Kansas football game day: The Wheel, wave the wheat, and Rock Chalk
IN. YOU KNOW ONE OF THE BEST THINGS ABOUT COLLEGE FOOTBALL SATURDAYS IT’S THE TRADITIONS ON ALL THE DIFFERENT CAMPUSES. TAYLOR KAUFFMAN. YES, THAT TAYLOR WAS IN LAWRENCE YESTERDAY. BIG SURPRISE TO GET THE FULL GAME DAY EXPERIENCE WHEN YOU COME TO LAWRENCE, KANSAS FOR A GAME DAY, YOU HAVE TO HIT UP ONE OF THE MOST ICONIC COLLEGE BARS IN THE COUNTRY, THE WHEEL, LOCATED ON 14TH AND OHIO, THIS ICONIC BAR IS ALWAYS PACKED BRIGHT AND EARLY ON GAME DAY, SO IF YOU CAN FIND YOURSELF A BOOTH, MAYBE GET A PITCHER OF BEER, GRAB SOME FOOD, AND SIGN YOUR NAME ON THE WALL BEFORE YOU GO. WHAT MAKES THE WHEEL ONE OF THE BEST COLLEGE BARS IN THE COUNTRY? I THINK JUST NOT CHANGING ANYTHING BECAUSE YOU GET YOU GET BACK WHAT YOU HAD WHEN YOU WERE HERE IN SCHOOL. SO NOT MUCH CHANGES. NEW TVS AND TABLES IS ABOUT IT AND YOU GET THAT SAME NOSTALGIA RIGHT DOWNSTAIRS WITH WHEEL PIZZA. HOW ARE YOU DOING? PEPPERONI, PLEASE. HOW MANY SLICES OF PIZZA DO YOU SELL? LIKE, ON AVERAGE ON A GAME DAY? ON A GAME DAY? WHAT DO YOU THINK IT IS? 3000 SLICES OF PIZZA? MAYBE. I GOTTA GO CUT SOME PIZZA. YEAH. OKAY. YEAH, YOU GET OUT OF HERE. THERE YOU GO, SIR. THEY LOVE THE RANCH, AND THEY LOVE THE HONEY. SO THE KEY IS, YOU KNOW, YOU EAT THE PIZZA DOWN TO THE CRUST, AND THEN YOU DIP IT IN. YOU HAVE TO DIP THE CRUST IN THE HONEY. YOU CAN’T BEAT IT. BUT THE GAME DAY TRADITIONS ACTUALLY START THE NIGHT BEFORE AS THE BAR BAND MAKES ITS WAY FROM MASS STREET TO 14TH STREET, GETTING THE STUDENTS READY FOR GAME DAY. YEAH, THAT’S THE SAME BAND YOU SEE ON SATURDAY. THE KU MARCHING BAND WAS FORMED IN 1898, AND SINCE THE 70S, THE MARCHING JAYHAWKS HAVE MARCHED DOWN CAMPANIL HILL TO THE STADIUM BEFORE KICKOFF, WHERE MORE TRADITIONS CONTINUE. WHAT IS WAVING THE WHEAT? WHEN DO YOU DO IT? SO WE AFTER EVERY TIME WE SCORE, IT’S THE BEST TRADITION WE GOT HERE. I LOVE IT WHEN WE SCORE. IT’S ALWAYS WAVE THE WHEAT. AND OF COURSE, WHEN A WIN IS IMMINENT, YOU’LL HEAR FROM CHUCK J. ROK-TAHK JAYHAWK. ROCK. CHALK. JAYHAWK Q. ROCK. CHUCK. JAYHAWK Q. WAS THAT YOU ON THE SIDELINE? I SAW. MAN, THAT’S KILLING ME. LET ME JUST TELL YOU, YOU AND THE PIZZA DIDN’T BRING ANY PIZZA BACK. DIDN’T DO ANYTHING. WE COULD HAVE BEEN CELEBRATING A CHIEFS WIN I MEAN YOU’RE BACK THERE JUST JUST GETTING IT IN. BUT THAT IS TRULY WHAT IT’S ALL ABOUT. WHEN YOU GO TO COLLEGE CAMPUSES, YOU GOT TO DO ALL THE STUFF THAT THEY DO OUT THERE AND JUST POP, POP, POP AROUND THE OLD STOMPING GROUNDS, YOU KNOW? AND AND THAT ROCK TALK CHANT, IT’S MEMORABLE. IT’S GREAT. THE BAR BAND, THAT’S ONE OF MY FAVORITE THINGS THAT YOU DO IN LAWRENCE YOU HAD FUN. YOU HAD A LOT OF FUN. YOU HAD A LOT OF FUN IN LAWRENCE. YOU KNOW WHO ELSE IS HAVING FUN? LEN JENNINGS WHEN WE COME BACK, WE’RE GOING TO GO UP TO NEW YORK, NEW JERSEY AND SEE THE CHIEFS CELEBRATING THEIR WIN.
From late-night music to pre-game pizza, traditions are at the heart of college football Saturdays in Lawrence.One of the most popular stops for fans is The Wheel, an iconic bar at 14th and Ohio that has been a fixture for decades. On game days, crowds pack the booths to share pitchers, sign their names on the walls, and order slices of Wheel Pizza, about 3,000 on a typical Saturday. Locals say the bar’s charm comes from keeping things simple.The celebrations begin the night before with the KU bar band marching from Massachusetts Street to campus. On game day, the Marching Jayhawks, formed in 1898, lead fans down Campanile Hill to Memorial Stadium. Inside, more traditions unfold, from “waving the wheat” after every Kansas score to the famous “Rock Chalk” chant when victory is near.
LAWRENCE, Kan. —
From late-night music to pre-game pizza, traditions are at the heart of college football Saturdays in Lawrence.
One of the most popular stops for fans is The Wheel, an iconic bar at 14th and Ohio that has been a fixture for decades.
On game days, crowds pack the booths to share pitchers, sign their names on the walls, and order slices of Wheel Pizza, about 3,000 on a typical Saturday.
Locals say the bar’s charm comes from keeping things simple.
The celebrations begin the night before with the KU bar band marching from Massachusetts Street to campus.
On game day, the Marching Jayhawks, formed in 1898, lead fans down Campanile Hill to Memorial Stadium.
Inside, more traditions unfold, from “waving the wheat” after every Kansas score to the famous “Rock Chalk” chant when victory is near.