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The History of Tailgating

Colored flags are flying high. The smell of beer and charcoal is in the air. People are walking around with painted faces and chanting can be heard all around. While it may seem like your are witnessing a cult gathering, it is actually a football tailgate.

 

Tailgating is one of our favorite events, aside from the actual football games. It is a time for fans to come together and break bread before their team goes into battle against the other. So, how did tailgating start, anyway? Who came up with the idea of gathering before the game to paint up and eat an enormous amount of food?

 

The original tailgate dates back to the Civil War…but this isn’t a history lecture. So, we will start with the first football tailgate. It happened in 1869, before the first football game ever played between Princeton and Rutgers. The game itself was a cross between modern-day football and rugby, though we are sure without all of the politics. Rutgers fans gathered before the game and put on crimson scarves as turbans to distinguish themselves from the Princeton fans. They wore their school colors as a symbol of pride for their university. Thus, the tailgate was born.

 

Today, tailgating is all about the food and the fandom. Our Shaggin’ Wagon is the ultimate pre-game site. We pull up to one of the collegiate tailgates in our area (OU, Texas Tech, TCU, or Texas State and soon, A&M) and park so people can come to us. We serve our famous tacos and margaritas right out of the colorful trailer, made fresh on site. We will make an appearance at each game, so like us on Facebook in Fort Worth, Lubbock, and Norman, Oklahoma, and follow us on Twitter to see where we will be each week!

 

So, fans, bust out your best paint and jerseys and get ready to tailgate!

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