Approaching Heritage Hall at Western Michigan about three hours before game time, there wasn’t much to see. We followed a sign that read, “Stampede this way,” but didn’t find a collection of Broncos.

Instead there was another sign with tailgate rules: Kegs and bottles were prohibited. Fans aren’t allowed to bring their own furniture.

A group of WMU alumni — some of whom played in the marching band — suggested the tailgate scene was tame because it was Friday. The fans, in what wound up being the adult section of the tailgating scene, glorified playing Syracuse. It’s not every day a Mid-American Conference teams host a Power 5 school.

Josh Shub-Seltzer | Staff Photographer

Everyone we spoke with recommended we go to Lot 105, where the students were — the spot where the rules from the signs actually needed to be enforced. There, we found an upbeat tailgate scene.

Western Michigan’s Chief of Police Scott Merlo oversaw Lot 105. Standing at the entrance of the lot, Merlo scanned the waves of students, some of whom appeared intoxicated, behind dark wrap-around sunglasses.

Merlo and his group of officers monitored the entrance to the lot to check students’ backpacks before they enter the blocked off area. But they didn’t search for beer or alcohol. Students with cases of Natural Light and Budweiser strolled in without a second look.

All the officials cared about was glass, Merlo said. In past years, the student section of tailgates would end up littered with shards of smashed bottles. It drove the landscaping and clean crews nuts.

“No glass,” Merlo said. “So that’s what we do. Sometimes people show up and, you know, they’ve got a big bag of marijuana. It happens.”

Beyond Merlo, the students got raucous. Pickup truck beds were full of people. Folding tables with mirrored pyramids of red Solo cups bracketed the trucks.

Out of the back of SUVs, some students grilled and sold hot dogs or burgers to their fellow partiers. One student stepped on top of a car and shotgunned a beer.

Before Lot 105, Merlo said, students used to tailgate at the track kitty corner to Waldo Stadium. Merlo used to work for the city of Kalamazoo’s Department of Public Safety, where there was a long-held zero-tolerance policy.

“Man we’d write tickets, zero tolerance, MIPs, excessive noise, open intoxication,” Merlo said. “Hammer, hammer, hammer.

“And then there was just a huge conflict.”

Now, Lot 105 is the preordained tailgate spot for students, allowing for oversight and a space for the students to enjoy themselves.

When students walked up with a bag, there wasn’t animosity. Officers were friendly, and the tailgaters readily presented the contents of their bags before entry. When they did have glass, there was a dumpster at the entrance.

On the far side of the of the lot sat a rehabilitation tent staffed by paramedics ready for anyone who had too much to drink or was overcome by the heat. Usually 10 or 15 students visit the tent on any given gameday, Merlo said.

“It’s actually kind of fun,” Merlo said. “We haven’t had any issues. I’ll walk through here and everyone’s decent, having a good time.”

Photos by Staff Photographer Josh Shub-Seltzer

Published on September 3, 2018 at 9:45 pm

Contact Josh: jlschafe@syr.edu | @Schafer_44