The Story of the Big House and the Big Red Cup

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I pre gamed 16 hours too early so by the time I got to the “Big House” the game was already over. I arrived half hour west of Detroit to Ann Arbor the college town of the University of Michigan. I came here for the total college experience pre kick off and during so when I arrived at my accommodation, my first official couch surfing experience I couldn’t believe my luck when I was informed I am invited to a dress up party in a few hours.

Michigan is a freezing place and walking around for an Australian from Sydney the wind chill is a scary cold. So much so I bought a beanie and some hand gloves. I didn’t care what the gloves look like as long as they kept me warm. U of Michigan is blue and maize so my gloves, which are receiver gloves, have a rubber blue grip inner and maize looking outer hand. I put them on the next day and realised they looked like gardening gloves. Fortunately the next day it was sunny and it wasn’t needed. They are now my driving gloves when I want to break the boredom of driving.

My couch for the next two nights was in an old wooden house occupied by 5 mid 20’s female students. They tell me the theme is something like hip-hop and country (I forgot the theme, along those lines) I could do the country somewhat whilst the girls went all out in corsets and tight tights and stuff. I kept my inner drool to myself and the house was a meeting point before the party which was a few km’s away.

They all made me feel welcome and I stressed to them of my desire to drink and play the drinking games with the big red cups. I wanted to know if this staple prop of college movies was reality. Basically everyone I mentioned it to got a kick out of me being excited about something so common to their lives. I was told later that there has been recently an introduction of different colours like blue and gold.

So we arrive where a few people had heard an Australian is coming for the weekends game. I don’t even get to the 3rd last step to the underground party when a girl approaches me. “So you are from Australia?” I heard this happens but Christ it is happening right before my eyes. At this point a red cup is in my hand and beer is getting poured into from the keg.

It must be about 5 minutes in and she is all over me shaking her arse around my crotch. Honestly I’ve had some much female arse gyrating around my phallus over the past year whilst clothes are on its actually a bit tiresome. Anyway, she turns around and well shit it got the best of me briefly and so we kiss and we are the main show whilst everyone is trying to act like nothings happening.

Maybe it was the thought that if this goes any further I could be the next big hit on the internet of frat party sex or the fact that I was here for the whole experience but I stopped. I came to drink from the red cup, play beer pong and then pick up. One thing was missing. I try my best to follow the theme of ‘if you are going to do it than do it properly.’ So my name was down for beer pong with the red cups.

Over time I was up and teamed up with a pimp looking bloke. These cups are the most durable plastic cups in the world. Its obvious over time some uni went through a testing system that took years to perfect the best cup but who cares they got it right.

Beer pong is where you have a table generally table tennis length and maybe 6 cups in a pyramid shape with a little water in it. There are varying rules. Mine was you throw from one side of the table to the 6 cups set up on the edge of the other side. Get it in and a player from the opposition has to skull. If you bounce and get it in than they have to skull two. But if you bounce than the opponent can swipe the throw away.

We were dominating proceedings until we had to hit the last cup and eventually after a long period of time the game was over with a loss. I so too lost the girl as her roommate comes up to me and he said, “I have to apologies to you I have just severely cocked blocked you.” He put her in a cab whilst I was playing. She was pretty pissed trying to grab my attention the whole night.

I did say to her, “Shit I’ve only had two beers“ just before beer pong started. Basically saying ‘I have to catch up if something is going to happen.’ Anyhow the night finished with me chatting to whomever and had a good night. It was time to head back in the cold a few kms away. I was left at the back in my tight, scrunched walk to absorb at least some heat. With me was the guy who said he ‘severely cock blocked me’ and one of the girls I was staying with.

I ended up walking with them all the way to the front door of the house. I thought about it a few days later ‘Oh shit I wonder if I ended up cock blocking him that night too? I then laughed, ‘Ha-ha, two can play that game my friend… Two can play that game.’ I’m sure something would happen later on if they wanted to. Still a funny possible double act.

Because of the late night and the early 12noon start I didn’t get to tailgate my way to the football match. College sport in general but especially (American) football is a real passion in this country. Each college specialises in something and University of Michigan (the wolverines) are high up in college football. hovering around the seeds.

They play at the Big House a 115 000 stadium, Americas largest stadium. The game I saw was just over 111 000. It would be the 235th straight game of football to see over 100 000 spectators at the ground. It is something unfathomable really that this many people come and pay top dollar $75 roughly to see a bunch of students play. There is nowhere else in the world like it but in America. There is a local pride and if you are a student for a great length of time at a college than it’s your adopted college team I was told.

I managed to miss the 1st quarter as I walked in with a group of last night’s partygoers. They were in the student section I was in the general area. So we brushed past a few under aged (21) partiers from the frat houses that are about 2 blocks from the stadium. Some 18-19 year olds were making out on the balcony.

In the stadium I am walking through the aisle about to get to my seat and the first play of the 2nd quarter goes and it was a touchdown. I look at the scoreboard and it is 20-0 kick to come and I haven’t even sat down. Most sports in the world the atmosphere would be gone. Whilst I’m sure it was more subdued to more tighter games. For a first time spectator it was still a hell of a lot of fun.

The movies almost capture everything to perfection about a college football game. The band playing opposite me full of enthusiasm… and then you think, a full live band at a game of football. This is so unique. Than the cheerleaders flying up and down doing various things to get the crowd involved. Like lying on the ground to make the letters of Michigan. Or multiple small pyramids in different parts of the ground with a letter so you can yell out one – “M!” or “G!”

Then there was half time with the big band march and dedication to the Beatles where the band covered the whole field that’s how many there are. But that was nothing to the clear highlight of the day. I forget at what point this happened but it was so good I almost forgot everything else that happened.

The students section which covers about 4-5 bays so at least 5000 start the Mexican wave (which apparently is known here as just ‘the wave’) A normal one goes and generally I don’t like them (possibly because of 1998 when up by 16 points with 14 minutes to go Parra vs Canterbury the Mexican wave goes around and we lose. I blame the Mexican wave for putting Parra off.) But I have been reformed and what a way to reform me to ‘the wave’. (Americans were amazed that I called it a Mexican Wave.)

After the first few normal ones they did this slower version that seemed to be going about ¼ pace. It was mesmerising as 111 000 people go through the slowest version I’ve seen. It was like a stadium full or arthritic patients trying to do the wave. Gradual rise all the way to the arms in the air than a gradual sit down with the arms coming down slowly.

I for the first time since I was a little kid forgot about sport. Than when it got back to the students it was the reverse and as quick as you can. Than the two at once and the other staples of the wave. But the arthritic wave or what ever it’s called. I so want to be in that experience again before I die. Now that should be on one of those shitty books of 1000 things before you die. Be in an arthritic wave before you get arthritis.

At half time and during one of the breaks they went through the scores and at one point boos came over when Ohio State came up their arch rivals. Than at the end Slippery Rock a Division II team came up. A tradition beginning in 1959 when public announcer Steve Filipiak would give the schools scores. For some reason it was popular so they continued doing it.

It became such a cult hit the University invited Slippery Rock to play Shippensburg an in-state rival at the Big House and 61 143 fans turn up on Sep 29 1979. 36 719 fans turned up to the second game against Wayne State University in 81 - They lost both games. The tradition stopped for a while but has come back in recent times. When it comes on a sarcastic cheer comes over the crowd, which I took as mocking.

There was also some mocking in the crowd mainly directed at the University of Minnesota who in all truth were dreadful. The special teams guy couldn’t catch a punt to save his life and the score could have hit a hundred if the Michigan coach kept a few key players on for the second half.

After the game I joined some people at Buffalo Wild Wings a sports bar on State Street the main street with a lot of TV’s. If you can do it get the Buffalo wings and get the hottest of around 20 flavours. Three of us tried it and couldn’t do more than one. One guy had it and said his lips burnt. I avoided my lips and was all tongue and teeth and this ring of fire around the back of my tongue took about two glasses of water to kill off the pain. I did manage to get down 6 of the 3rd hottest prior to that. Buffalo wings have to be eaten hot otherwise no point.

The bar scene is okay, there is a bar that has a shuffleboard game which is sawdust on a 3rd cut ten pin bowling lane. Any bar that has that makes nightlife pretty good in my books. But with all the driving and another big day on the road ahead I called it a night just after midnight.

Never mind the 58-0 score line sport is almost hardly a reason to go to a college game. A person who is invited to a game and atmosphere like this and says, “No I won’t go because I don’t like sport” is an idiot. If they are not open minded enough to appreciate the full spectrum of watching sport, that is being around a bunch of people cheering and carryon because they can are not visiting America properly.

College football brings out the wholesome goodness of being a fan of sport. It’s no wonder for years I’ve been hearing Americans say “College is more popular than the NFL or NBA.” The players on the field are playing to make the draft to become a professional but for most it’s the end of the road before entering the real world. This means there is a true passion for the sport within the playing group. In turn the fans reflects that passion. In all my college football experience was a pretty successful one even with the severe cock block.

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If anyone going to a game at the big house I wish you all the best in trying to join in with the standard chant which is “baba baba baaaa bababa bababa baaa” whilst extending you arm out at the baaaa part. The timing is off so even students struggle first few games. It finished off with a big “GO BLUE!” I managed to get one right and even that was a very unconfident “Go Blue” call.

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