After five straight weeks of judging, a boisterous group of Mobile Police officers and their friends walked away with bragging rights, prizes and on-field recognition as the winners of the first season-long tailgate competition tied to South Alabama Jaguars home games at Ladd-Peebles Stadium.
The Low Friends Tailgate Association, led by tailgate captain Tim Meynard, said they never doubted the outcome. “There’s nobody better than us,” Meynard said after the announcement, capping a stretch that saw judges visit tailgate setups across five different Jaguars games before crowning a champion following the Friday game held the day after Thanksgiving.
The prize package included a year’s worth of $50 monthly gift cards to a local grocery, along with koozies, pom poms, stadium cushions, ponchos, T-shirts and two tailgating tents, on top of the recognition delivered on the field before the crowd of 14,571 fans in attendance.
Meynard’s group, which includes several Mobile Police Department officers among its regulars, has built a reputation among game-day staff as a reliable stop for a quick bite and a cold drink while working events at the stadium. On the day of the win, the six-tent operation, which typically draws more than 30 people, catered trays from two well-known local spots, Lap’s Grocery and Grill and Moe’s Bar-B-Que.
With temperatures dropping after the holiday, Lap’s gumbo proved to be a fast-moving favorite among the crowd, while Moe’s seasonal “Dirty Eggnog,” a mix of eggnog, Captain Morgan rum and a dusting of nutmeg, was a hit with tailgaters trying to stay warm. The specialty drink was set to remain on the restaurant’s menu through the rest of the holiday season.
Members of the group said the appeal of tailgating goes well beyond the food and prizes. “We plan for weeks for each event because each game is different,” said one of the group’s members, a Mobile Police spokeswoman who tailgates alongside her colleagues. “We get really excited and everyone is giddy and funny.”
The Low Friends have set up at Ladd-Peebles Stadium for roughly five years, growing from a small family operation into one of the more recognized tailgate crews at Jaguars games. Looking ahead, Meynard said his group has one wish for the future of South Alabama football: an on-campus stadium that would make parking and game-day logistics easier for tailgaters across the city.
In the meantime, the group said it plans to put its newly won tailgate tent to use at other Jaguars sporting events, including baseball games, as the football offseason approaches and South Alabama’s athletic calendar shifts to spring sports.