Students were lined up Friday afternoon for a prime spot at Saturday morning's popular ESPN pregame college football show College GameDay.
The show airs from 9 a.m. to noon, with Showalter Fountain and the IU Auditorum as this week's backdrop.
IU business student Andrew Frickey, a junior, said he was the first person in line when he arrived at 11:30 p.m. Thursday.
"I have no classes on Fridays, nothing better to do," Fricke said. "I want to make sure I get in the front and get a chance for the kick."
A goal post was set up outside the Lilly Library. That's where a student is chosen for a chance to make what's usually a $1 million prize by kicking the ball through the uprights.
Frickey said he brought leftovers, a lot of water, a phone, a charger bank and some books.
"I tried to sleep," he said. "Got a few hours."
Frickey said the next person in line arrived around 3 a.m. Friday and others came at 7 a.m.
Semi trucks were on 7th Street on Friday with workers setting up fencing and a pop-up shop sold GameDay branded shirts.
GameDay is making its third appearance at IU. For this year, it moved to Showalter Fountain because the 3:30 p.m. kickoff for IU's homecoming game against Minnesota gives fans and the crew time to get to Memorial Stadium.
GameDay host Rece Davis spoke with media Friday afternoon at the steps of the IU Auditorium. He was asked what sets IU coach Curt Cignetti apart from other coaches he speaks with for broadcasts.
"His unflappable belief in Curt Cignetti," Davis said, "which we've joked about quite a bit, but I don't know that there's a better description."
College GameDay was in Bloomington two previous times, in 2017 and 2024.
"They are the standarbearers now, and they've done it in such an incredibly short amount of time," Davis said of IU. "I think it's the greatest turnaround in the history of the sport. Not only to become a contender but now they're the program everyone is aiming at."