Marshall Thundering Herd vs Coastal Carolina Chanticleers, 10/28/2023, 6pm

CCU 34 – Marshall 6, Attendance: 21,324

Weather: Sunny, 80; Ticket: Free, Face: $38, Parking: $25

“Salt Life Football” by Tree

Coastal Carolina University is in Conway, South Carolina. It is just outside of Myrtle Beach. There are direct flights into the Myrtle Beach airport, but many of those are discontinued once beach season ends. Having been stranded in Myrtle Beach before because of a cancelled flight, I know there is some risk to an offseason trip. However, when my cousin asked if I wanted to join him for the game and cheer on his son, it was an offer I could not refuse. Having made the drive from Myrtle Beach to my home before, I knew it would be a long (five and half hours) but pleasant drive. While Conway is about twenty to thirty minutes to Myrtle Beach, the lodging rates are much cheaper at the beach and make the drive worthwhile. Depending on when you head to a game, it will probably be warm enough to enjoy the beach amenities.

Instead of standing in line at a sub shop, why don’t we go to a Publix to get our sandwiches. Unfortunately, when we arrived at Publix, we discovered that we were not the only ones with that idea. After sitting in line for 20 minutes and barely moving, we decided to bail and risk the long lines at Jersey Mike’s. It was there that my cousin did have a truly great idea. Get two subs – one for the tailgate and one for after the game. By the time we got back to the Airbnb that night, it was nearly 11pm and having that sub from the cooler was delicious. It is a great tip for night games because by the time the game is over, your food options are limited if you are hungry.

So, while getting the subs was a great idea, our deli jumping had put us a little behind in getting to the stadium. We were both concerned that the cash tailgate lot (GG) would be filled. However, we pulled in and got a spot with no problem. It was $25 cash. This lot is one of the farthest from the stadium but there are free shuttles to get you to the game. Given its location, the lot is a little less crowded and it was dominated by Herd fans. It was fine with us because we were supporting Marshall, but if you are trying to get some Chanticleer flavor you may want to see if you can park closer.

It won’t be easy though as Coastal Carolina is a small market tailgating Death Valley. The parking passes are only available to season ticket holders and big alumni donors; yet there’s not enough outside demand to create a good third-party market for passes. As we got closer to the stadium, we could see the negative consequences of that approach. While there were Coastal Carolina tailgaters, there were also a fair number of spots with either just a parked vehicle or worse, an open spot. We did see what looked to be a robust student tailgating section right next to the field. There was also plenty of room for more spots and we were surprised that no one had utilized more of that space for tailgaters. For us though, the cash lot at Coastal was good enough and we had plenty of fun there with other Marshall fans.

The Chanticleers play at Brooks Stadium, a small stadium seating only 21,000. The stadium was packed for our game with a new attendance record of 21,324. It was built in 2003 and still has that new car smell. It has seat backs in the middle section of the second tier on the stadiums home side. The rest of the seats are the classic aluminum bleachers. I sat on the visitors’ side with the Marshall parents. We were top of the deck at about the 20-yard line. Given how small the stadium is, the seats were more than adequate, especially since they were free. There is only one video board, and it was average. The concessions were standard fair and while there was a souvenir cup, it was very, very weak. The star of the site, though, was the Teal turf field. It doesn’t look too different from a green field, but it is notable. In terms of impact, it is probably more noticeable than EMU’s gray field, but not as dramatic as the blue field of Boise State.

The team entrance and opening were okay and the “It’s Game Day in Conway” has a nice ring to it. It is hard not to like the mascot moniker of Chanticleers. It is very unusual and is embraced by the fan base. “Go Chants” is the popular cheer, and they make a Chanticleer hand gesture. It is basically the “OK” sign but pinching the index finger and thumb instead of a round circle. The fans want to make sure you make the pinch. Dress code is southern coastal casual with lots of shorts, half cut t-shirts – basically one cut above what you’d wear at the beach. They use the generic “Another Coastal Carolina first down” cheer but they don’t do a lot of fan bits during TV time outs. The fan base was not exactly loud even with mascot Chauncy the Chanticleer running around to motivate them. The student section whiffed on singing “Bright Eyes”. However, not surprisingly, they rebounded well with a robust rendition of “Sweet Caroline”. The Coastal Carolina band was small, but they did sound well. One promotion I did like was the “Brick the kick for the Chick” which was a promo for free a chicken sandwich when the opponent missed a field goal. (Or at least I think that is what it was – my notes are a bit light on the quote.)

On paper, this looked like a good matchup. Both teams entering the game were 4-3. However, they were going in different directions. The Herd was not Thundering, having lost their last three while the Chanticleers had won their last two. Coastal Carolina stayed hot, putting together a nice opening drive that ended in a field goal. It looked like Marshall was going to answer, but the drive stalled at the CCU 31 and the 49-yard field goal was missed. After that, it was all Chanticleers who scored on their next four possessions. Marshall managed a couple of field goals, but at halftime it was 26-7 Coastal Carolina, and the game was all but over. The turnovers tell the story with Marshall giving up the ball six times to Coastal’s one. No team is going to overcome those kinds of miscues.

Brooks Stadium is named in honor of Coby and Boni Brooks, the children of Robert Brooks. Robert Brooks was a successful businessman, most notably the driving force behind “Hooters”. Given that, it feels like the Chants are not fully leveraging the Brooks connection with their marketing. Just spit-balling here but maybe a slogan like “Come see our Cocks in a titular experience.”

Kidding aside, going to see the Chanticleers play has lots of potential. The location is hard to beat and for most of the season, it could easily be worked into an affordable long weekend at Myrtle Beach. The tailgating is easy to do, and the Chanticleers program has been solid to good the last few years. It isn’t top tier or a must-see, but it is certainly not to be avoided. In fact, I would say if your team were playing at Brooks Stadium you should go. I would add that if you are on the east coast within a five-to-six-hour drive of Myrtle beach, it is worth the trip. And, if it’s a night game, don’t forget to pick up that extra sub. You won’t regret it.