A DOUBLE GAME WEEKEND:

Last week, I was privileged to talk to some of my classmates about their blogs! Seeing their blogs, learning about them, and collaborating was super cool! But that wasn’t all that happened last week—my weekend was jam-packed with endless football! I found myself working two games in a row, CU vs Kansas State & The Broncos vs Chargers game. Which turned into a whirlwind of 24 hours of football. The night went late, and it was a very early morning (resulting in 0 sleep that night), but the grind never stops. In this blog, we’re going to do a recap of what last weekend looked like. I’ll share moments from the games and take you on what a day in life looks like working these games. Whether you’re a sports fanatic or just curious about what it’s like to be on the sidelines, I hope you enjoy this glimpse into my whirlwind weekend!

Game 1: CU vs Kansas State game

The weekend started off with the CU vs Kansas State game. The TV time made it so the kick-off was at 8:15, and then it got delayed, so it was bound to be late. Brooke Searfoss and I got to the facility around 5pm to set up everything before the recruits came. 3 hours always seems like a lot of time, but when you’re working, it actually flies by. Then everybody arrived around 7. I was assigned to several prospective recruits, so I met with them and answered their questions about cu. It helps to be from Boulder because I know about the town and can give insights. One of my favorite parts about recruiting is meeting with many families and hearing their stories. Once the recruits eat and get measured, we take them out of the tunnel to watch the players warm up. After warm-ups then, we take them to the south end of the field, “the Colorado,” and watch Ralphie run. This is a fascinating part, especially for visitors who have never been to Colorado; the mom I was with couldn’t believe it was a real buffalo. After all the excitement, we take recruits to their seats. While they watch the game, a lot is being done behind the scenes. I feel like I am constantly helping where needed, so game days fly by. In the fourth quarter, a lot was happening, and a comeback was going to happen, but we unfortunately couldn’t make it happen. We will return next week when we play the University of Arizona Wild Cats. The game ended around 12:30 am, and I got home around 1:30am.

PRIME TIME (Pic : Brooke Searfoss)

BREAK: When I got home, I started preparing for the next game, the Denver Broncos vs. LA Chargers game. It was already late, and I had to be up at 4 a.m. for a 5 a.m. call time, so I decided that sleep wasn’t worth it. I made some dinner, packed my bag, and relaxed for about an hour before it was time to start getting ready!

Game 2:The Broncos vs LA Chargers game

The morning came very fast for this game. I left around 5 a.m. to pick up the carpool because it was my turn to drive this week. I saw the whole gang again, and it was almost like I had seen them two hours prior (some of them also worked the CU game). We were all tired, so I brought them all Celsius to prepare us. Driving to the stadium at 5 a.m. on a Sunday is a breeze because there’s nobody on the roads, and it’s lovely. When we arrive, we head straight into our assignments meeting and begin setting up all our game day activities. Today, I was assigned to the “kick-off kid”. I love being on this assignment because I get to hang out with a kid who has some challenges in their health. The kid gets to come on the field for kick-off to grab the tee. It’s fulfilling hanging out with the kids because they are always so excited to be on the field. They just want to be part of the action. Depending on how the coin toss goes, if we kick first, the kids will grab the tee in the first half, and if we don’t, I take them back to their seats and grab them at halftime. We did not kick first for this game, so I had to grab the family during the second half! While I waited for halftime, I helped some of the squad with what they were assigned and watched some of the game from the sidelines. We also got Panera for lunch, and it was SUPER good. I then helped take down Mane Street, and then halftime rolled around, so it was time to go get my family. We watched halftime on the field, and then it was kicked off, so she went and grabbed the tee. She also got high fives from some of the star players! Then my job was completed, so I watched and waited for some of my coworkers to finish so we could go home! What a weekend!

VIDEO TAKEN BY: Tara Kane

PACK THE HOUSE (Pic: Grace McKee)

CANT BEAT IT (Pic: Grace McKee)

Thanks for tuning into this week’s blog! Stay tuned for another double-game weekend next week when the Buffs take on Cincinnati and the Denver Broncos take on the Panthers! Also Make sure to check out the Tiktok & Instagram for more content.

-Grace Mckee