Jackie O's !

Their Own Craft Beers

Great Food

Reasonable Prices

If time permits, I'd suggest a short drive to the Hocking Hills area for a hike, or just a drive through the countryside. If you hike, my favorite spot is Conkles Hollow. It's probably 40 minutes from campus driving.

Closer walking/hiking is found near Strouds Run State Park, Radar Hill near Campus, or the bike path that goes by campus and the town.

If you're planning to tailgate - send me a PM on here. At my tailgate for this game, there will be a fellow Jayhawk. I have a friend in Columbus who was born & raised in Lawrence, and migrated to Columbus years ago for work.

Welcome!
Athens is gorgeous, absolutely worth the trip.

The Jackie O's recommendations are 100% on point, the beer is great. It's probably one of, if not the best Micro-brews in the state, if you ask me.

For bars, everyone has their favorites, my haunts were always Lucky's, Cat's Eye and Tony's.

For food, I am a sucker for Bagel Street Deli and Big Mama's Burritos.

Have fun on your trip!

Without a doubt. And, they always have different styles on tap. None of this only tapping seasonal beer (IPA's during the summer for example).


Agree with Doc as well - I love the Skull. And the bonus is that it opens before anywhere else, so if you're in the mood for an early start....

If you are into craft beer Athens is home to three of the finest Craft Breweries. Little Fish Brewery, Devils Kettle Brewery, and the oldest Jackie O's. They have their own unique atmospheres but most importantly they all have wonderful brews.

This thread is exactly why I love our community.

PM me if there is anything you need while here. I have a parking pass that I don't use, you are more than welcome to use it to tailgate/park.

Rock chalk.

I think the Lawrence experience was pretty neat last year as well. Not populated with as many bars as Athens perhaps, but a quintessential college town IMO. I liked the stadium as well although it was half empty it seemed. The highlight for the home fans was probably the info announcement before the game explaining stadium policies. Pretty funny.

I think KU will surprise some more folks this year, just hoping it's not us. They did lose their transfer receiver/ kick returner? who hurt us some last year. He also helped us with 2 critical fumbles.

Tons of great recommendations. Thank you, all!

@OU_Country - Perfect! We'll be in touch if we're able to tailgate - I'll be at my friend's disposal since he is kindly shepherding me around. But we will keep this in mind!

@Alan Swank - I didn't even mention parking policy - we'll be on the lookout, thank you

@shabamon - I'm flying in Thursday to meet up with a friend who lives in Columbus. We'll catch the Royals/Indians on Friday night, and head to Athens early Saturday morning. Time permitting we will check out Paw Paw :)

@WishIWasAtLuckys - give that to a Bobcat first!

@colobobcat66 - Yes, I agree that this KU team is trending up (though it's hard not to given how bad things got).

Some notes on KU Football that nobody asked for (but I love CFB talk and can never get my fill). Please share insights on OU's 2017 team too!

Charlie Weis eviscerated this program from a scholarship-perspective (like a juicy slab of BBQ ribs) with a heavy JUCO approach (many left the program before playing a down due to off-the field and/or conditioning issues), and David Beaty is still dealing with the remnants of that. KU is approaching full-scholarship numbers in 2017 for the first time since 2014, but due to annual scholarship limits, it may not be until 2018/2019 that KU fields a full roster of scholarship-caliber players.
KU brings back a lot of young talent, though, including the pre-season defensive POY, Dorance Armstrong, who played the first half of last year on a rehabbing ACL. Dorance may remind you of the Basham kid you guys had coming off the edge. Armstrong still finished the season with 10 sacks despite the injury in pre-season and will likely play on Sundays next fall.
As you mentioned, Quiv Gonzalez was dismissed. The consensus is that he was not a team-first guy, despite his close relationship with Beaty. Kid had a high ceiling (kick returns) but sometimes a lower floor (fumbles). KU has some solid depth at WR, so his loss is mitigated a bit.
QB is a giant question mark. So. Carter Stanley showed flashes late last year, and he competes with WASH St. transfer Peyton Bender to lead new OC Doug Meachum's air-raid offense.
I don't know which OU quarterback will start, but I anticipate him taking shots downfield against our inexperienced secondary. Are you guys high on the Maxwell kid?
But I will say, OU is catching KU at the right time of the year. And I was impressed with the team that Solich brought to Lawrence last year. Very workmanlike victory (I don't mean that as a slight at all-- you could just tell OU was familiar with winning). I would love to see KU with a team as disciplined.
I expect continued progress throughout the season, so our offense may be a bit raw in September. Also, there is nothing hyperbolic about our road woes. KU has dropped 41-straight (36-straight in conference). This will be a stiff test for KU as is, but the mental hurdle of winning away from Memorial Stadium just compounds the challenge.

Looking forward to a great game!

Your MLB team in a visiting stadium and your college football team in a nearby visiting stadium is an absolute scheduling gem. Don't see breaks like that very often. Enjoy.

I ordered our tickets through the KU ticket office and we are to pick them up at will call, so don't have the actual tickets in had. I'm curious as to what section the visitors sit in.

Be sure to get to will call early. In the past the lines have been long and it can take a while to get your tickets.

Enjoy.

I second that. I'd suggest going to will call at the time they open, then go find that sandwich and adult soda.