Dakota Days Tailgate to Bring in Biggest Crowd of the Year

Dakota Days is a week full of celebrations and events. USD’s football team will close off Dakota Days with a game in the DakotaDome against Murray State on Saturday. The Coyote Alley Tailgate will kick off the football festivities.  

A tailgate occurs before every football game in the Dakota Dome parking lot and will also be the case during Dakota Days. It’s an event where the community can gather together and enjoy some food, music and play games.   

For the most part, the tailgate will be the same as previous tailgates. Jarren Duffy, assistant AD for marketing and promotions and one of the organizers, said he expects more visitors than normal. 

“This tailgate will be the biggest of the season. There are a lot of people who join in on D-Days, so I expect there to be a few thousand people on Saturday,” Duffy said.   

For the special occasion, there will be an extra food truck, more games and live music. The band The Warning Shots will start playing at noon and will continue to do so until the game starts at 2 p.m. Other than that, the lay-out of Coyote Alley Tailgate will be similar to other tailgates.  

Although the tailgate organizers won’t serve any alcohol, people are allowed to bring their own to drink it in a specific area.  

“UPD will be present to regulate and monitor the alcohol usage,” Duffy said.   

Even though the tailgate officially starts at 9 a.m., Duffy said he expects the bigger crowd to arrive later in the morning.  

“The parade starts at 9 a.m.,” Duffy said. “Most people will go to that first before coming to the tailgate. The bigger crowd will probably arrive between 10 and 11 a.m.”  

The football game doesn’t start until 2 p.m., so people who wish to go to the parade first have plenty of time to enjoy the food and live music after the parade and before the game.

Photo Credit: File | The Volante