It’s not unusual for John Richardson to feed 400 to 500 mouths on game day. It’s been 35 years since he started tailgating at LSU, and every season brings new opportunities to try something fresh.
On the Southern University campus, longtime tailgater Eroll Mencer will be setting up this season with the same group he’s cooked with for about 25 years. They plant stakes on a grassy area near the F. G. Clark Activity Center, otherwise known as the Southern minidome.
And in a shady spot off Dalrymple Drive near the LSU Indian Mounds, Zach Rau and the DVA tailgaters feed from 40 to 100. Crowds depend on the opponent, but the years LSU plays Alabama at home yield the biggest turnouts.
It’s the common scene on fall Saturdays in Baton Rouge during the buildup to the Tigers and Jaguars taking the field. Fans munch, slurp and stew home-cooked, catered or store-bought eats. It’s the fuel that ultimately gets them from dawn to dusk.
September’s cover story in 225 is all about the array of game-day eats that Baton Rouge has become so famous for in sports media. Flip through 225’s September issue here.
