A UNLV fan cheers during an NCAA college football game against the Idaho State Bengals at Allegiant Stadium Saturday, Aug. 27, 2022, in Las Vegas.
Saturday, Sept. 3, 2022 | 2 a.m.
It’s not surprising that when the UNLV football program scheduled a road game at Notre Dame, interest piqued among some of the program’s supporters.
Imagine, a chance to take in the living, breathing college football tapestry that is Notre Dame — Touchdown Jesus, The Four Horsemen, Play Like a Champion Today, the Golden Dome, etc. — up close and in person.
In response, the UNLV alumni association is bringing its largest group ever to South Bend, Ind., for the Oct. 22 matchup.
Approximately 85 people purchased the association’s “fully conducted” package for the Notre Dame game. The three-day trip includes flights, hotel accommodations in nearby Chicago, transportation to and from the game, a catered tailgate experience and, of course, seats for the game at hallowed Notre Dame Stadium. The interest way so high, the group sold all of its spots.
The total cost per person runs around $1,500, according to Blake Douglas, executive director of the UNLV alumni association.
“We’ve been planning this trip for about eight months,” Douglas said. “We look at every detail when we move 85 people across the country.”
Alumni association road-game excursions are open to anyone, regardless of alumni status, though most of the customers are UNLV grads. Previous organized trips to Michigan (2015), Ohio State (2017), USC (2018) and Northwestern (2019) attracted anywhere from 30 to 45 people, Douglas said, and feedback was positive.
Tony Scott, a retired North Las Vegas Police Department employee and UNLV alum, has been on three previous trips and is bringing a group of six family members to Notre Dame.
“I like to travel,” Scott said. “For me, to go to most of these places, I probably wouldn’t just go on my own. But with my group and UNLV going, and the game, it gives me a reason to go there. The entire trip is fantastic.”
Though the Notre Dame trip is full for those going with the association, Douglas said fans who find their own way to South Bend for the game can still buy their way into the alumni association on-site tailgate.
The UNLV contingent in South Bend figures to be small in numbers. UNLV reported that it sold 246 of its allotted tickets when they were made available to season-ticket holders.
Notre Dame Stadium has a capacity of 80,795. Anyone still looking for tickets for Oct. 22 will have to purchase them through Notre Dame’s official ticket portal or a secondary broker.
Scott expects the Scarlet and Gray section to make itself heard, despite being vastly outnumbered.
“We’re probably going to be a little speck of red in a stadium of blue and gold,” Scott said. “But it’s going to be a good group.”
The Notre Dame game is the only fully conducted trip the alumni association has planned for this season, although they are also holding tailgate and meet-up events at San Diego State (Nov. 5) and at Hawaii (Nov. 19).
Mike Grimala can be reached at 702-948-7844 or [email protected]. Follow Mike on Twitter at twitter.com/mikegrimala.
