The biggest current challenge for college football bucket-listers (outside of the physical act of finishing the journey) is the constant moving of goal posts. The FBS has undergone some serious expansion and reclassification lately with more almost certainly on the way. The good about that reclassification is the opportunity to visit new national gems, one of which being the Delaware Blue Hens‘ football game day.
This weekend, I met up with Andrew Bauhs of College Football Tour – an annual tradition that dates back to 2018. Andrew is nearing completion of the FBS journey and is a must-follow on his website, Instagram, and Twitter.
Located in Newark, Delaware puts on a wonderful game day. Its fans are passionate and hold the team to high expectations thanks to decades of success in the FCS. Full stadiums and victories aren’t new territory to them and that tradition seems poised to continue in the future.
I’d strongly recommend checking out Delaware Stadium in the near future. When you do, check out this game day guide. Read on for food and parking recommendations, traditions, and more regarding a Delaware football game day.
Go Hens!
Pregame At The FBS’ Newest Addition
The 2025 season marked the first for Delaware as a member of the FBS. Alongside Missouri State, it made the jump from Division-I AA and joined Conference USA, moving the goal posts for the journey. What a treat the addition was!
Newark wasn’t a college town on my radar before this visit. It’s a charming city with lots of local food and drink options, a walkable shopping hub right next to a gorgeous campus, and lots of to-dos within a tight radius. Looking for bustling cities? Newark is right near Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Washington D.C. How about outdoors? Delaware beaches are super underrated and the state has a bunch of wildlife refuges.
I was strongly recommended Deer Park Tavern for a pregame meal. It used to be a hotel and is now marked as a historic venue that’s relatively unchanged from its original state (minus the several bartops). I opted for a Chicken Cutlet BLT and a regional Vermont beer, neither of which disappointed.
I’d recommend a walk through campus before heading over to the athletics section. If you search around, you can find some free parking. There’s also $10 lots just to the south of the stadium, as well. All options are a short walk from the stadium campus.
Every team has a walk now and I’m not sure Delaware’s Flight Walk is an un-missable event. However, you will want to get to the Bob Carpenter Center for the pregame pep rally from the Pride of Delaware marching band and cheer team – both squads are outstanding. That happens twice: once right after the Flight Walk and again about an hour before kickoff. The National Championship-winning cheer squad is very drill-like with sharp moves and exuberant facial expressions.
After the Flight Walk, it’s worth a quick jog over to the Fan Zone, which features the Bird-Gade – a collection of three blue hens that serve as live mascots. But the remainder of pregame is reserved for tailgating.
Weeknight CUSA In Delaware
Tailgating at Delaware is a pleasant surprise. Lots are good and full, even on a Friday night, and Blue Hen fans really pride themselves on the pregame goings on. These folk–who come from across New England and the Eastern Seaboard, but are also strongly represented from the state itself–are among the most welcoming and friendly in the FBS. We were welcomed by a group that included former players, families of current players, and a chef that teaches culinary arts.
The tailgating is such a staple of game day that fans really trickle into the stadium. The late-arriving crowd didn’t really flesh out until midway through the second quarter. Once that crowd filled in, it was apparent Delaware Stadium was looking at a notable sellout. Some students opted to leave early to get ready for a Friday night out, but a good chunk of them stuck around until the final whistle.
There’s a few notable places to visit within Delaware Stadium: the beer garden in the northwest corner of the stadium, the hall of fame coaches busts right outside the beer garden, and the Pee Wall. The men’s restrooms feature trough-like urinals built into the wall (not for the feint of heart). For obvious reasons, you’ll have to use your imagination there.
After halftime, the UD Marching Band fractures into units and travels nearly every section of the stadium to play in between plays before returning to their seats for the final stretch. Also after each score, Delaware cheer rings a bell, once for each point scored on the possession.
If you enjoy mascots, you have plenty of opportunities to meet YouDee here. The mascot is one of the most accessible I’ve seen out on the road. Instead of running the sidelines, YouDee roams concourses and sections to interact with fans.
Delaware still wears the winged helmet look. It’s one of three programs historically to sport the wings and the most recent (1952), following Princeton (1935) and Michigan (1938). The program also adopted the Wing-T offense full-time and was the first to use it for more than just a couple years (Pop Warner installed it first, then David Nelson brought it to Maine and UD). While the Wing-T isn’t in place anymore, coach Ryan Carty uses a unique run scheme to succeed early in Delaware’s FBS tenure.
Western Kentucky 27, Delaware 24
It appeared that bell was going to get a workout early in the game. However, a couple critical miscues sunk Delaware’s chances at beating a CUSA frontrunner on national TV. The game’s 19,176 in attendance was the highest for a home game since 2018 (when UD renovated its stadium and reduced capacity by over 3,000 seats). Western Kentucky took note of the crowd and publicly praised Delaware fans for the effort.
Delaware rolled the dice just before halftime, opting to go for a fourth down on the one-yard line and converted. The Blue Hens went into halftime leading 17-10 and things were looking good for them.
Quarterback Nick Minicucci played well to start the season and stayed relatively mistake-free. He led Delaware with three rushing touchdowns thanks to a unique and aggressive run scheme brought to Newark by Carty. But Minicucci also threw a pick-six directly into the belly of a defensive end and, on the ensuing drive, fumbled the ball about an inch before crossing the goal line.
That 17-10 lead turned into a 27-17 deficit heading into the fourth quarter. Delaware fought hard and even possessed the ball with 54 seconds left in the game. A couple chunk plays brought the Blue Hens offense to the WKU 25-yard line. However, a questionable decision to let the clock run down and spike the ball to attempt the game-winning field goal sealed Delaware’s fate. Its kicker pushed the 42-yard attempt wide right and WKU escaped with a 27-24 victory.
Thrilling for certain, but a bitterly-disappointing outcome for Delaware, who controlled most of the game.
Delaware Stadium really struggles to keep phones connected to service. It’s a pain for those trying to document the game in real time or for friends trying to locate each other. It’s also an opportunity to unplug and enjoy Blue Hens football. That may improve in the future, but plan to be phone-less during the game!
Delaware Football Game Day Picks
- Pregame meal: Deer Park Tavern. Popular spot for a reason.
- Top Game Day tip: There’s free parking options around the stadium. Make sure to read signs, but side streets and local businesses offer free spots for pregame parking.
- Local beer: Dogfish Head Punkin’ Ale. You can grab this around much of the country and it’s my No. 1 favorite seasonal. Delaware fans love their Dogfish Head (brewed about 70 minutes away in Milton, DE).
- Postgame: Klondike Kate’s. Also a popular spot for a reason.
- Under-the-radar: Delaware beaches. Like North Carolina, but further north.
Delaware Football Game Day Grades
Stadium: C-. Navigation is easy enough and there’s lots of good seating options. A new president’s suite takes up some prime space but at least it’s not field-level in the end zone. Fairly run-of-the-mill, though the hedges give this a boost. Capacity was reduced by 3,500 in the last decade, likely to most games’ benefit. There’s nothing about the structure that’ll really knock your socks off.
Tradition: C. There’s some fun quirks here like the Bird-gade and the scoring bell. The UD Marching Band is quite good and the cheer squad is excellent, making pregame pop-up concerts by the Bob Carpenter Center and a postgame show worth it. Delaware still uses a winged helmet, which was adopted 13 years after Michigan and 16 years after Princeton. The winged helmets came along with the Wing-T offense, which was one of the first programs to utilize the scheme.
Atmosphere: C-. Aside from big scoring plays and critical late downs, the crowd was more or less absent. I’m not sure Delaware Stadium is built to trap noise, but it’s certainly not one that causes many issues to opposing teams. The band is fairly involved and doesn’t need a boost from the mic. Air between snaps and when things died down on the field got pretty stale and there was minimal media timeout entertainment.
Tailgating: B-. Surprising! Delaware shows out for its tailgating. While the tents were a tad late getting in, it was a Friday night and the lots were filled to the brim. This isn’t unusual, as we heard stories of tailgating groups dating back dozen of years. Our group even partakes in an annual turkey fry around Thanksgiving. It helps when you have a culinary teacher manning the Blackstone.
Fans: A. Delaware fans LOVE their Blue Hens football. FCS, FBS, doesn’t matter. Blue Hens are incredibly faithful to their football team and the fandom usually spans decades. They’re an exceptionally welcoming and friendly crowd and even visiting opponents rave about the environment and culture there. I experienced this firsthand – UD fans were some of the most accommodating bunch yet.
Extracirriculars: B. There’s a surprising amount to do right in Newark itself. It’s a charming college town. For those not regionally familiar, Delaware and beaches may not seem connected in any way, but there’s some phenomenal beaches in the state. For wildlife enthusiasts, take your pick of salt marshes and Wildlife Refuges. Also nearby to major metros like Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Washington D.C.
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Delaware Game Day Gallery
