Which fans will be in Indy for the Big Ten Championship?

Oregon Ducks fans cheer as the team takes the field during the Big Ten Championship game between the Oregon Ducks and the Penn State Nittany Lions at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis on Saturday, December 7, 2024.

INDIANAPOLIS – Heidi Kemper and Tiffany Jordan struck up a friendship at a Dave Matthews concert in Cancun in January.

Since then, they attended another Dave Matthews concert and met in Nashville. But this fall, a new twist in their friendship emerged: They supported Oregon football. Jordan is from Salem, Oregon, and graduated from college there. Kemper is from Noblesville and has never been to a college football game.

Kemper had no college football following and said it was easy to convince her to become an Oregon fan. And sure enough, she and Jordan stood at the gates of Lucas Oil before it opened Saturday, dressed in the Ducks’ signature neon green and yellow and carrying hand-made signs.

“I have no expectations because I know my expectations won’t be enough,” Kemper said. “I’ve watched pre-game hype shows and other college events and I can’t imagine how this will impact Lucas Oil.”

Big Ten Championship Result:Penn State vs. Oregon live score updates, highlights, how to watch the Big Ten Championship

Kemper and Jordan were among the thousands of Big Ten fans who streamed through the streets of Indianapolis on Saturday, holding signs and strolling through Tailgate Town across the street from Lucas Oil. Saturday’s championship was the first to take place in the new 18-team Big Ten, and of course the matchup between Penn State and Oregon had a cross-country flavor.

Oregon’s flashy uniforms and dominant teams have not only attracted their former fans, but also fans over the past decade. Some of those fans were in Indianapolis on Saturday, taking advantage of a rare opportunity to see the Ducks in person.

Dylan Aragon, 23, grew up in South Los Angeles and developed an affinity for Oregon because everyone else seemed to like the college teams from Northern and Southern California. He also said former Oregon star Marcus Mariota opened his eyes to the Ducks’ fan base.

He and a friend received tickets from a colleague for the three-hour drive from central Illinois to Indianapolis on Saturday. They enjoyed the Big Ten experience and watched famous eater Joey Chestnut set a world record by eating 21 pounds of shrimp.

“Most places people are afraid to come up and ask for something, but (at the Big Ten Experience) everyone said, ‘Hey,'” Aragon said. “‘Grab something. Come and take a photo.’ It was very welcoming.”

The price wasn’t a big problem for Aragon and a friend as they got their tickets for free. But it was more of a factor for Oregon fans, some of whom traveled across the country.

Recent Big Ten title games have featured teams like Ohio State, Michigan, Iowa, Purdue and Northwestern – all within a reasonable driving distance. Penn State is an eight-hour drive from Lucas Oil. Eugene, Oregon? A 32 hour hike. And of course, for many, the cost of a trip or cross-country flight goes hand in hand with paying for other expenses such as tickets, hotels and goods.

Jordan saved on a hotel during his stay at Kemper and paid a total of about $400 for two tickets as an Oregon season ticket holder. A group of Oregon fans who bought tickets said they paid about $200 each a month and a half ago.

A group of Penn State students said they paid about $150 each for their hotel and tickets, which they booked earlier this week.

“We all said, ‘This is almost like our spring break,'” said student Sarah Nasif. “So many people spend $300, $400 to go on spring break for a week and have fun. Each of us says, ‘No. We’re all there and we’ve decided to go to Indianapolis and spend as much money on hotels, tickets and whatever and dedicate it to our team.

However, tickets to the Big Ten Championship were significantly cheaper compared to other title games. A report from the Oregon Ducks on SI on Friday said ticket prices on StubHub for the Big Ten Championship were $16, while tickets for the SEC Championship started at $116.

There are several likely factors, including the absence of Midwestern Big Ten powerhouses Ohio State and Michigan, as well as Penn State and Oregon, which are subject to CFP bans – meaning fans of both teams are likely to face playoff trouble in the coming weeks. Watch games on their own campuses.

Still, making a conference championship game is a rare achievement for many teams. That’s something Nasif appreciates growing up in Wisconsin with parents who were Big Ten graduates. She last attended the title game in 2016 and said she had the time of her life with her parents.

That’s partly why Nasif and her friends made the eight-hour trek from State College on Friday and missed Penn State’s weekend Christmas festivities. She thought, “How rare will it be that we are all students again and playing in the game?”

“We decided, ‘Screw everything we (planned)’,” Nasif said. “We can all afford to miss a day of school to support our team.”

It seems like a lot of fans had the same idea – wearing everything from sparkly green jackets to Colts sweatshirts to Santa Claus costumes on the streets of Indianapolis. Everyone wants to head to Lucas Oil in hopes that their team will earn Big Ten bragging rights for a year.

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