 pink starburst Jell-O shots Thursday night, spending two days preparing them for the tailgate. They talked about what they expected from the Raiders and exchanged ideas on how to sneak in Fireball shooters so they could all take one each time Colgate scored.

“You’re not going to need more than one today,” someone quipped.

Colgate fan poses with jello shots in the Skytop Parking lot ahead of the Raiders’ game against SU on Sept. 2. Courtesy of Anthony Alandt

Brad picked up a cookie cake the night before from the Wegmans in Liverpool. At the center of the cake was a photo of Brad from the 2018 I-AA playoff game, when No. 9 Colgate knocked off No. 6 James Madison 23-20. His face is lined with white and maroon paint from bottles Emily still has at home.

“Not too many schools do (tailgating) living in the space that we’re living in. It’s just really nice to bring our folks together,” Sager said. “They value that and place some priority on it.”

Published on September 4, 2023 at 1:54 am

Contact Anthony: [email protected] | @anthonyalandt