Fall is for cider mills, Halloween, pumpkin spice lattes, and most importantly: football. My husband and I fall somewhere between “dedicated” and “obsessed” on a scale of college football fandom. I grew up watching Michigan play every fall Saturday and witnessing my family cry tears of joy when they won the Rose Bowl (and therefore, the national championship) in the 1997 season. My husband was, by comparison, a latecomer, but he took an interest when he arrived at college and never looked back; now he reads football blogs and follows recruiting as if it’s his job. Our Saturdays revolve around watching the big games, not just our own team’s, but other teams in our conference, potential national championship contenders, or anything that seems to be leading to an exciting finish. We even DVR the Michigan games to re-watch them, play by play, on Sunday mornings.
We’re more than a little excited to share the college football experience with our son. He was born last August, so we got off to an early start exposing him to our favorite pastime. (Can you say “indoctrination?”) At three months old, he had already tailgated three separate Saturdays in Ann Arbor (watch for our post on family-friendly tailgating, coming soon!) and attended a football game where Michigan handily defeated their opponent.
According to several online message boards, taking an infant to a college football game is absurd. We did it anyway. Here are some considerations in deciding if this is a viable option for you.
1. Consider the cost. Big Ten policy requires a ticket for everyone, no matter what age, so we had to buy a third ticket for our baby. Sure, the extra seat allowed us to stretch out a little on those cramped bleachers, but depending on the cost of the ticket (say, for a big rivalry game), this may not make sense.
2. Consider the weather. We chose a mid-September game and had a perfect 70-degree day with a light breeze. We had hats, blankets, and sunscreen on-hand for Baby, just in case, as well as layers of clothes.
3. Consider the schedule. We went to a non-conference game early in the season so that we were mentally prepared to leave, if necessary. I couldn’t imagine the struggle of leaving early to calm a crying baby and missing a game-winning touchdown. Of course your child’s needs come first, but don’t make it harder on yourself.
4. Plan what you can bring into the stadium. Check the stadium policy online ahead of time. We had diapers and wipes in a gallon-size Ziploc bag because diaper bags aren’t allowed in Michigan Stadium. (Don’t get me started on that.) It wasn’t convenient, but it worked.
5. Bring noise-canceling headphones for Baby.
6. Consider the developmental stage of your child. An energetic toddler probably won’t sit still for more than two minutes and you may spend the game chasing them around the concourse, while a younger baby who isn’t mobile yet might be content to sit in your lap. Which brings me to my last point…
7. Baby-wear, if you’re into that sort of thing.
It took some advance planning, and it wasn’t as relaxed as going to a game baby-free, but we are glad we did it. We can’t wait to tell our son he went to his first Michigan game was when he was 6 weeks old. And as a bonus, a fellow fan sitting behind me said I was a great mom for breastfeeding my son right there on the bleachers. Go Blue.
