Here’s what it’s like to camp out on the quad for College GameDay

When ESPN College GameDay announced that they would be coming to James Madison University, the whole campus erupted in cheers. Tweets were flying, text messages were sending, and sign ideas were spreading throughout every dorm.

Everyone was getting pumped, and plans to camp out on the quad were set. Camping on the quad is a new GameDay tradition, guaranteeing students good spots for the show in the morning.

I was able to talk with Julianne Carroll, a freshman, who told me all about her experiences on the Quad this past Saturday.

So, what was your favorite sign?

Julianne: My favorite one was the one hung on Spotswood that said “Villanova’s about to get a 3rd L.”

What time did you get to the quad? Were you able to get into “The Pit?”

Julianne: I got there at 3:30 p.m. on Friday, and got we got our pit tickets at around 5:30 on Friday. Then after camping out, we started moving our stuff at 3:30 a.m Saturday and got in line to make sure we had a good spot within “The Pit.”

What was the overall experience like?

Julianne: It was really fun and exciting, although I was completely exhausted afterwards. I’m super glad I did it and would definitely recommend the experience should GameDay come again, but I don’t think I’d feel the need to do it again. It’s a literal once-in-a-lifetime thing for me.

What was it like sleeping out on the Quad?

Julianne: I decided not to sleep, because I knew if I fell asleep I wouldn’t want to wake up. Also, everyone yelled the countdown for the last 10 seconds of every hour, so I wouldn’t have been able to stay asleep for more than an hour anyway. Some of the other people in our group slept, but as far as I’m aware, none of us got more than an hour or two of sleep.

Did you stay the whole time on the quad, or were you able to get tickets to the game?

Julianne: I left the quad around 11:00 a.m. and went back to the dorm to take a nap for an hour or so. I made sure I woke up in time to go to the game though!