My son is also a college athlete what normally happens is somebody coordinates food for the team so there will be food for the athletes and the coaches already there.

In the morning we bring coffee, bagels, muffins, donuts.

In the afternoon we normally have snacks for the parents like cheese platters, veggie platters, shrimp and dip, sandwiches to pick up and walk away with, cookies, cupcakes, bags of chips. Do you wanna have waters and some people bring beer and wine.

I usually bring Krispy Kreme doughnuts for the team and parents because most people don’t get those where they’re from. My friend likes to bring crab chips.

Bring a chair to sit in.

OP you say you aren’t a fan of typical tailgate fare. OK so don’t think of it as a tailgate. Think of it as a picnic, an afternoon at a winery, Gold Cup, etc. It is all just somewhat portable al fresco food.

Mmmm... what about muffelettas?

https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/bobby-flay/muffaletta-recipe-1949792

for the love of god please don't bring a 6 foot sandwich from Subway. Easy individual sandwiches are fine. But get them from The Italian Store (they have "bite size" which is basically a sub cut into quarters) or Panera or make your own.

Pony keg and a grill with burgers and wings if you actually want to tailgate

All these ideas are good!

You could get or make a tray of wrap sandwiches cut into small pieces ... some places call these pinwheels.

Chips, veggie tray, dip, cookies.

Chick Fil A nuggets. Wings. Chili (especially if you can plug in a crockpot).

Deviled eggs and Yoohoo

Mid-late afternoon ... Is this just snacks, or will it serve as dinner? I'm not quite sure of the timing.

If this will act as a meal, I'd think about finger foods like fried chicken, pigs in blankets, sliced veggies & dip. Or bring trays of egg rolls and grilled skewers of thinly sliced meat (chicken, beef, pork - whatever you like).

For snacks - you could do the classic chips, pretzels, etc. If you're looking for something different, and somewhere between snack and meal, maybe empanadas?

Anonymous wrote:Agree with the PP. You're talking about a tailgate, OP. Haven't you ever been to one? You could grab a few footlongs from Subway or you could do chili or you could grill burgers. You have a lot of options. I think your subject line is off. It should be "Tailgate Menu" or something like that. What you've got is weird and makes people want to avoid your thread.

Thanks for your response and to the other posters as well. Actually, I haven't been to a tailgate since I was in college, which is why I'm asking for advice. And, to be honest, I'm not a fan of typical tailgate fare, but am trying to think of what would please others. I also hoped I might get responses that were a little different than typical tailgate fare (not that there's anything wrong with that, but I do appreciate hearing new ideas). As to the title of the thread, I mistakenly posted here, rather than in the College Forum (or maybe Jeff moved it?), where I figured I would get responses from people who have had similar experiences. I'm not sure at this point how to change the subject heading here; maybe I'll just cross-post on college forum.

Agree with the PP. You're talking about a tailgate, OP. Haven't you ever been to one? You could grab a few footlongs from Subway or you could do chili or you could grill burgers. You have a lot of options. I think your subject line is off. It should be "Tailgate Menu" or something like that. What you've got is weird and makes people want to avoid your thread.

Think tailgate for this. pulled pork sliders and picnic fare

Snickerdoodles

Chocolate chip cookies

Here's a fun question . . . for a change. DC, a college athlete, will be traveling to the DMV for a competition next weekend. We're planning to go to the event, along with other family members and friends, and we'd like to bring some snacks to share with our guests and with any other parents who attend. This event is outside in the afternoon. If you were coming to watch your child play their sport outside in the mid-late afternoon, what would you want to eat?