LAWRENCE, Kan — It started on Friday morning for some — 10:30 a.m. to be specific.
The first few in line were four shirtless men with R-C-J-H (Rock Chalk Jayhawk) painted across their bodies, shivering while holding a doughnut and coffee. Jayhawk fans like these were up and ready to go for ESPN College GameDay in Lawrence, Kansas, before KU took on TCU.
"I'm a fan so much, this is my son Nate, his middle name is Jayhawk," said Sean Oberg, a KU alumni who now watches the games with his son.
He held up a sign showing characters from "The Wizard of Oz" and the Yellow Brick Road.
"It says 'the Yellow Brick Road runs thru LFK, go KU,' so they (TCU) gotta come through us!" Oberg said.
With College GameDay set up on The Hill right in front of David Booth Memorial Stadium, fans were able to rally before game time.
"It makes my heart feel warm because this has been the worst Power Five program in the last 15-20 years," said Chance, a KU student. "We are starting to see a little bit of success, we have our stadium rebuild coming, Kansas football will be on top once again."
When the sun came up, more fans of all ages showed out.
"We’ve been through so many dry years here in the last 12 or 13, but no, I’ve never seen anything like this," said Mike Rockers, a KU graduate from the class of 1971.
Other fans echoed that it's nothing they've ever seen before, and are excited to finally see some enthusiasm for football.
"We’ve never done a tailgate before, we’ve never been to a college game before," said Matthew, a British KU fan, who came all the way from the UK to see Kansas play. "When we go to a soccer game, it’s in pubs and there’s no atmosphere like this pregame... it’s nothing like a tailgate here."
From the tippy top of the Campanile, down The Hill to the stadium, Jayhawk fans are cheering on their team, hoping for another victory.
