USNA NJ PARENTS' CLUB TAILGATING
Our club tailgates at all Navy home football games. Join the fun!
Simply stated, NJ hosts hundreds of Midshipmen at a mega-tailgate for midshipmen at every Navy home football game. We welcome parents traveling from other states to join us. If you are a parent from another State planning to attend a Navy football game, and would like to join us in hosting our Mids.
Please contact - Colin Bell at cbell@telesat.com
please reach out to him if you need to prep or grill food at the tailgate so we can coordinate this with our Tailgate Crew.
Don't have time to cook for tailgates? Consider a donation to the USNA Parents' Club of New Jersey. The USNA Parents' Club of New Jersey is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization and all proceeds go to the well being and support of the brigade.
Who
Our NJ parents and their friends and family (and parents visiting from faraway states). We make our own NJ home-cooked meals. We serve all Mids - whether they are from NJ or Toledo, Ohio, because on game day all Mids are from NJ, whether they know it or not. Send your mid an e-mail and tell him/her to meet you after the game at the tailgate. Tell him to bring his/her friends and roommates. They have most likely heard about the NJ tailgater, but... just in case!
What
You, your families, your friends, make great homemade NJ food and bring it down game day. We need everyone's help to cook food, set up beforehand, help serve the Mids and/or help clean-up and re-load the trailer after the tailgater.
Where
Taylor Road, Stadium Front, directly on the March On route. Look for our tent and NJPC signs. We generally have someone on site by 9AM on game day.
When
After every Navy Home Game. You can come early, or before the game to help set-up, or you can help out after half-time to get things heated; you can help serve our hungry Mids immediately after the game, or you can stick around after to help with the clean-up. You need not commit to the entire process, we'd love to have your help at any time.
Why
Because NJ loves ALL Midshipmen. We want to them to know that we care about them and appreciate the sacrifices they are making on behalf of our country. We want our members to be great ambassadors of our wonderful state. Most of us live less than a 3-hour drive from USNA. Getting up early to cook several trays of great home cooked food, driving 3 hours to Annapolis, serving hundreds of midshipmen (pinching a cheek or two and doling out liberal hugs, while we're at it) is something we can do with hardly a sacrifice. So jump onboard, lend a hand, make your best meal, bake those fabulous cookies. Show all of our midshipmen that NJ LOVES OUR MIDS!
We have our own club trailer, tables, canopies, chafing dishes and the biggest grill you've ever seen. Parents holding season tickets for Navy football have parking passes for stadium parking. Everyone arriving afterwards parks in nearby stadium parking and begins the tailgate set-up process. Those without season tickets must park offsite.
Rules of the USNA PC of NJ Tailgate
1. The food at NJ Tailgaters is for Midshipmen!
We sometimes serve as many as 800 midshipmen at our tailgater. The line begins to grow within minutes of hearing them sing Navy Blue and Gold.
2. There is no drinking of alcoholic beverages while serving food to Midshipmen or in the presence of Midshipmen.
3. Food handling safety measures MUST BE ADHERED TO AT ALL TIMES. Servers must wash hands prior to handling food or utensils.
4. BEHAVE. If you are working at the NJ Tailgate, please remember, you are an ambassador of our State and USNA. We want every Midshipman’s impression of NJ to be a positive one. Our club supports the administration of USNA and our words and actions must be indicative of that support.
5. HAVE FUN. We have the best time preparing for the arrival of our midshipmen and their friends. You won't believe the feeling you get when you look out at the growing line of hungry fellows and gals. Just wait 'til you hear the first one say thank you from the bottom of his/her heart.
