Before the University of Oregon's football team competed in the national championship game on Monday, it faced the Arizona Wildcats in the Pacific-12 Football Championship Game at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California. The December 5 game marked the first time that the collegiate sporting event took place at that stadium. That meant the annual day-of tailgate party, organized by staffers of the Pacific-12 Conference, also had a new home.
For some 1,500 fans and partners, the conference's events and marketing team organized a gathering at the new Great America Pavilion adjacent to the venue. The venue offered access to theme-park-appropriate perks, including one in particular that had guests buzzing. "The integration of the roller coaster as an event activation was very well received and a differentiating factor for guests," said Heather Vaughn, the conference's vice president of marketing.
Along with entertaining guests, organizers used the event as a showcase for the Pacific-12 brand. Each of the 12 mascots from the organization's collegiate football teams appeared at the tailgate party and stopped into the lounge area to play games with guests. A social media contest invited guests to post to their accounts with the conference's hashtag, and those did won branded scarves. On a chalkboard wall, sports fans could also leave messages for their favorite teams. "Whether fans were harnessing social media to earn giveaways [or] rubbing elbows with Pac-12 mascots ... attendees were participants in the event rather than spectators," Vaughn said.
