Updated: 09/21/2009 9:45 AM KSTP.com | Print |  Email
By: Vineeta Sawkar

SAWKAR: Seeing "The Bank"

It was an awesome experience walking up those stairs to the concourse and making our way to seats inside the TCF Bank stadium. We have watched the progress and waited so long for football to make its way back to the U campus. It was worth the wait.

We are lucky we have two good friends (Andy and Terri) who are season ticket holders and were nice enough to invite us on Saturday. We enjoyed some tailgating on the St. Paul campus and hopped a shuttle to the "Bank." When we got to our seats, I was awestruck by all of the sights and sounds. This is what football is about.

Our seats were near the big scoreboard which was beautiful. I loved watching the band and just taking everything in. My one complaint was that the 80 degree heat and no breeze did make me want to pass out at times but I suppose this won't be a regular problem once we start getting into those October and November games!

I was a little surprised at how busy the concourse was at halftime but I am sure others were seeking relief from the searing sunshine as well. I do think the stadium operators did seem to answer some of the concerns from the home opener. We got into the stadium pretty easily and I didn't have to wait that long for food. There were also plenty of people coming up and down the aisles with water and pop and snacks.

I did make one dumb comment as we walked into the stadium. I asked my friend: "Do they have an ATM in here?" (Think of the name of the stadium...pretty silly question, I know!)

I am thrilled that we can now cheer on the Gophers in this brand new stadium. It really brings the campus to life. I enjoyed seeing the kids in the student section having fun and cheering as the Gophers actually made a game of it against Cal until the 4th quarter. I look forward to my next game there.