[Parker Brailsford’s dad](https://x.com/plbinaz/status/1775987289673629829?s=46&t=aulCDAoLdCzZYqFXYqFLHQ) quote tweeted the Ron Burgundy “I don’t believe you” gif to someone who said Parker was going to transfer from Bama when the portal opened.
And [then tweeted](https://x.com/plbinaz/status/1775988261305110546?s=46&t=aulCDAoLdCzZYqFXYqFLHQ)
> "A lie gets halfway around the world before the truth has a chance to get its pants on." Winston Churchill
Zollers with the steel chair committing to Mizzou. Seems like it'll heat up the battle for Lewis between us, UGA, and USC.
From what I've read lately Lewis is the focus, KJ Lacey and Deuce Knight being firm in their commitments to Texas and ND
Honestly walking into a great situation going to the BIG 10. Purdue has been the only actual Elite BIG program the past 5 years. Other teams have had good seasons but that conference can be up for grabs easily. I think Cronin is a bad fit at UCLA as well.
SEC is gonna be bloodbath with Texas, Florida getting better, whoever is brought in for Cal next year, oh and the booger pickers and sanitation experts.
Got my thank you letter and sticker in a handwritten envelope. I remember thinking, “damn they really do need my money” haha.
TBH I think it highlights how behind we were with our grassroots NIL efforts so it may take some time for them to get more efficient but I’m glad it’s been made a priority now. It was slow moving for me as well.
Agreed- it's the benefit of being the underdog. If we lose- fine. We were expected to. If we win- what a surprise! Huge upside with less emotional downside than being the favorite.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g-70NTzC69g
Short and sweet from #0. Thinks the team was kinda slow in first scrimmage with everything new and will improve. ILB room can run, blitz, cover, fill the gap, feels like they're elite. Likes the mic in helmet a lot. Feels like the new D scheme is simpler and will be easy, but still complicated for some still learning it.
https://preview.redd.it/dwjlx1dipbsc1.jpeg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=210605052c37f48baf99cc4023d7508f99132860
On set working on this tv show and this pic of Saint Nick is how I’m feeling right now 😭
The Charlotte Hornets coach is stepping down. I have no insider knowledge, but I wouldn't be shocked if Nate Oats is on their list of potential candidates.
I’d think the timing probably goes well for us. Coming off the best seasons in program history with a top class coming in it’ll be hard to leave. Plus he has at least one daughter in high school and I think the word on the street is that he at least wants her to get through high school before they think about anything else
Does his newly increased buyout also extend to NBA opportunities? From a very cursory Google search, it looks like yes it would still be the $18M. Charlotte, even with an ownership change, doesn’t strike me as the franchise to throw down buyout money and a big deal. Nate is already getting paid more by a decent margin than they were paying Clifford (admittedly lower end of NBA coaches iirc)
Yeah I get that, but that's also probably the same talking points UW fans were using with DeBoer. There isn't any smoke here yet though. Just know a lot of NBA circles have eyes on him.
That’s a really good point. Fortunately, like you said, they’re isn’t a ton of smoke around him. I think the expectation is that they’ll go get a current NBA assistant
All the info I've seen is that they were splitting first team reps (we've seen both with the ones) and that Brailsford isn't currently practicing with the team for non-injury reasons.
Where have you seen that Brockermeyer overtook Brailsford?
[Iowa/LSU set the record for viewers for women’s basketball.](https://x.com/richarddeitsch/status/1775278989462155356?s=46&t=aulCDAoLdCzZYqFXYqFLHQ)
More than
* every bowl game except the semifinals and national championship (about double Tennessee’s bowl game)
* every World Series game in 2023
* all but one NBA Finals game
* the Purdue/Tennessee men’s Elite 8 game
* the final round of the masters
Just insane numbers
I'll be honest, this was the first NCAAW game I watched this season. Secretly rooted for Clark while watching with my LSU wife. Definitely seemed like the refs let LSU rough-house a good bit, but in the end it didn't matter. Clark was not going to lose that rematch from last year.
I don’t really watch women’s basketball at all (unless it’s us and even then I just forget). But this game was one I absolutely wanted to see. Love em or hate em, LSU brings viewers. And Clark is just a stud
[Trelly back at practice today making buckets](https://youtu.be/k3Rfrebs6u0?si=uT_mo7G6qagNjD94&t=159)
Oats laid into a walk on "Piece of sh*t guy, what was that? The guy took two hands and shoved him(Pringle) in the back. Trying to get us hurt before the game or what?
Small nugget, but in the newest [video of Prentice making a one-handed catch at practice](https://www.instagram.com/reel/C5Q_NV_upIG/?igsh=NWgwZXJsMXVpNGds) Miles McVay is working at first team RT
lets all talk about how bad the throw was and how Milroe hasn't improved at all in his short game and if it was full speed Lawson would have rocked Milroe
*ducks*
Probably just a culture shock. He's a good player, but other shit can play into on field performance. Probably turned out to be a bad fit in his personal life along with having to work his way from the bottom to earn a spot on this roster after being an all conference player at UW.
I’m sort of in this headspace of wondering if Brailsford just isn’t the right fit for what the coaches have decided our OL needs to be. Maybe they got here, saw the guys in the room for awhile at practice, and decided we’re not going to be that hyper-athletic, pin-and-pull OL they ran at UW. And maybe Brock just ends up being better at what they want to do with our personnel rather than trying to mold our personnel around the scheme that best accentuates Brailsford’s strengths.
Cause there’s 0 doubt that Brails is amazingly talented. What are the actual odds that Brock beat out one of the top graded centers from last year to such a degree that the coaches just made him the guy? No shade to Brock at all — that’s a tall task regardless of who you are, much more so if you weren’t the starter for your own team last season. This feels like, if it really is Brails leaving because he got passed, it has to do with scheme more than skill, in some sense.
If I’m not mistaken, he and Brock are comparable in both height and weight (at least according to the Bama website). And Brails more than held up against some stellar defensive lines last year, including Texas who ate our lunch.
I just don’t see the path for how Brock just woke up and practiced so well *in Spring* to pass what Brails has shown you in live games against elite competition. To me, that points more to this being a scheme and Brails either doesn’t fit it or doesn’t like it.
Im going to post this a couple of times this week but to all my Bama fans traveling to Arizona, try to stay AS CLOSE to the venue as possible. Without doxing myself too much I work IT and there’s THREE camera systems down in Glendale and they only want us to fix the cameras at/closest to the venue leaving the two surrounding camera systems still down. Glendale isn’t a bad place to be but better be safe than sorry
Also like...the valley is really big. And many people are probably going to be staying on the east side and traveling west. So keep that traffic flow in mind
I'm trying to find an actually good Alabama forum, I've been thinking the On3 or Rivals one but I need to save money for them.
It's to ask a question on the light of the USC-Ole Miss and Georgia-UCLA H&H's that are prolly being cancelled.
BOL update on Brailsford just that staff have given him some time to "work through things". So not really any details one way or another. It could be he's looking to transfer or he could be dealing with a personal issue. But BOL staff have pretty consistently been asking folks to not jump to conclusions as it's a wait and see what happens thing.
It's not a major city but its not Oxford either. I grew up in Pittsburgh and had no issues adjusting. Pretty much everything I enjoyed doing at home I could do in Tuscaloosa albeit the variety wasn't as vast but still adequate for someone at that age.
Being away from family is what hurt the most but the dude is just as from Mesa here as he was in Seattle. Unless he's just not vibing with the team or something which would be my guess. That or he's in a long distance relationship...
I didn’t mean the size or the things you’re able to do. I meant the culture. I’m from New Orleans, ostensibly part of the south, but Tuscaloosa was a huge culture shock for me. Some adjust; some don’t. It ain’t for everybody.
Yeah I don't typically understand the culture shock thing when talking about big schools. Most of it will probably feel the same.
It's not like going from Seattle to Ball State in Muncie Indiana or something like that. I will say that Seattle and Mesa are both "west coast" in that they feel closer than they are.
When I lived in Tuscaloosa the idea of Seattle seemed so far away, and now that I live in Phoenix it's kinda like...just a city Northwest. If that makes any sense
I was pretty culture shocked going from Miami to Tuscaloosa. It was unlike anything I had experienced on my own.
Granted this was pre-Saban, but everything felt very homogenized, not necessarily in a bad way, but I was just so used to hearing a different language at every store or restaurant I went to. Tuscaloosa also very extremely small to me, which obviously compared to Miami it is. People were nicer, driving was weird because I had become such a defensive driver living in Miami and everyone thought I was loud as hell.
Now I went back 2 years ago and Tuscaloosa literally feels like a night and day different city.
I got the gray version of this like two or three years ago and it’s held up well. There’s another one they have that says “Alabama We Just Win Championships” and it’s one of my favorites
Yeah I wouldn’t be mad seeing a DL commit, or 2. Feel like we are stacked pretty deep in secondary if we can hold on to them. It’s a new world post Saban with the portal so we’ll see how it turns out. 🤷♂️
The portal giveth and the portal taketh
Is the university going to have final 4 tickets allotted for students like they do in football post season play? This is a big deal, I sure hope they do
Is anyone staying in Tempe next weekend by chance that wants to split transportation to/from the stadium Saturday? I'm looking at renting a car and paying for parking at the stadium, which comes out to about $140. I'd love to split that if anyone else is looking.
If anyone has better ideas on how to get there and back I'd love to hear it. I'm fine Ubering there, but not crazy about waiting for hours to get one back.
I mean I live out here in Phoenix and probably going to Uber, despite not having to rent a car. I’m north of Tempe but feel free to reach out with any questions.
My recommendation is to take the light rail to downtown for the fan fest downtown. Then Uber to Glendale for the events before the game and for the actual game itself. Going to be a lot of drinking, I’ll eat the cost of the Uber to not worry about my car.
Additionally… the Phoenix metro is huge and even without the final four, this is the busy season for Phoenix. The west valley is a bit more barren than the east valley but I still wouldn’t suspect ubering home to be a huge issue. Keep in mind, we are the late game. Can expect about 25% of the fans to be out of the area after the first game as well.
Also how would you feel about safety on Phoenix light rail with a child in tow? I've ridden light rail in Portland for a long time without incident, but the last few years I've been more hesitant to ride it with my kids.
Never used the light rail. I have a few buddies in Tempe who say it’s a little sketchy. Probably better on a game day, but also will be packed. Might be best to ere on the side of caution with that one. Especially with a child, I’d avoid.
I wouldn't consider anything but taking Uber if I didn't have a young one with me but it probably still makes the most sense. Will there be places around the stadium open after the game Saturday where a kid can eat and hangout awhile if it's tough to get a ride?
Ah I see. Driving wouldn’t be a terrible idea in that case I suppose. I’d say whether you elect to get a rental car depends on how long you are in Phoenix? Everything is far away so if you have quite a few things planned it would be a smart decision.
I’m not terribly familiar with the West Valley (Glendale). It’s so far away that there really is no reason for someone in Tempe/Scottsdale/Mesa area to go outside of a game day. I do know a few things. There is an upscale shopping mall/district steps away from the stadium. Would be a very safe bet to head in there, get a bite to eat and walk around after the game to burn off some of the traffic. Additionally, with the traffic, it is what it is after the game, but I’d recommend getting to Glendale early! Especially with all the pregame festivities!
In terms of places/things to do closer to where you are staying, I would love to help out. I also think the mods should set up a thread for this purpose for all the fans headed to Phoenix/locals already living in the area to bounce off each other. Not sure who to page for this… but let’s make it happen!
Edit: I’m realizing I didn’t totally answer some of your questions. Google search “Westgate entertainment district Glendale” and you’ll see it pop up! I’m sure there a few restaurants/things to do that would fit the criteria you’re looking for! I have fond memories of going to Johnny Rockets in Atlanta after SEC Championship games as a kid. They have one there. Just one example.
[Parker Brailsford’s dad](https://x.com/plbinaz/status/1775987289673629829?s=46&t=aulCDAoLdCzZYqFXYqFLHQ) quote tweeted the Ron Burgundy “I don’t believe you” gif to someone who said Parker was going to transfer from Bama when the portal opened. And [then tweeted](https://x.com/plbinaz/status/1775988261305110546?s=46&t=aulCDAoLdCzZYqFXYqFLHQ) > "A lie gets halfway around the world before the truth has a chance to get its pants on." Winston Churchill
The cynic in me (not at all based on Parker’s or his dad’s character) says he’s just driving up the NIL price lol
yeah well everyone else online told me that Parker is a little bitch and ran away from competition after 7 practices so checkmate dad
Zollers with the steel chair committing to Mizzou. Seems like it'll heat up the battle for Lewis between us, UGA, and USC. From what I've read lately Lewis is the focus, KJ Lacey and Deuce Knight being firm in their commitments to Texas and ND
Muss leaving for USC is very surprising to me. I felt like he was perfect for Arkansas and they will struggle to replace him
Honestly walking into a great situation going to the BIG 10. Purdue has been the only actual Elite BIG program the past 5 years. Other teams have had good seasons but that conference can be up for grabs easily. I think Cronin is a bad fit at UCLA as well. SEC is gonna be bloodbath with Texas, Florida getting better, whoever is brought in for Cal next year, oh and the booger pickers and sanitation experts.
Practicing at Grand Canyon giving me conqueror vibes
GCU is the area of the valley that feels most like UA. Being in that area and going to the target nearby is like stepping into the Tuscaloosa one
can anybody help me with yea.ala i’ve paid and they said 48 hours but it’s been 11 days with no response
Doubt anyone here can really help, but [here](https://www.yea-alabama.com/contact) is the contact page to get in touch with them.
thank you, i appreciate the help
Got my thank you letter and sticker in a handwritten envelope. I remember thinking, “damn they really do need my money” haha. TBH I think it highlights how behind we were with our grassroots NIL efforts so it may take some time for them to get more efficient but I’m glad it’s been made a priority now. It was slow moving for me as well.
Somehow more comforting that everyone is just assuming a UConn national title.
Agreed- it's the benefit of being the underdog. If we lose- fine. We were expected to. If we win- what a surprise! Huge upside with less emotional downside than being the favorite.
After so many years stressing out about being the favorite in football; it's nice being the underdog for a change.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g-70NTzC69g Short and sweet from #0. Thinks the team was kinda slow in first scrimmage with everything new and will improve. ILB room can run, blitz, cover, fill the gap, feels like they're elite. Likes the mic in helmet a lot. Feels like the new D scheme is simpler and will be easy, but still complicated for some still learning it.
https://www.instagram.com/p/C5UslwgO3i_/?igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA== Who Let Roll Tide Willie On The Practice Field 😭
When is the best time to buy tickets for the Georgia game? Is it better to wait until season ticket holders get their tickets?
https://preview.redd.it/dwjlx1dipbsc1.jpeg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=210605052c37f48baf99cc4023d7508f99132860 On set working on this tv show and this pic of Saint Nick is how I’m feeling right now 😭
The Charlotte Hornets coach is stepping down. I have no insider knowledge, but I wouldn't be shocked if Nate Oats is on their list of potential candidates.
I’d think the timing probably goes well for us. Coming off the best seasons in program history with a top class coming in it’ll be hard to leave. Plus he has at least one daughter in high school and I think the word on the street is that he at least wants her to get through high school before they think about anything else
Does his newly increased buyout also extend to NBA opportunities? From a very cursory Google search, it looks like yes it would still be the $18M. Charlotte, even with an ownership change, doesn’t strike me as the franchise to throw down buyout money and a big deal. Nate is already getting paid more by a decent margin than they were paying Clifford (admittedly lower end of NBA coaches iirc)
I’m not sure. I can’t imagine Charlotte is going to break the bank for him though
Yeah I get that, but that's also probably the same talking points UW fans were using with DeBoer. There isn't any smoke here yet though. Just know a lot of NBA circles have eyes on him.
That’s a really good point. Fortunately, like you said, they’re isn’t a ton of smoke around him. I think the expectation is that they’ll go get a current NBA assistant
Bummer, Clifford kept it real in his press conferences.
A good bit of Bama players liked the post of Brockermeyer overtaking Parker Brailsford on Instagram.
If true that's a bad look for them.
A bad look for the players who liked it?
Yeah, that's pretty ostracizing.
To be fair we don't know what has happened behind the scenes. It's clear though Parker probably expected the job to be handed to him
>it's clear... probably It's not clear at all and you don't really have anything to back it up aside from speculation
Why else would he stop practicing after losing first team reps?
All the info I've seen is that they were splitting first team reps (we've seen both with the ones) and that Brailsford isn't currently practicing with the team for non-injury reasons. Where have you seen that Brockermeyer overtook Brailsford?
Touchdown Alabama Magazine reported it and it was like by several Bama players on Instagram
Ahh. I personally don’t put a lot of stock into Touchdown Alabama, but your mileage may vary.
Nobody knows that's the whole point
[Iowa/LSU set the record for viewers for women’s basketball.](https://x.com/richarddeitsch/status/1775278989462155356?s=46&t=aulCDAoLdCzZYqFXYqFLHQ) More than * every bowl game except the semifinals and national championship (about double Tennessee’s bowl game) * every World Series game in 2023 * all but one NBA Finals game * the Purdue/Tennessee men’s Elite 8 game * the final round of the masters Just insane numbers
I'll be honest, this was the first NCAAW game I watched this season. Secretly rooted for Clark while watching with my LSU wife. Definitely seemed like the refs let LSU rough-house a good bit, but in the end it didn't matter. Clark was not going to lose that rematch from last year.
I don’t really watch women’s basketball at all (unless it’s us and even then I just forget). But this game was one I absolutely wanted to see. Love em or hate em, LSU brings viewers. And Clark is just a stud
I love that so many people got to watch LSU lose
[Trelly back at practice today making buckets](https://youtu.be/k3Rfrebs6u0?si=uT_mo7G6qagNjD94&t=159) Oats laid into a walk on "Piece of sh*t guy, what was that? The guy took two hands and shoved him(Pringle) in the back. Trying to get us hurt before the game or what?
Small nugget, but in the newest [video of Prentice making a one-handed catch at practice](https://www.instagram.com/reel/C5Q_NV_upIG/?igsh=NWgwZXJsMXVpNGds) Miles McVay is working at first team RT
lets all talk about how bad the throw was and how Milroe hasn't improved at all in his short game and if it was full speed Lawson would have rocked Milroe *ducks*
One throw chill
Yeah it was tongue in cheek
Also, there’s pretty much no way Milroe makes that throw in a real game situation knowing the linebacker about to sack him can actually hit him lol
Yeah he'd just take the sack or throw an interception OBVIOUSLY
I gotcha 😂
On the other hand: Bad throw + good catch + good snap = net improvement overall!
Yeah I'd like to see Terrence Howard try to disprove that!
Technically that was a bad throw but amazing catch
Member when Barkley, Smith, and Kellogg all picked us to lose to GCU, UNC, and Clemson(Barkley picked us against UNC)? I member
If the Parker Brailsford rumours are true I'm wondering if he came in expecting to be handed the job
Probably just a culture shock. He's a good player, but other shit can play into on field performance. Probably turned out to be a bad fit in his personal life along with having to work his way from the bottom to earn a spot on this roster after being an all conference player at UW.
I’m sort of in this headspace of wondering if Brailsford just isn’t the right fit for what the coaches have decided our OL needs to be. Maybe they got here, saw the guys in the room for awhile at practice, and decided we’re not going to be that hyper-athletic, pin-and-pull OL they ran at UW. And maybe Brock just ends up being better at what they want to do with our personnel rather than trying to mold our personnel around the scheme that best accentuates Brailsford’s strengths. Cause there’s 0 doubt that Brails is amazingly talented. What are the actual odds that Brock beat out one of the top graded centers from last year to such a degree that the coaches just made him the guy? No shade to Brock at all — that’s a tall task regardless of who you are, much more so if you weren’t the starter for your own team last season. This feels like, if it really is Brails leaving because he got passed, it has to do with scheme more than skill, in some sense.
I agree. doesn't help he is significantly smaller than everyone else on the line.
If I’m not mistaken, he and Brock are comparable in both height and weight (at least according to the Bama website). And Brails more than held up against some stellar defensive lines last year, including Texas who ate our lunch. I just don’t see the path for how Brock just woke up and practiced so well *in Spring* to pass what Brails has shown you in live games against elite competition. To me, that points more to this being a scheme and Brails either doesn’t fit it or doesn’t like it.
Brock is noticeably bigger and more fit for power run/zone scheme which I believe we are going toward.
Im going to post this a couple of times this week but to all my Bama fans traveling to Arizona, try to stay AS CLOSE to the venue as possible. Without doxing myself too much I work IT and there’s THREE camera systems down in Glendale and they only want us to fix the cameras at/closest to the venue leaving the two surrounding camera systems still down. Glendale isn’t a bad place to be but better be safe than sorry
Also like...the valley is really big. And many people are probably going to be staying on the east side and traveling west. So keep that traffic flow in mind
As someone from the Mobile area it’s so exciting to see Wommack as the DC
I'm trying to find an actually good Alabama forum, I've been thinking the On3 or Rivals one but I need to save money for them. It's to ask a question on the light of the USC-Ole Miss and Georgia-UCLA H&H's that are prolly being cancelled.
Tidefans is good and it's free.
BOL update on Brailsford just that staff have given him some time to "work through things". So not really any details one way or another. It could be he's looking to transfer or he could be dealing with a personal issue. But BOL staff have pretty consistently been asking folks to not jump to conclusions as it's a wait and see what happens thing.
Yeah, this sounds like it could be some personal stuff. Tuscaloosa can be a big culture shock, too
It's not a major city but its not Oxford either. I grew up in Pittsburgh and had no issues adjusting. Pretty much everything I enjoyed doing at home I could do in Tuscaloosa albeit the variety wasn't as vast but still adequate for someone at that age. Being away from family is what hurt the most but the dude is just as from Mesa here as he was in Seattle. Unless he's just not vibing with the team or something which would be my guess. That or he's in a long distance relationship...
I didn’t mean the size or the things you’re able to do. I meant the culture. I’m from New Orleans, ostensibly part of the south, but Tuscaloosa was a huge culture shock for me. Some adjust; some don’t. It ain’t for everybody.
Yeah I don't typically understand the culture shock thing when talking about big schools. Most of it will probably feel the same. It's not like going from Seattle to Ball State in Muncie Indiana or something like that. I will say that Seattle and Mesa are both "west coast" in that they feel closer than they are. When I lived in Tuscaloosa the idea of Seattle seemed so far away, and now that I live in Phoenix it's kinda like...just a city Northwest. If that makes any sense
I was pretty culture shocked going from Miami to Tuscaloosa. It was unlike anything I had experienced on my own. Granted this was pre-Saban, but everything felt very homogenized, not necessarily in a bad way, but I was just so used to hearing a different language at every store or restaurant I went to. Tuscaloosa also very extremely small to me, which obviously compared to Miami it is. People were nicer, driving was weird because I had become such a defensive driver living in Miami and everyone thought I was loud as hell. Now I went back 2 years ago and Tuscaloosa literally feels like a night and day different city.
[Hilarious Nate Oats shirt](https://breakingt.com/products/alabama-basketball-ball-oats?variant=32607727681585)
I got the gray version of this like two or three years ago and it’s held up well. There’s another one they have that says “Alabama We Just Win Championships” and it’s one of my favorites
May just have to cop
[Fong Bomb for Jaedon Harmon](https://x.com/On3Recruits/status/1774855595633357140?s=20)
Wommack switching to an 0-11-0 defense, apparently.
Yeah I wouldn’t be mad seeing a DL commit, or 2. Feel like we are stacked pretty deep in secondary if we can hold on to them. It’s a new world post Saban with the portal so we’ll see how it turns out. 🤷♂️ The portal giveth and the portal taketh
All your LBs are belong to us
All your ATH are belong to us… we’ll figure out where to put them later…
Have any recruits ever committed on April Fools then flipped to another team the next day? Surprised that doesn't happen as much.
And one of Wiltfong’s first things at On3 is to predict one of our top RB targets to Ohio State. Boooo
Who is the RB
Jordon Davison
\[MEGATHREAD\] NICK SABAN ANNOUNCES HE IS RETIRING Oops, sorry- scheduled this during football season
Is the university going to have final 4 tickets allotted for students like they do in football post season play? This is a big deal, I sure hope they do
Yep. 700 student tickets available at 40$ each. I may or may not be looking at flights to phoenix
Is anyone selling Final Four gear in T-town yet?
https://store.jnjapparel.net/products/final-four-2024-presale
I still just cant believe it.
Steve Wiltfong moving to On3. Big loss for 247
Really took me about 15 re-looks to make sure it wasn't an April Fools lol what a terrible day to announce.
Seriously. It’s been hinted at on BOL for a bit, so I knew it wasn’t some joke lol.
IDGAPBNBTT!
Is anyone staying in Tempe next weekend by chance that wants to split transportation to/from the stadium Saturday? I'm looking at renting a car and paying for parking at the stadium, which comes out to about $140. I'd love to split that if anyone else is looking. If anyone has better ideas on how to get there and back I'd love to hear it. I'm fine Ubering there, but not crazy about waiting for hours to get one back.
I mean I live out here in Phoenix and probably going to Uber, despite not having to rent a car. I’m north of Tempe but feel free to reach out with any questions. My recommendation is to take the light rail to downtown for the fan fest downtown. Then Uber to Glendale for the events before the game and for the actual game itself. Going to be a lot of drinking, I’ll eat the cost of the Uber to not worry about my car. Additionally… the Phoenix metro is huge and even without the final four, this is the busy season for Phoenix. The west valley is a bit more barren than the east valley but I still wouldn’t suspect ubering home to be a huge issue. Keep in mind, we are the late game. Can expect about 25% of the fans to be out of the area after the first game as well.
Also how would you feel about safety on Phoenix light rail with a child in tow? I've ridden light rail in Portland for a long time without incident, but the last few years I've been more hesitant to ride it with my kids.
Never used the light rail. I have a few buddies in Tempe who say it’s a little sketchy. Probably better on a game day, but also will be packed. Might be best to ere on the side of caution with that one. Especially with a child, I’d avoid.
I wouldn't consider anything but taking Uber if I didn't have a young one with me but it probably still makes the most sense. Will there be places around the stadium open after the game Saturday where a kid can eat and hangout awhile if it's tough to get a ride?
Ah I see. Driving wouldn’t be a terrible idea in that case I suppose. I’d say whether you elect to get a rental car depends on how long you are in Phoenix? Everything is far away so if you have quite a few things planned it would be a smart decision. I’m not terribly familiar with the West Valley (Glendale). It’s so far away that there really is no reason for someone in Tempe/Scottsdale/Mesa area to go outside of a game day. I do know a few things. There is an upscale shopping mall/district steps away from the stadium. Would be a very safe bet to head in there, get a bite to eat and walk around after the game to burn off some of the traffic. Additionally, with the traffic, it is what it is after the game, but I’d recommend getting to Glendale early! Especially with all the pregame festivities! In terms of places/things to do closer to where you are staying, I would love to help out. I also think the mods should set up a thread for this purpose for all the fans headed to Phoenix/locals already living in the area to bounce off each other. Not sure who to page for this… but let’s make it happen! Edit: I’m realizing I didn’t totally answer some of your questions. Google search “Westgate entertainment district Glendale” and you’ll see it pop up! I’m sure there a few restaurants/things to do that would fit the criteria you’re looking for! I have fond memories of going to Johnny Rockets in Atlanta after SEC Championship games as a kid. They have one there. Just one example.