Written by: Evan Alvarez

Indiana fans have heard for months that changes were coming to Memorial Stadium’s in-game experience in 2024. From new student section seating, new food stand layouts, new food options, new hype videos, a new band formation, a new in-game host, new games on the videoboard and on-field, and new music, there was a lot to see on Opening Day. Let’s dig into each one and give them a grade from A+ to F.

New Student Section Seating (B):

At its peak, the new student section was a sea of red and white. It was truly a beautiful sight to behold and an exciting environment to hear, as the students showed up in both numbers and voice. At the start of the second half, numbers deteriorated exponentially. It was hot, the game wasn’t the most exciting game in the world, and Indiana was very much expected to win this game months ahead of time. For several years now, it’s been an unfortunate expectation that the stadium crowd will be cut in half or more by the time the third quarter comes around. This occurred again on Saturday and is likely a systemic issue that will be solved by, yes, winning games, but also establishing a football culture on campus that starts now and can be built for generations to come.

For these reasons, the new student section season gets a B from me. The idea worked, it looked really cool, and was effective. Now, let’s all stay the whole game (everyone, not just students).

New Food Stand Layouts (A+):

Part of my day job is analyzing food and beverage layouts, offerings, prices, etc in stadiums, so seeing changes come to life for the university I love most was a joy to experience and evaluate. Indiana hired renowned concessionaire, Levy, to revamp things in the stadium and boy did they accomplish that. Below you’ll see a photo of one of the many new Grab ‘n Go stations across Memorial Stadium. At the end of each line, you’ll also see a photo of a “Mashgin Unit”, which weighs your food and beverage items quickly and charges you right away. It is incredibly easy to use, and in my experience (when combined with a Grab ‘n Go station) the pairing increases food and beverage revenues by 15-25% for the stadium compared to a traditional “walk up and order stand”, simply because throughput of fans is that much faster. There’s much more I want to say on this but for brevity’s sake, Memorial Stadium has now become a modern stadium on the concessions side of things. This will pay off in both revenue for the university, but also satisfaction among fans.

For these reasons, the new food stand layouts get an A+ from me. This was my favorite part of Saturday’s in-game experience.

New Food Options (A):

Continuing the thought above of Memorial Stadium becoming a modern stadium on the concessions side of things, Levy brought in tons of local favorites to the stadium. According to the Indy Star, BuffaLouie’s, Yogi’s, Aver’s, Social Cantina, and Chocolate Moose were highlighted additions. At the game on Saturday, I also saw Baked! of Bloomington cookies along with other local favorites.

Outside of the local options, Memorial Stadium cooked (pun intended). Levy created the brand new “Hoosier Dog”, a gigantic hot dog with pulled pork, bacon, and scallions. The $15.99 price point seems steep, but I assure you it is worth the money and fills you up all game long. Washing it down with Upland Brewery’s Hoosier Gameday Lager was a joy and the Mini-Melts and Chocolate Moose stands saved us on a hot day with delicious cold treats. Inside the Grab ‘n Go, there are also tasty pulled pork sandwiches - a perfect purchase if you’re in a rush and still want something hot and filling.

For these reasons, the new food options get an A from me. The food was innovative, local, tasty, and wait times were reasonable as well.

New Hype Videos and Team Entry (A+ to B-):

The Marching Hundred had a hype video! And it was sick! I loved it. What a great idea to push forward the culture of Indiana Football by hyping up the band. Bands are such a huge part of the college football experience so highlighting them makes so much sense. I’m not sure if I’ve seen something like that before across the country, so props to whoever’s idea this was!

For these reasons, the new Marching Hundred hype video gets an A+ from me.

The football team hype video was good. Pretty typical of previous videos - I don’t have much to say other than that.

For these reasons, the new football team hype video gets a B- from me.

The team entry was cool as well. Nothing over the top, but cool and fine. The band lined up in an “I” formation and the team ran in the middle of the “I” while flag bearers ran with the team out of the endzone. I don’t know how I’d change this personally, but it needs a little more “umph” in my opinion.

For these reasons, the new team entry gets a B+ from me.

New Band Formation (A):

I generally attend 1-2 Indiana home games per year, so there is a very good chance this formation has been done before, but I hadn’t seen it so it was new to me. The formation I’m speaking about is none other than the Sample Gates! It was beautifully done and looked amazing.

For these reasons, the new band formation gets an A from me.

New In-Game Host and New Fan Games/Entertainment (B+):

Indiana’s in-game host, Griffin Gonzalez, took the game by storm on Saturday. He brought energy, passion, excitement, and noise to a game on the field that lost its energy and excitement in the second half. Gonzalez was the most hyped person in the stadium and, while some people may never like the idea of having an in-game host no matter where you go, I believe he positively added to the game day experience and will continue to do so for many games to come. Indiana football wants to be exciting and wants to create that excitement among fans. You can do it on the field with your play, you can do it in the stadium with good food and music, you can do it with fun fan chants and fan noise, and you can do it by having an exciting in-game host. All pieces have to work together in harmony to create an atmosphere, and Gonzalez brings a very positive piece to solving that atmosphere puzzle.

For these reasons, the new in-game host gets a B+ from me.

There were also some new fan games and entertainment, such as bringing a new version of the Bucceto's race, a back and forth relay race on the field, a ‘wheel of fan cams’, several t-shirt tosses, and recognition for a wealth of Indiana sports successes historically and currently, along with a cameo from Trayce Jackson-Davis. There was also a beautiful tribute for the Service Member of the game (I know that’s not a new addition, but it was very cool nonetheless). These were all very fun. I’m happy with the new additions and can’t wait to see what else the team puts together.

For these reasons, the new fan games and entertainment gets a B+ from me.

New Music (C):

I’ve had not-positive thoughts about the music at Memorial Stadium for many years and was very excited for this year, hoping things would change. They did, and it was better than in previous years, but still well below my expectations for a sports stadium. In previous years, the music never seemed to match the vibe of what was going on and, while that was addressed a bit more on Saturday, there were still far too many out of place or random songs that didn’t gel with a football game atmosphere. The playlist seemed disjointed and random and while there were some major wins throughout the day (player warmups fit the vibe perfectly along with great throwbacks sprinkled into downtime), I still found myself disappointed for the majority of the experience.

For these reasons, the new music gets a C from me.

Overall (A-):

I had a fantastic time at Memorial Stadium on Saturday and can’t wait to come back to see what else is new in the future. Here’s a shot of midfield below during very early warmups for your viewing pleasure. Let me know what you thought of your Memorial Stadium experience below in the comments. Thanks for reading and Go Hoosiers!

The Huddle

Reviewing Memorial Stadium’s In-Game Experience on Opening Day, 2024