CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – The burgers and brats still tasted pretty good. The bags games still had smiles and trash-talking.
But maybe all that stuff was a little sweeter for Husker fans who made the trip to Champaign to watch a football game in person for the first time since 2019.
“It was definitely a, ‘Yep, we’re going’ thing,” said Papillion’s Tyler Shunk. “Obviously Illinois has a lot of different (COVID) policies than Nebraska, so it was more, ‘What are we going to adapt to?’ Coming wasn’t a question, though.
“We were going to be here no matter what.”
Shunk and longtime friend Trevor Petersen, along with a few others, made the trek east for Nebraska’s 2021 season opener Saturday, the first time fans have been allowed in a Big Ten football stadium since 2019.
They tailgated near Illinois’ Memorial Stadium. They made their way into Section 108 about 45 minutes before kickoff, walked down to field level, and took a photo together, with Shunk and Petersen both wearing their yellow foam corn ear hats.
In short, they looked like a group of friends having fun at a football game. It had been awhile.
“It feels good to be around fans, it feels good to be tailgating, smelling the burgers and the hot dogs on the grill,” Petersen said.
Then Shunk jumped in with a laugh: “And let’s be honest, it feels good that there’s beer served inside the stadium.”
Those beers probably became more important to the experience as Nebraska spent most of the time tripping over itself.
That part didn’t change much from last season, or the year before, when fans could watch in person.
But in the run-up to kickoff, the happiness of just being around again was plenty.
“I think there’s a lot of fans that really support Scott (Frost), and really want this coaching tenure to really turn it around,” Shunk said. “So to be able to show that support for the first time in what seems like a couple years is a big deal.”
Shunk, Petersen, and their friends pick one road game a year to get to. They had a group of 12 at the 62-3 loss at Ohio State. They’ve also been to Michigan and Wisconsin. They’ve seen some tough stuff.
But nothing stopped them from hitting the open road until last season.
Saturday they got to see the sights – NU athletic director Trev Alberts in a bright red polo, making the rounds. Illinois’ outstanding tailgate area, the Grange Grove, just across the street from the stadium, was vibrant. Just before kickoff, Shunk and Petersen were picked up by Fox’s cameras yelling their support.
Illinois’ students packed their section, though the rest of the stadium was only about 50% full.
The parking lots weren’t full three hours before kickoff, but all the familiar sights and smells were there.
Football was back, and so were the fans. For a while, all was well.
