The Southern

CARBONDALE - For Brian Carroll of West Frankfort tailgating is like a potluck but with less casseroles and more beer, barbecue and football.

With the Southern Illinois University Football season beginning anew Saturday, students, alumni and generally anyone who likes food and sports are gathering for another season of tailgating.

Carroll, who graduated from SIUC in 1999, said the tailgating is a great way to meet with friends and family and have a bite before heading into the game.

Carroll, who set up in the McAndrew Stadium parking lot, said when he was a student, tailgating didn't seem to be quite as popular as it is now. But things changed during the team's Jerry Kill era.

"As the program was built, it has kind of become the thing to do now," Carroll said.

But it's not just an improved football program and mingling opportunities that brought Carroll out. He is also at the game to support inside linebacker Ryan Patton, who also hails from West Frankfort.

Nearby on Saluki Row, the sponsors set up their own tailgating tents. While they are all about the barbecue, the tents also have exposure in mind.

LaCharles Ward, president of the Association of Black Psychologists, said the tent for the Black Affairs Council, the Black Graduate Student Association and Generation Change was there to let students know of available support systems.

"We usually get a lot of upperclassmen but we also try to get to freshmen," said Ward, a sophomore in Psychology from Matteson. "We let them know that there are other things to do besides bad things."

In addition to the student tents, the SIU Alumni Association serves as a meeting ground for past and current Salukis. Allison Niendiek, a senior in marketing from Effingham and marketing assistant for the association, said their tent usually sees about 1,000 people and are set up at each home game and some road games.

"We have students all the way to people who have just celebrated their 50th anniversary of graduating SIU," Niendiek said.

She said people can join the Alumni Association at the tent and everyone gets a one time guest pass to enter.

To help with the amount of people who come through the tent, the association has corporate support from companies including Pepsi and Tres Hombres.

While Carroll may not have any corporate sponsors or any purpose other than to have a good time, he recommends tailgating to anyone who has never lit up the grill before a Saluki football game.

"If anyone has never come to tailgate for a football game, they should check it out," Carroll said. "What else are you going to do on a Saturday afternoon?"

codell.rodriguez@thesouthern.com

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