Food trucks and live music will descend upon Notre Dame Stadium on Friday night at the inaugural Friday Night Bash hosted by ND Loyal.
From 7-10 p.m., fans and families will have the opportunity to explore and relax on the stadium concourse and enjoy food and beer from various vendors. There will also be live music from the Jerry O’Fonics Band and Uprising, a student band.
Tickets for the event are $10 in advance online and $15 at the door, while children under 13 years old are granted free entry. Notre Dame, Saint Mary’s and Holy Cross students can enter the event free of charge. Food and drinks will be available for purchase from the vendors once inside, according to the eventbrite page.
Brandon Tabor, director of marketing operations in the University’s development department, was excited by the rollout of the event and said the bash will be “special.”
“The timing of it is perfect,” Tabor said. “It’s right after the pep rally and it’s just part of the day when people are struggling to find dinner reservations or places to go and everything’s packed. So we wanted to create an opportunity for people to go get food and drinks and be entertained right here on campus in an amazing venue.”
The event will feature food trucks from Redamak's, a burger restaurant from New Buffalo, Michigan, Hacienda Mexican Restaurant of Goshen, Indiana and The Rolling Stonebaker Pizza Truck from Valparaiso, Indiana. The event will also host The REAL Grille Grilled Cheese Truck of South Bend and a truck from Cute as a Cupcake from Merrillville.
Devon Aragona, an event organizer with Notre Dame marketing operations, explained how the idea for such an event arose on the big rivalry weekend.
“The opportunity arose to use the concourse in some way, shape, or form, and we’re like, ‘What can we do with it?’ and so it seemed like a great opportunity to have fun with that,” Aragona said.
When asked about the date of the bash, Aragona said the timing couldn’t be better.
“It was a great opportunity for the USC game to gather all of the fans that are in town, have a great time, and celebrate Notre Dame and the important game,” Aragona said.
In addition to food and camaraderie, fans can also listen to live performances from the Jerry O’Fonics Band, a local covers band which calls itself “Notre Dame’s purveyors of rock and roll.” Uprising, a student band, will also perform a variation of pop music and old classics for the festivities.
The University has many events running during the rivalry game weekend, with the Friday Night Bash looking to attract a large crowd and raise money for the school. Proceeds from the event will benefit financial aid for Notre Dame students.
First-year Meredith Wilson said she is grateful for events such as Friday Night Bash for raising money for financial aid.
“I am excited for the Friday Night Bash, not only for the delicious food but also because of the upstanding cause,” Wilson said. “I am thankful that Notre Dame places such an emphasis on offering financial aid to students.”
